Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim has made it clear that his side’s immediate focus is on their upcoming Premier League battle against Arsenal, insisting that thinking too far ahead could hinder the team’s progress.
Speaking during his press briefing, Amorim reflected on the lessons he learned last season:
“I learned a lot last season. One of the things that I learned is that I don't need to focus a lot on the future. That doesn't matter. I just want to win against Arsenal, to focus on Arsenal, and I need to live day-by-day like my players, and focus on each game. Everything that gets a little bit of noise to our team, I have to take out of the picture, so I just prepare to coach my team against Arsenal.”
While Amorim acknowledged that long-term planning is part of his job, he emphasized that the current football environment demands constant attention to immediate challenges.
“Of course, as a manager with the board, you have to have a plan, a long plan, but nowadays with three interviews every week, we just need to focus on Arsenal. We want to win this game against a very good team, a very good coach, let's focus on that.”
The United boss also discussed the club’s ambitions of returning to European competition but admitted that the journey will be difficult given the competition in the Premier League.
“We want to return to Europe. But it's hard as a Man United coach to say one thing like that. We need to be realistic with our fans, that we are going to have to fight a lot because there are lots of good teams who have had more time than us together. But we are going to fight for it. We want to improve, we need to focus game-by-game.”
Amorim stressed that overthinking the end of the season could be damaging:
“If we are thinking how we're going to finish the season, it's a problem. Let's focus game-by-game - we want to win against Arsenal. That is the main focus.”
When asked about striker Benjamin Sesko’s fitness and training habits, Amorim dismissed any suggestion of extra physical sessions, instead highlighting the young forward’s dedication.
“No, no, no, he does the same as the other players, but what I'm saying is he's one guy who stays here, has lunch, then goes to the medical department, does the stretching. The guy is always thinking about football. He's really obsessed by that and that is a good thing.”
The manager added that Sesko’s commitment relieves him of any concerns about the player’s mentality:
“I don't need to tell Ben, 'this is Manchester United, a lot of pressure, you have to perform, you need to be ready for the physicality, we need to be ready for every game, it's like do-or-die'. With that guy, I have not that concern. I have the opposite — [he needs to] enjoy himself a little bit!”
Manchester United face Arsenal in what could be a pivotal early-season fixture. A win would not only provide a morale boost but also underline Amorim’s philosophy that success comes from focusing on the task at hand rather than getting lost in long-term speculation.