Ruben Amorim to become Manchester United manager AFTER international break, as revealed in first game in charge

Rubén Amorim's first game at the helm of Manchester United will not come until after the international break.

United have reached an agreement in principle with Sporting Lisbon after agreeing personal conditions with Amorim to succeed the fired man Erik ten Hag.

Amorim was expected in the Old Trafford hierarchy to be appointed in time to lead the team into the Premier League clash at home against Chelsea on Sunday.

However, in a twist of history, Amorim will remain on the Sporting bench for their next three games, including against Manchester City in the Champions League next week.

His first game as United manager will be against Ipswich Town after the international break on November 24.

United have agreed to pay Sporting a fee of £9.2m and five members of Amorim's squad will follow him to Manchester, including his assistant Carlos Fernandes.

This means United interim manager Ruud van Nistelrooy, who led the 5-2 win over Leicester in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday, will remain in charge of their next three matches.

They will face Chelsea and Leicester in the Premier League, plus a Europa League clash against PAOK, with all three games at Old Trafford.

When asked about his future as interim boss, Van Nistelrooy told talkSPORT: “The club said it will be short-term, that was very clear. “As long as possible, I will do this job, get the team going and give everything I can. I have”. in me

“After that, we have to see. But I must say that I came here as an assistant, and I will continue to play this role as long as it is necessary.

“And after that, in whatever capacity, I'm willing to support this club and build it and improve it in any way possible.”

talkSPORT understands incoming Red Devils boss Amorim would have preferred to have his Sporting swan song on Friday night, where they face Estrela Amadora in the Primeira Liga.

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However, due to a notice clause in his contract, Amorim must now take charge until November 10.

The 39-year-old is believed to be reluctant to take charge of the Champions League clash against Manchester City but wants to be respectful of Sporting's wishes.

Amorim had been identified as a possible successor to pep guardiola in city ​​manbut sources in Portugal say he was not willing to wait for the Spaniard to make a decision on his future.

City insiders say Amorim's style of play is not a perfect fit for their team and there is also growing confidence that Guardiola will stay for at least one more season when his contract expires in the summer.

United met with Amorim last week to lay the groundwork for him to replace Ten Hag, having decided they were not progressing quickly enough under the Dutchman in terms of performances and results.

With Amorim's departure now an open secret, the former Portuguese midfielder was forced to comment after his side's 3-1 Taca da Liga victory over Nacional on Tuesday night.

“There is nothing decided yet. I don't know if it is the farewell match or not,” he said.

“We have to wait a little longer to explain everything I need to explain and then everything will be very clear.

“It's my decision. I'll tell everything, so we'll just have to wait. That's all.”

Sporting's victory took them to the semi-finals of Taca, a competition they have already won twice with Amorim.

In fact, the Lisbon giants have claimed five titles under the sensational coach, including their first league title in 19 years in 2021, before a follow-up in 2024.

They currently lead this season's standings three points behind Porto with a huge goal difference of +28 after nine games.

That is a stark contrast to United, who have had their worst start in the Premier League.

Despite ending last season with an FA Cup victory over rivals City, Ten Hag led the team to a record of four wins, six draws and four losses in all competitions in 2024/25 before his dismissal.

In the Premier League, United had three wins and four losses, leaving them in 14th place after a damning loss to an out-of-place West Ham side.