Man Utd and Ruben Amorim walking £100m tightrope to salvage miserable season

Manchester United have endured one of their worst seasons of the last half century and can only salvage something from it by going all the way and winning the Europa League

In one sense, the international break could not have come at a worse time for Manchester United and their boss Ruben Amorim, bringing a halt to their recent momentum.

A comfortable 3-0 win at Leicester City extended United’s unbeaten run to seven games in all competitions – their longest stretch this season – and continued their quiet resurgence under Amorim, after a dismal start to his tenure.

But after the victory at the King Power Stadium, rather than bemoaning the two-week hiatus for internationals, Amorim welcomed the break because, as he put it, his players were “at the limit”.

“We’re going to use this window to rest and recover, it will be good,” said Amorim. “When we return, it will be like starting from scratch.”

With United down in 13^th place in the Premier League, their Europa League assault will define the remainder of their campaign and whether they can salvage something from arguably their worst season of the modern era.

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They return to action with a trip to third-placed Nottingham Forest on April 1, followed by the Manchester derby at Old Trafford five days later. Those two games will show whether Amorim’s players can continue where they left off for the international break or whether their recent revival was another anomaly in a season of unremitting turmoil, on and off the pitch.

After the derby against City, United travel to Lyon for the first leg of their Europa League quarter-final, a competition which represents their last chance of lifting a trophy this season and, more importantly, securing Champions League football for next term.

Amorim may have tried to play down the importance of going all the way in the Europa League this season, arguing that trophies are not the most important thing as he continues to plot his overhaul of United.

But Amorim knows the significance of European football at United next season, for financial reasons as much as prestige, particularly when set against the backdrop of the parlous position of the club, after co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe claimed it would have gone bust by Christmas had he not put £232.5million of his own money into it.

Failure to win the Europa League and secure a golden ticket to the Champions League would cost United up to £100m in lost revenue. Champions League qualification is worth around £60m, with an additional £20m in bonuses and prize money should they reach the last 16.

United could earn up to £20m from gate receipts for European home games, while their kit deal with Adidas includes a £10m penalty clause for every season they are not in the Champions League.

That is why, with United out of the FA Cup and treading water in the Premier League, the Europa League has assumed such importance and will also determine which players they are able to go for this summer, as Amorim continues his rebuild.

If United can get past Lyon, a semi-final against Rangers – whom they edged out 3-2 at Old Trafford in January- or Athletic Bilbao awaits them, with a potential final showdown against Premier League rivals Tottenham on May 21 in Bilbao’s San Mames Stadium.

With United too far down in the Premier League table to qualify for Europe, yet not low enough to be drawn into a relegation battle, everything hinges on the Europa League. Publicly, Amorim may claim otherwise, but privately he knows the consequences should he and his players fall short.

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