Sir Jim Ratcliffe had his say on Ruben Amorim's uncertain Manchester United future in a bombshell interview. It's been a disappointing start in Amorim's first full season in charge at Old Trafford with the club sitting 10th in the Premier League table.
The 40-year-old has just 10 league wins to his name at United since his arrival in November 2024 and has been under immense pressure for almost the entirety of his stint with the club. United were only set to play in three competitions this season after losing out on European football following their Europa League final defeat earlier this year.
That number went down to two after their humiliating exit in the Carabao Cup at the hands of League Two side Grimsby Town in August. Despite the disappointments, Amorim has so far retained the faith of the Ratcliffe and the United hierarchy who splashed out over £200million this summer on new players.
However, the INEOS chief has handed Amorim somewhat of a timeline when it comes to returning United to their prior status as a football superpower. In his plan to do so, the ex-Sporting Lisbon boss could attempt to add another player to his attacking arsenal in what would be a significant move in the transfer market. Mirror Football breaks down the latest headlines coming out of Old Trafford.
It's not a common occurrence for club owners to give interviews about managers under pressure but that didn't stop Sir Jim Ratcliffe from doing exactly that. The Manchester United co-owner discussed Amorim, amongst other things, during his appearance on the The Business podcast hosted by Dominic O'Connell and Hannah Prevett.
During the conversation, Ratcliffe opened up about United's plans to return to success with the club having gone over 13 years without a league title and 17 years since their last Champions League trophy.
Despite United's struggles, the 72-year-old has stood strong behind Amorim and admitted he wouldn't sack him if he was instructed to by the Glazer family. Describing the Portuguese coach as a "good guy", Ratcliffe admitted it hasn't been a good start to the new campaign for the club.
While he hasn't shied away from offering support to Amorim, he did make clear that the manager must demonstrate he is the right man to lead the Red Devils back to victory, while seemingly giving him a deadline to do so.
"He has not had the best of seasons," Ratcliffe said. "Ruben needs to demonstrate he is a great coach over three years. That's where I would be."
United did fork out huge amounts of money to upgrade their attacking options with Matheus Cunha, Bryan Mbeumo and Benjamin Sesko all arriving at the club this summer. However, it's not yet clicked between the trio who've scored a combined five league goals so far this season.
While Sesko has netted in his last two games and slowly starting to grow as United's frontman, Mbeumo hasn't scored in the league since netting against Burnley in August while Cunha has yet to find the net for his new club.
One player that could help ignite their attacking numbers is Bournemouth talisman Antoine Semenyo. The Ghana international has been in red-hot form for the Cherries this season with six goals to his name - only Erling Haaland (9) has scored more than the winger in the league.
The 25-year-old inked a new deal with Bournemouth last year, tying him to Dean Court until 2029 but his supreme form has inevitably linked him with a move away from Andoni Iraola's side.
According to CaughtOffside, United are ready to pull the trigger on a "big money" deal for Semenyo who'll certainly have a range of suitors in for him next summer and perhaps in January. Semenyo's form has resulted in Bournemouth sitting fourth in the league and without a loss since their opening-day 4-2 defeat to Liverpool.