Rubén Amorim wanted to stay at Sporting until June but Manchester United gave him a ruthless ultimatum

Rubén Amorim wanted to finish the season at Sporting Lisbon but Manchester United told him it was “now or never.”

United announced the appointment from the Portuguese coach on Friday, but also revealed that he would not arrive for another ten days.

The 39-year-old's farewell tour of Portugal began with a 5-1 home win against Estrela da Amadora, giving Amorim his first chance to address some Sporting fans unhappy with his decision to leave.

“I spoke to the president (Frederico Varandas) and told him that, whatever happens, this would be my last season with Sporting,” Amorim said in the post-match press conference. “The president is here. He can confirm it.

“The season started, we know that we started very well and then this situation with Manchester United came.

“Manchester United appears, they pay above the compensation clause (£9.2 million) and the president defends the club's interests. I never spoke anything with the president about this negotiation.

“The only question I asked was whether I would leave at the end of the season. For three days I said I wanted to stay until the end of the season, but then they told me it wasn't possible.

“It was now or never, or Manchester would look for another option.

“So I had three days to make up my mind, to make a decision that would radically change my life. But I had three days to make this decision and that's what I did.

“I have had other opportunities, the president and (football director) Hugo Viana can confirm this. It is not the first or the second time that they have asked me for another team and I do not want another team.

“After Sporting I wanted that one, Manchester, and I want that context because that context allows me to do things my way and the club believes in me that way. It's like Sporting.

“There is a moment when I have to take a step forward in my career. That's what happened.

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“It was harder for me than for any Sporting fan, believe me, but I had to do it.”

Amorim continued in a long and passionate first-response press conference: “I mean, let's not beat around the bush.

“There was a club that said that if I rejected him now in six months I would not receive him, and I knew that in six months I would leave Sporting, so I did not want to regret not having made this decision.

“I know it was disappointing for Sporting fans not to take the risk or wait until the end of the season, and then I wouldn't have the only club I wanted to coach.

“The president knows about this because I had other offers and I didn't want them before, but I did want this one so I made my decision.

“But now I go home happier because I have explained it to myself. People say 'it's about the money', but before there was another team that wanted to hire me and they paid me three times more than Manchester.”

The fans' farewells began even before the team bus arrived at the José Alvalade Stadium on Friday night.

However, Sporting fans were divided over Amorim during the manager's first appearance since his departure was confirmed.

On the road there was a large sign hanging that said: “Amorim, this is no longer your house, thank you!!”

However, that didn't sum up the mood of the entire fanbase.

When the team bus arrived for the match, fans greeted him with chants of “we are the champions” in reference to his second Primeira Liga title with Amorim last season.

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Once at the stadium, fans eagerly awaited their best coach in a generation, and when he finally emerged before the game, the stadium erupted in applause.

Some boos were heard, but they were generally drowned out by admiration for a man who has transformed the club.

On an individual level, some fans went all out.

Those in debt carried banners of praise, while one fan even wore an official Sporting shirt with the manager's name on the back and the number two to symbolize his number of league titles.

However, amidst the boos, a fan was seen holding a laminated A4 sheet of paper that said 'Amorim Judas'.

The fans who arrived at the Alvalade upset and angry soon changed their mood as Viktor Gyokeres opened the scoring in the 19th minute before completing a first-half hat-trick.

The former Coventry star added a fourth after the break before Maximiliano Araujo completed the rout.