Paul Merson has shockingly declared that Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim would’ve been the ‘perfect fit’ for the Chelsea job.
Enzo Maresca is currently Chelsea’s head coach – and has been hugely successful since he replaced Mauricio Pochettino in the summer of 2024.
Under Maresca’s management, Chelsea have won the Club World Cup and Conference League and have also returned to the Champions League.
Amorim, meanwhile, has massively struggled since replacing Erik ten Hag as United’s head coach in November, with the club finishing 15th in the top-flight last term without a trophy and missing out on European football.
United have picked up just 31 points across his 31 Premier League games in charge – with the Red Devils winning just eight of those matches.
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The club have suffered their worst start to the season since 1992-93 and rumours have started circulating that Amorim could soon be sacked.
But football pundit and former Arsenal star Merson, who is a Chelsea supporter, feels Amorim would’ve found success at Stamford Bridge.
‘He would have been a perfect fit for Chelsea,’ Merson told Sky Sports. ‘They’ve got world-class wing-backs in Reece James and Malo Gusto, they’ve got the best holding midfield player in the league in Moises Caicedo. It would fit the players.
‘You look at Man United and this system does not suit the squad they’ve got at all.
‘The two wing-backs are nowhere near it, nowhere near good enough. And they are a big part of this formation working. No legs in midfield. Everything is up against him.’
Michael Carrick tipped to replace Ruben Amorim
Meanwhile, former United first-team coach Rene Meulensteen says Michael Carrick ‘might be the obvious option’ if his old club sack Amorim.
Carrick is currently out of work after being sacked by Middlesbrough following a 10th-placed finish in the Championship last season.
The former United midfielder and caretaker manager was at Middlesbrough for three years before losing his job in June.
‘Michael Carrick might be the obvious option if Ruben Amorim is to go,’ Meulensteen told football betting site BetVictor. ‘Obviously Michael Carrick still knows quite a few players that were there when he was there. So he’s still got some good inside information. He obviously knows the club.
‘He knows what’s expected from the club. Well, you always get that and there’s always names being thrown around. Jose Mourinho’s out of the job as well. So that will be thrown around and there’s all other managers as well.
‘But the key is that you need to have a guy that obviously has got a clear idea but puts some kind of a structure in place that the players buy into and that you get a spark from the players. Because they’re not bad players, there’s plenty of good players there.
‘I’m sure that if they would play in a system that suits them, they really play at the best. I think you could see a fantastic Manchester United. Maybe Michael could well be the guy. It’s not magic. It’s common sense more than anything, that’s it and Carrick has got plenty of that.’