Gary Neville delivers a damning verdict as Manchester United sack Ruben Amorim mid-season

Gary Neville has delivered a blunt and uncompromising verdict on Manchester United’s decision to sack Ruben Amorim, describing the episode as a damning reflection on everyone involved at the club.

The former United defender said he was not surprised that Amorim’s reign had ended, but admitted he did not expect the dismissal to come so abruptly. The Portuguese coach was removed from his role on Monday morning, just hours after a tense and revealing press conference following a 1-1 draw with Leeds.

Amorim’s final public appearance proved explosive. He insisted he was the “manager” of Manchester United rather than a “coach”, despite his official title being head coach. The distinction appeared symbolic of deeper tensions behind the scenes, as his authority and approach came under growing scrutiny.

United swiftly named Darren Fletcher as interim head coach, bringing an immediate end to Amorim’s turbulent spell at Old Trafford.

Speaking after the sacking, Neville said the speed of the decision pointed to serious internal problems.

He described the situation as a failure of leadership and planning across the club, stressing that dismissing a head coach part-way through a season rarely leads to stability.

Neville said he believed United would attempt to limp on for at least a few more weeks, but acknowledged that matters must have deteriorated rapidly for the club to act so decisively.

He added that while the timing shocked him, the outcome itself did not.

Attention quickly turned to performances on the pitch, which Neville said had been unacceptable. He highlighted a run of displays over the past month that he described as “shocking”, suggesting that results and standards had dropped to a level that made Amorim’s position untenable.

The Wolves match, in particular, was singled out as the decisive moment that appeared to seal Amorim’s fate.

Statistics have only reinforced that verdict. Amorim departs with the lowest win percentage of any Manchester United manager since Sir Alex Ferguson stepped down more than a decade ago, a stark measure of how badly his tenure unravelled.

Central to his downfall was his refusal to abandon his preferred 3-4-2-1 system. Neville said he had expected United’s squad to adapt more effectively to a back three, but expressed disbelief at how poorly the team continued to perform within the structure.

He explained that the system demands specialist roles, particularly wing-backs and the attacking players behind the centre forward, and said United neither recruited adequately nor adjusted intelligently to make it work.

Neville stressed that responsibility did not lie solely with Amorim. He said the failure reflected poorly on the players and the club’s recruitment strategy, as well as the coach himself.

However, he also made clear that persistence with a system that consistently failed on the pitch was ultimately the manager’s responsibility.

The former captain broadened his criticism, pointing to a decade of tactical upheaval at Old Trafford. He referenced the contrasting philosophies of previous managers, arguing that constant stylistic experimentation had eroded the club’s identity.

Neville said those experiments must now end.

He called on United to return to what he described as the club’s traditional DNA: adventurous, attacking football, faith in young players, and a commitment to entertaining supporters.

Drawing comparisons with clubs such as Ajax and Barcelona, Neville insisted Manchester United should not reshape itself to suit every new manager. Instead, he argued, the club must appoint a leader willing to embrace its established principles.

His message was clear. United’s next appointment must be experienced, courageous, and committed to fast, aggressive, attacking football — or risk repeating yet another painful cycle of failure.