Ruben Amorim dealt transfer blow as INEOS communicate January plans | OneFootball

Manchester United officially begin the post-Erik ten Hag era from Wednesday with Ruud van Nistelrooy in interim charge for the Carabao Cup against Leicester City.

INEOS had dilly-dallied over the decision since the end of last season but Wednesday’s humiliating defeat to West Ham proved to be the final straw as the former Ajax coach was rightly relieved of his duties.

It is all but certain that Van Nistelrooy will not be in charge for too long with United closing in on a deal for Sporting Lisbon’s Ruben Amorim.

While United’s new co-owners have agreed to pay his release clause, there are still a few roadblocks to clear, namely his notice period, and that might delay his eventual arrival or cost the petrochemical giants even more money.

Amorim transfer plans

When the Portuguese tactician does land in Manchester, he will likely ask for reinforcements from the board with Ten Hag let down by plenty of underperforming stars.

And while he has already communicated about the players he would like, The Guardian have claimed that INEOS are unlikely to provide him a war chest in January.

The 20-time English league champions are languishing in 14th place in the Premier League and are 21st in the Europa League standings, with European football looking like a dream at the moment.

Keeping in mind FFP restrictions, Sir Jim Ratcliffe cannot afford to go all gung-ho in the market in the winter after spending big in the summer.

On top of that significant outlay, they were forced to part with a substantial severance package after Ten Hag was sacked while Amorim will also cost a bomb.

“Rúben Amorim or whoever succeeds Erik ten Hag as Manchester United’s manager will have a limited budget to strengthen the squad in January.

“After Ten Hag was backed in the summer with a £200m spend on five players – Joshua Zirkzee, Leny Yoro, Matthijs de Ligt, Noussair Mazraoui and Manuel Ugarte – there is only modest finance to try to turn around the side’s fortunes in the winter window.”

INEOS cannot afford another splurge in January

If Amorim insists on big-money signings to improve the team’s chances of qualifying for Europe, the club could be forced to sell stars in January to fund those approaches.

“Although the manager will not have to sell to buy, profitability and sustainability rules mean the books will need to be balanced via sales if he wants to spend more lavishly.”

With the exception of Kobbie Mainoo and Alejandro Garnacho, plenty of players could be sold including big-money stars such as Marcus Rashford and Casemiro.

United fans will be desperate to see Van Nistelrooy overcoming the challenge from the Foxes on Wednesday and for Amorim to become an instant success when he takes over. Hopefully, the players respond and save their faltering careers in the process as well.