Ruben Amorim has denied claims he has spoken to Liverpool about succeeding Jurgen Klopp as their next manager.
However, he remains the frontrunner for the Anfield job, with the Portuguese coach expected to depart his current position at Sporting Lisbon at the end of the season.
talkSPORT brought you news earlier this week that Liverpool had met with representatives of Amorim to take Klopp’s place at the helm of the Merseyside giants.
However, there has been no direct contact with the man himself and, as reported on Tuesday, while a meeting with representatives has taken place there is no agreement between the parties.
And the highly-rated young coach was keen to point this out when quizzed on his future by journalists on Thursday, with the 39-year-old insisting he is fully committed to his job at Sporting as his side targets league glory.
“This is the last time I will talk about my future,” said Amorim, whose Sporting team sits top of the Liga Portugal table, four points clear of rivals Benfica and with a game in hand.
Read more on Ruben Amorim
“There was no interview, much less of an agreement [with Liverpool]. The only thing we want, all of us here, is to be champions with Sporting and nothing will change.
“I’ll say it again: I’m Sporting’s coach. There was no interview with any club, no agreement with any club, I am focused, as always, on defending my club.
“And since I really have nothing to say, there will be no interviews or agreements with the Sporting coach. The matter is resolved, whether for his club or another.”
It’s a robust statement from the Amorim, but it’s not as big a blow to Liverpool as it seems.
3
While it appears it’s another coach to scratch off the list following Xabi Alonso’s decision to stay at Bayer Leverkusen, talkSPORT understands he is still favourite to take over at Liverpool.
Chiefs at the Merseyside club are planning to conduct a thorough search for Klopp’s successor and will follow a rigid process that will cover all bases, rather than just go all-in for one name.
Liverpool are yet to have held formal interviews with any of their candidates, with Amorim – who is a fluent English speaker – expected to be one of many coaches considered by the Premier League giants.
Alonso was one of those names, too, before he committed his future to Leverkusen and announced he was staying with the German club, who are set to be crowned Bundesliga champions for the first time.
Amorim didn’t do that.
According to talkSPORT football correspondent Ben Jacobs, his comments on Thursday are instead perhaps proof of the step-by-step process Liverpool are taking in their search, and merely that they haven’t yet formally spoken to him.
It is understood Liverpool are due to begin more formal talks with their targets in April.
Meanwhile, Amorim is still expected to leave Sporting at the end of the season, whether he wins the title or not, despite not wanting to be drawn on his future on Thursday.
It is believed he has already made the decision and is waiting to announce his exit until after the final game of the season, by then Sporting may already be confirmed as champions for the second time in his tenure.
3
Amorim was only in his second season in charge when he led Sporting to their first league title in 19 years in the 2020/21 campaign. He was just 36 at the time.
That came after a rapid rise at Braga, where he was promoted to manage the senior team after just three months coaching their reserves.
Then, three months into his first senior coaching role, he was snapped up by one of Portugal’s big-three clubs and was made the new manager of Sporting.
Since his appointment in March 2020, Amorim has won 152 of his 215 games in charge, with his team scoring a stunning 456 goals.
As a player, Amorim spent the majority of his career in his homeland where he lifted ten major trophies, including three league titles with Benfica, while he also represented Portugal at the 2010 and 2014 World Cups.