MANCHESTER: Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes believes new boss Ruben Amorim can have the same massive impact at Old Trafford that the young manager had at Portuguese club Sporting.
Amorim, 39, arrived at United's training base Carrington on Monday, a day after his final match with Sporting - a 4-2 league victory over Braga.
It was Sporting's 11th successive win as they seek to clinch back-to-back Primeira Liga titles for the first time since the 1950s.
Sporting went almost 20 years without winning the league until Amorim led them to the title in 2021 and the club's transformation impressed many, including compatriot Fernandes.
"I hope he does the same here because you know sometimes a person can change the energy of a space, if it's the right moment," Fernandes told United's in-house media.
"We hope that he can come, and this is the right moment for him to come and bring his energy, bring his qualities and his knowledge of football, because he's done something really, really special at Sporting.
"If someone doubts that, it's about just looking at the past. Sporting (went) about 20 years without winning the league, and he got back to win the league, and he won it two times in four years with a really youthful team, in a moment of change."
Amorim was appointed head coach after manager Erik ten Hag was sacked on Oct 28 after a string of bad results which left United languishing in 14th in the Premier League standings.
United had three wins and a draw from the four games interim manager Ruud van Nistelrooy took charge, climbing to 13th and four points off the top three.
Van Nistelrooy left the club on Monday after learning he would not be a part of Amorim's staff.
Amorim immediately endeared himself to the Old Trafford faithful when his Sporting side thrashed Manchester City 4-1 in the Champions League on Nov 5.
Fans may have to be patient in waiting to see United take their rivals apart in such a manner but Fernandes backed Amorim to find a way to mould the team in his style.
"He's a really smart manager that has done really good things for Sporting tactically," Fernandes said. "But obviously as we always say, you can't bring or transform what he has done at Sporting into here, because you have different players, you have different ways of playing and everything.
"I'm pretty sure that the idea of football he has, independent of the way he wants to play, is going to be a good one and it's going to bring us success."
Amorim's first United game in charge is a league clash away at Ipswich Town on Nov 24. - REUTERS