Leeds United need to start thinking about potential successors to Marcelo Bielsa, though rumoured target Ruben Amorim suffered a dismal Tuesday night.
Bielsa is out of contract at the end of the season and famously leaves it late to decide whether or not to renew.
Leeds will hope that Bielsa stays but would be foolish of them to not have some sort of contingency plan in mind.
One of the hot names linked with taking over if Bielsa does decide to leave is Portuguese coach Amorim.
90Min claimed last week that Leeds have been impressed with Amorim and fancy him if Bielsa goes.
Amorim has worked wonders at Sporting, guiding them to a shock title win last season and into the Champions League knockout stages this term.
At just 37, Amorim is one of the top young coaches in Europe but suffered a terrible night against Manchester City on Tuesday.
City were absolutely irresistible in Lisbon on Tuesday night, racking up four goals in a blistering first-half display against Sporting.
Bernardo Silva’s first-half double combined with goals from Riyad Mahrez and Phil Foden had City coasting before Raheem Sterling’s long-range screamer made it 5-0.
Many struggle against City, so this was no great shame for Amorim, but he was clearly disappointed with a chastening night.
Speaking to The Times, Amorim admitted that it wasn’t so much football as it was ‘suffering’ after City went 3-0 up.
Amorim admitted that Pep Guardiola is simply better than he is, and felt his players were powerless to stop the City juggernaut.
“They are probably the best team in the world,” said Amorin. “We started well but then we conceded. We tried but every time they got to our box they killed us. After the third goal it became suffering, it was no longer football.”
“They have more years and a better coach and they have played more minutes than us. We couldn’t find a solution. We were powerless and I have to apologise to my players,” he added.
This result is unlikely to put Leeds off Amorim. Experienced Premier League managers have suffered a similar fate against City and Amorim has more than proven himself with Sporting.
Amorim would likely have to face Guardiola twice a season with a move to Leeds though, and few could blame him for not wanting that ‘suffering’ again in the future!
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
