Ruben Amorim was linked with the Benfica job after José Mourinho left the club, but Amorim himself said he wants to continue his career abroad, outside Portugal. And that raises the question: are there currently clubs better than Benfica willing to hire Amorim?
Do not get me wrong, Amorim did a great, great job in Portugal and fully deserved his move to Manchester United to try to be the saviour, but he failed, and quite badly. And there was one thing that became very obvious, something that modern football is becoming less and less tolerant of in coaches: stubbornness. He tried to force the 3-4-2-1 system at United even without the right players for it, constantly played players out of position and even Bruno Fernandes ended up playing deeper next to Casemiro. That was heavily criticised.
Yes, United have become a graveyard for managers in recent years, but then Carrick came in as interim after Amorim left, simplified everything, put players back in their natural positions and suddenly had a very good season. So the question naturally appears: how much of the blame actually belongs to Amorim himself?
He left at the lowest point of his career and, honestly, I struggle to see top clubs wanting a manager who does not adapt. This is real football, not Football Manager where you can force the same tactic every match and somehow make it work. At the highest level, you have to adjust. I am not saying you change everything every game, but you must know how to exploit different opponents.
Considering he was sacked, and rightly so, it is difficult for me to imagine clubs clearly above Benfica taking a gamble on him right now.
And then another question appears: is it arrogance? Refusing to return to Portuguese football because it is not seen as “European elite” level? But even within the European elite, like Serie A for example, would a genuine title contender really go for him right now? Or is it more realistic to imagine clubs like Lazio or Udinese, with all due respect?
Conclusion
I do not know if it is arrogance or something else, but right now Ruben Amorim is not a manager for the very top clubs in European football. He left Manchester United in a very poor moment and needs to take a step back, rebuild himself through strong projects and consistent work, especially because he is still young at only 41 years old. If he does that properly, then in the future he can absolutely earn another opportunity at the elite level.