Who is Ruben Amorim? The Sporting CP manager who is the frontrunner for Liverpool job

Get Miguel Delaney's Reading The Game Newsletter For Free!

"Subscribe To Miguel's Delaney's Newsletter For Free"

Ruben Amorim is currently being considered as a top option for numerous major European clubs this summer. Reports suggest that Liverpool has already reached an initial agreement with the widely-respected coach of Sporting CP.

Amorim, who is 39 years old, is the leading candidate to take over from Jurgen Klopp at Anfield. Klopp will be leaving the club after eight and a half years at the end of the season.

The manager of Sporting Lisbon since 2020, a Portuguese coach, is being watched by Bayern Munich as they search for a replacement for Thomas Tuchel, and Barcelona, due to their club legend Xavi Hernandez leaving at the end of this season.

During his four years as the leader of Sporting, Amorim's value has greatly increased. He has gone down in history as the one who ended the club's 19-year dry spell and won a remarkable Primeira Liga championship and a League Cup.

Despite his rapid rise as a coach, he also had a successful 14-year career as a player for Portugal, earning 14 caps.

Amorim, a native of Lisbon, played his first professional match for Belenenses in the Portuguese top tier league in 2003. He then transferred to Benfica in the summer of 2008.

He spent most of his career at Estadio da Luz, playing 154 times over six seasons. His relationship with the coach Jorge Jesus was sometimes strained, and he played mostly in central midfield, but was occasionally used as a right-back.

A situation occurred where Amorim expressed disapproval towards the player choices made by Jesus. Consequently, Amorim refused to practice alongside the replacement players after a particular game. This led to him being loaned out to Braga, a rival team, from January 2012 to the summer of 2013, lasting a total of 18 months.

He came back to Benfica the next year and had his most successful season as a player, earning three domestic trophies. Sadly, he suffered a severe injury to his anterior cruciate ligament. Despite spending one season on loan at Al-Wakrah in Qatar, he retired from professional football at the age of 32 in 2017 after being out of action for over a year.

Amorim first played for the national team during the 2010 World Cup. He was also selected again for the 2014 World Cup that took place in Brazil.

After retiring from his professional playing days, he set his sights on becoming a coach and landed his inaugural managerial role at Casa Pia, a club in the third division. However, he received a one-year ban with a suspension for issuing directions during a match without having the necessary coaching certification.

Despite that, he took on the role of coach for Braga's reserve team in September 2019, but quickly progressed to head coach of the main team by December.

Amorim managed to secure a victory in the Portuguese League Cup during his brief two-month stay with Braga. However, Sporting managed to lure the inexperienced yet promising manager away from Braga by offering a hefty sum of €10m and taking a gamble on his potential.

The decision to appoint him/her has turned out to be a brilliant one.

He has been victorious in the Portuguese League Cup twice during his time at Sporting and currently, he is on track to secure another title this season. As of 9th April 2024, Sporting is leading the top of the table by 4 points over Benfica after scoring an exhilarating winner in injury time against their rivals from the same city.

Nevertheless, they were eliminated from the Europa League during the last-16 stage by Atalanta, who will battle Liverpool in the quarter-finals.

Amorim is recognized for his strong character, tactical expertise, and relaxed attitude. He has mastered the English language after finishing some of his UEFA coaching courses in Belfast.

Typically, he has used a high-pressure strategy with a 3-4-3 setup while coaching Sporting. Additionally, he has selected underrated players like Marcus Edwards, a winger from England, and Viktor Gyokeres, a former Coventry striker.

Some other athletes who have experienced his effective style of leadership are Joao Palhinha from Fulham, Matheus Nunes from Manchester City, and Pedro Porro from Tottenham.

Since Xabi Alonso is no longer in the running, Amorim has become the top contender to take charge of Anfield. According to reports from Germany, there is talk of a three-year agreement being reached verbally, but Liverpool has not confirmed any deal.