Why Ruben Amorim rejected Tottenham before Man Utd move – and Daniel Levy is to blame.

Ruben Amorim is gearing up for his first-ever Premier League encounter with Tottenham Hotspur, but the Portuguese manager could have easily found himself in the opposing dugout for this fixture. Amorim, now in charge of Manchester United, had a brief yet challenging stint at Old Trafford since taking over in November after Erik ten Hag was dismissed. His tenure has had its ups and downs, and the pressure is mounting as he continues to find his footing at the club.

 

The current Tottenham manager, Ange Postecoglou, will be hoping to secure a third win over Manchester United this season, after a dominant 3-0 victory against Ten Hag’s side in the autumn. A win for Spurs would certainly help relieve some of the mounting pressure on Postecoglou, whose own position has been under scrutiny in recent weeks. Ten Hag’s sacking a few weeks after that defeat to Spurs led to Amorim stepping into the role at United, yet his journey to this point involved a series of intriguing twists and potential career moves.

 

Earlier in 2023, Amorim turned down an offer to join West Ham United, calling the negotiations with the club a mistake. Despite this, he was willing to leave Lisbon and make the move to Manchester midway through the season. However, before these talks, Tottenham Hotspur had also shown interest in Amorim as a potential replacement for Antonio Conte. Instead of Amorim, Spurs ultimately hired Ange Postecoglou to take the reins at the North London club, though it was reported at the time that Daniel Levy, Tottenham’s chairman, had a role in shaping the final decision, which led to Postecoglou’s appointment.

 

In March 2023, after Spurs parted ways with Conte following a public and heated disagreement, Cristian Stellini temporarily took over as interim manager. It was during this period that A Bola (via Sport Witness) suggested that Amorim was one of the leading candidates on Tottenham’s radar as a long-term managerial solution. At that point, Sporting CP, Amorim’s club, was in a battle for Champions League qualification, and despite a strong run to finish the season—gathering 36 points from their last 14 matches—they fell short of securing a spot in Europe’s elite competition, settling for fourth place.

 

Amorim’s Sporting had made an impression in European competitions, most notably in the Champions League, where they put up a strong fight against Tottenham and managed to knock Arsenal out of European contention after dropping into the Europa League. This success caught the attention of Spurs, who placed the Portuguese manager on their shortlist. However, as A Bola reported, there were a number of hurdles that stood in the way of a potential move. These obstacles, though not fully detailed, played a part in the ultimate decision to go in a different direction, leading to Postecoglou’s appointment rather than Amorim making the jump to Spurs.

 

Now, as Amorim prepares for his Premier League debut against Spurs, the events that nearly brought him to North London seem like a distant memory, but they offer a fascinating glimpse into the managerial landscape that has seen significant changes in just a short time.