Ruben Amorim's Man Utd explosion explained: Bizarre comment from director Jason Wilcox that pushed axed head coach over the edge revealed

After the Red Devils struggled to a 1-1 draw against Premier League rivals Leeds United, Amorim came out in his conference with a point to make. He made a series of claims in a wild outburst which criticised the club’s executives. It is now understood this was aimed towards Wilcox, who had been initially hesitant to appoint Amorim in November 2024.

When asked if he still has the board's backing, Amorim said: “To start with that, I noticed that you received selective information about everything. I came here to be the manager of Manchester United, not to be the coach of Manchester United. And that is clear.”

He continued to say that he is not Thomas Tuchel, Antonio Conte or Jose Mourinho – three managers known for their hands on approach when it comes to recruitment and club management – but added that: “I’m the manager of Manchester United.

“And it’s going to be like this for 18 months or when the board decides to change. That was my point. I want to finish with that. I’m not going to quit. I will do my job until another guy is coming here to replace me.”

It is now being reported that the relationship between Wilcox and Amorim had broken down before the Leeds game. The Sunreport that training ground sources have told them that Wilcox billed himself as “like a manager” and stressed that Amorim was the coach.

This will have irked Amorim, who had been demanding more support from the club in the transfer market. The Portuguese coach was supposedly unhappy that a move for Antoine Semenyo was not sanctioned, with the Ghanaian moving to Manchester City instead.

The deep factions and rifts continue to plague United. The club have long suffered with poor recruitment of both coaching and playing staff, creating a mixed bag of a squad and even more inconsistent results.

Amorim was deeply wedded to his 3-4-3 formation and demanded signings which suited his formation. This created huge scrutiny on the former Sporting CP man who was accused of being too risk averse and predictable.

The Portuguese boss was able to spend significantly in the summer and added an entire new-look frontline including Mathues Cunha, Bryan Mbeumo and Benjamin Sesko. Amorim also brought in wing-backs to suit his formation which relied heavily of pace and energy down the flanks.

Darren Fletcher has taken temporary charge of the Red Devils and oversaw a 2-2 draw with Burnley earlier this week. He will be in the dugout when Brighton travel to Old Trafford in the FA Cup third round. The Seagulls have a mightily impressive record at Old Trafford and will fancy their chances against the inconsistent Red Devils.

It is unclear if and when a permanent appointment will be made, with some reports suggesting that they will wait until the summer to name a new boss. This could mean that Fletcher will welcome rivals Manchester City to their home with a chance to deal a hammer blow to their rivals’ title chances in the derby on January 17.

Pep Guardiola’s men are currently six points behind league leaders Arsenal, but will be determined to hunt down that gap. They have drawn their first three games of 2026 to fall away in the title race, being held by Brighton, Chelsea and Sunderland.