Ruben Amorim makes 'strange' Europa League admission

Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim surprisingly admitted that he is not targeting triumph in this season's Europa League but has his sights set on "bigger things".

After getting dumped out of the FA Cup fifth round by Fulham last weekend, and with the Red Devils slumped in the lower reaches of the Premier League table, the club's only remaining avenue for success this season is the Europa League. Victory in the continent's second-tier competition also brings the added and lucrative bonus of automatic qualification for next season's Champions League.

Despite the riches and reward that would come with a lifting the trophy in Bilbao this May, Amorim insisted that he is taking a longer-term view.

"People are looking at the Europa League as a unique competition that we can win - also the connection with the Champions League," Amorim mused to Sky Sports. "But to tell you the truth, I think we have bigger things to think [about]. I know it's strange to say that. It's something that we are trying to build here is going to be more important than winning a cup in this moment.

"I know the responsibility that we have to fight for every trophy, but in this moment we are trying to build something that is going to last more than any trophy."

In the immediate aftermath of United's cup exit against Fulham, Amorim boldly claimed that the club's goal was to win the Premier League. Wayne Rooney was not alone in deriding that objective as "naive", but the Portuguese boss doubled down on his ambitions this week.

"I understand what people are saying," he noted. "If you look at our way of playing and our results, it's hard to imagine big things, in this moment, for our club. But in the darkest moment we have to have a light and the path - and that is clear here."

Intriguingly, Amorim questioned his involvement in this future success. "I don't know if I'm going to be here," the 40-year-old with a contract until 2027 shrugged, "but the way we are thinking, we are going to return and we are going to win in the future. But then it's the risk. We are doing a lot of things, we are not winning games, and when you don't win games sometimes you have to change people, and we know that.

"As a club I think we are doing a lot of things that are hard to do. A lot of people in the staff are paying that price, but we are doing the things that we should do to win in the future."

Amorim may be justified in his decision to overlook success in the Europa League. United have to navigate a difficult last-16 tie against Real Sociedad before even considering the next steps in a daunting route to the Europa League final.

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