Is Ruben Amorim Doomed After Another Man Utd Humiliation?

GRIMSBY, ENGLAND – AUGUST 27: Ruben Amorim, Manager of Manchester United, looks dejected during the Carabao Cup Second Round match between Grimsby Town and Manchester United at Blundell Park on August 27, 2025 in Grimsby, England. (Photo by George Wood/Getty Images)

Getty Images

Ruben Amorim had the look, and sound, of a broken man after Manchester United’s shocking defeat to Grimsby Town. The loss will rank among the worst in the Old Trafford club’s history. It wasn’t undeserved either. United was outfought and outplayed by a team in the fourth tier of English soccer.

“Everything [was wrong],” said Amorim. “The way we started the game, we were not even here. When everything is so important in our club, everything that happened – it’s a problem in our club. We should do so much better. I just have to say sorry to our fans. I felt my players spoke really loud today about what they want.”

Last season was a disaster for Manchester United as it finished 15th in the Premier League table. This was an unprecedented outcome to a season, but Amorim was largely given a free pass because it was believed he was using this time to set up United for the following campaign.

Three games into the 2025/26 campaign, however, and Manchester United appear to be in a similar place. The opening weekend performance against Arsenal suggested a corner had been turned, even if the Gunners left Old Trafford with three points, but United has failed to build on that positivity.

Amorim has failed to achieve buy-in from his players. Against Grimsby, United lacked intensity. The League Two team was quicker to every ball and had a more coherent game plan that it did a much better job of executing. Amorim looked so exasperated after full time presumably because he can offer no reasonable explanation for what is happening.

Of course, Amorim certainly isn’t the first Manchester United manager to flounder. Before the Portuguese, Erik ten Hag also failed to remould the Old Trafford outfit in his own image, lasting just two-and-a-half seasons before being fired. David Moyes, Louis Van Gaal, Jose Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer also struggled.

Saturday’s home match against Burnley now looks to be the most important of Amorim’s Manchester United career. Not only does he need a win, he needs a performance that proves his process is moving forward. He needs a response to what unfolded against Grimsby on Wednesday.

If Amorim doesn’t get those things, his Manchester United tenure will surely end sooner rather than later and the Old Trafford club will start the cycle all over again. The more things change the more they stay the same. That has certainly been the case, and continues to be the case, for United.