Sporting Lisbon has revealed that they have been approached by Manchester United to sign Ruben Amorim, and that the Premier League team is willing to pay his £8.31 million release clause.

The Portuguese giants issued a statement to the stock exchange this afternoon, confirming United’s intention to replace Erik ten Hag with their highly regarded head coach.

Sporting’s directors alerted the Old Trafford club about the provisions of the 39-year-old’s contract,’ specifically the termination clause of €10,000,000′, and United ‘indicated an interest’ in paying that amount.

Mail Sport knows that conversations are still ongoing. It is believed that one difficulty to be resolved is Amorim’s commencement date. United are eager to have him in place for Sunday’s match against Chelsea, but there are a number of challenges to overcome first.

Manchester United FC expressed interest in hiring coach Rúben Amorim, with the Board of Directors of Sporting SAD referring to the terms and conditions set out in the employment contract between the Company and the coach, specifically the termination clause and the amount of Euro 10,000,000.00.

Sporting Lisbon has confirmed that Ruben Amorim is on the verge of joining Manchester United after expressing interest in paying his £8.3 million departure clause.Erik ten Hag (shown above) received his marching order earlier this week following two and a half years in command at Old Trafford.

Sporting Lisbon has reported that Ruben Amorim is on the verge of joining Manchester United after ‘showing interest to pay his £8.3million departure clause following Erik ten Hag’s firing.

Manchester United are currently 14th in the Premier League following Sunday’s defeat against West Ham, and in the bottom half of the Europa League.

The Portuguese giants sent a statement to the market this afternoon, confirming United’s intention to replace Ten Hag with their highly-rated head coach.

Amorim struggles to maintain a straight expression when asked about his future.

Ten Hag led United to their worst start to a Premier League season, and with three draws from three Europa League games, results appeared to be stalled.

Amorim, meantime, has received praise in recent years for his outstanding performance in the Portuguese city, having ended Sporting Club’s 19-year wait for a league title in 2020-21 before winning the top division again last year. 

Sporting Lisbon will play Nacional in the Portuguese League Cup later tonight, with many speculating whether Amorim will be featured after the club made a statement this afternoon.

Amorim, who had previously been questioned about links to United following Ten Hag’s dismissal, informed the press that he was focused on the task at hand ahead of this evening’s game.

‘I was expecting this question, and I’m not going to talk about the future because I’ll constantly have to respond. I’m really proud to be Sporting’s coach, that’s all. 

Amorim was expected to depart Sporting at the end of the season, but was informed of United’s interest earlier this month and has held two rounds of negotiations. 

Amorim has also been linked with Manchester City if Pep Guardiola quits next summer, with Hugo Viana, his director of football at Sporting, set to succeed Txiki Begiristain in the same post at the Etihad last season. 

Man United apparently want Amorim to take charge when they face Chelsea this Sunday. 

However, it appears like Old Trafford will be his likely destination, with the Red Devils eager to improve their form after falling to 14th in the Premier League following Sunday’s defeat at West Ham, and in the Europa League’s bottom half. 

As a result, this evening’s game could be Amorim’s last as manager of Sporting Lisbon, with Portuguese publication Record suggesting that the 39-year-old will then travel to England on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, it is understood that the decision to fire Ten Hag was made collectively and unanimously, despite insiders describing it as ‘a difficult and finely balanced’ one.

They allege that the United management wanted continuity after major changes to the leadership team and backroom staff in the summer, and while they gave Ten Hag every opportunity to succeed, they did not see enough evidence of development to satisfy them that the team was on the right track.