Ruben Amorim says he is not “crazy” enough to think Manchester United can lift the Premier League trophy next season but knows he needs to win quick as times have changed since the Sir Alex Ferguson era.
The 20-time champions are enduring a miserable campaign, with the Red Devils languishing 13th ahead of Sunday’s clash with rivals Manchester City at Old Trafford.
Pep Guardiola’s side have won the last four Premier League titles but slumped to fifth this term, albeit the fact they still have a 14-point cushion over United underlines the work required.
United co-owners Ineos have outlined their ambition to win a 21st league crown by the club’s 150th anniversary in 2028, but ‘Project 150’ look unrealistic right now.
“Of course I understand, I am not naive,” Amorim said. “I don’t want to think ‘we need a lot of years to be competitive’. I cannot think like that, I cannot manage that. It’s not in me and that’s why I am putting pressure on myself.
“I know that we are not going to be the biggest contender in the next year or two years. I know we need to do a lot of things.
“It’s not that next year is our goal. I am not saying that we are going to win the title next year. I am not crazy.
“What I am saying is I don’t want this conversation to be that ‘we need a lot of years’, ‘let’s keep in calm’. We are in a rush.
“So, we are suffering a lot for next year to be so much better and that is our goal.
“Sometimes things can happen, so I don’t want to be that guy that is here saying ‘we need a lot of time’. I will not be that coach.”
Amorim says United “need a lot to catch” the Premier League’s best and wants to “bring one or two big players” to the club this summer.
There have been flashes of promise since the Portuguese arrived in November, but he acknowledged times have changed since Ferguson took six-and-a-half years to win his first league title.
“I have a lot of people saying Sir Alex Ferguson took three or four years to win something,” he said, nodding to United’s 1990 FA Cup triumph.
“It is not possible nowadays because you have to speak three times and give three interviews before each game, so the pressure is completely different.
“Then any team new in the Premier League can win, so it’s going to be really important.
“But we are Manchester United, there are a lot of good things, there is some bad things. That is the pressure. No matter the context, we need to be there with the best ones.
“Of course we will have to face a lot of adversity and a lot of big teams, more than in the past, but let’s focus on that and try to win the next game.”
Amorim revealed Kobbie Mainoo could make his first appearance after two months out this weekend, but Matthijs de Ligt is a doubt to face City due to an issue picked up in Tuesday’s 1-0 defeat at Nottingham Forest.
“I think Kobbie is returning to training,” he said. “We will see and assess for this game. Of course he cannot play a full game. It’s a long time without training.
“I think Matthijs has an issue. He had something in the game and we have to assess.”
