Ruben Amorim spotted doing same thing Erik ten Hag did a month before Man Utd sacked him

Ruben Amorim could be on the brink of following in Erik ten Hag's ill-fated footsteps, particularly if Thursday morning's events are anything to go by. The beleaguered Manchester United boss was spotted arriving at Carrington training ground at the crack of dawn, hours after one of the most humiliating nights in the club's history.

United were shockingly ousted from the Carabao Cup by League Two minnows Grimsby Town on Wednesday. The result was a jaw-dropping upset that will go down as one of the season's biggest shocks. After a 2-2 draw in regular time, Amorim's squad succumbed in a nail-biting penalty shootout, casting serious doubts over his future at Old Trafford. In a show of determination, the Portuguese coach arrived at the training ground well before 7am the next morning, resolved to salvage something from the disaster. However, this move bears an uncanny resemblance to Ten Hag, who did the same last year following a devastating 3-0 defeat to Tottenham. And many pinpointed that moment as the start of the Dutchman's downfall at the time.

Just like Amorim now, Ten Hag's final season kicked off under intense scrutiny after a disappointing end to the previous campaign. Results never improved, and his dismissal always seemed inevitable until it was officially announced in October 2024. Amorim will be desperate to avoid repeating history, but the warning signs are glaring.

United are still without a victory after three matches, and his dismal 35 per cent win ratio as manager suggests change is on the horizon. Amorim cut a dejected figure on the touchline at Blundell Park as Grimsby raced into a commanding 2-0 lead at the break. Bryan Mbeumo and Harry Maguire offered United hope with a pair of second-half goals, but the comeback crumbled in the shootout, where summer signings Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha both missed from 12 yards.

When pressed to clarify what had gone awry, Amorim offered a dim assessment of his players and said: "Everything. 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 what they want. I think it's easy for you [how to interpret it]. Let's focus on the next game and then we have the stop for the international games. We will think things through. Doesn't matter [that we lost on penalties]. In the penalties, the feeling is the same. I think football was really fair today. The best team won.

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"I'm the manager. It should be my job to understand what happened. Again, I'm really sorry for our fans. Let's focus on the next game. That is more than a result. That is the biggest problem in the team. I think it was really clear today.

"I would like to say very smart things and very important things. I have nothing to say. Nothing to say. That is the biggest problem also. To see the same mistakes and nothing to say in this moment. I'm really sorry for our fans. It's too much sometimes.

"You cannot change so much. You cannot change everything in one summer. You need to win games. You need to not show this kind of performance. I think this is a little bit the limit. I think something has to change. In this moment, we need to focus on the weekend and then we have time to think."

The United coach pulled into Carrington just past 1am. Staff and players, including Amorim, headed to their vehicles before vanishing into the darkness. While the majority headed home to rest, the United chief was back at the training ground hours later to continue his duties. He appeared nearly four hours ahead of his squad's scheduled 11am session, immersing himself in preparations for Saturday's vital encounter with Burnley.

That fixture already carries the weight of a must-win match, especially with United picking up just one point from the opening two league games, evoking worrying echoes of last season. Victory would provide a sliver of positivity before the international break.

But anything short of three points risks intensifying the turmoil even further. And that would potentially be sufficient to set Amorim on the same exit path as Ten Hag.