A LOOK BACK: The Manchester United manager knew he was facing down the handle of an axe before his players stepped on the pitch to face Leeds

Michael Carrick will hope to avoid the same fate as Ruben Amorim at Elland Road as he heads to face Leeds under some serious pressure. Manchester United fans will feel the eerie resemblance to earlier in January when the Portuguese manager was sacked after a 1-1 draw.

Amorim had been handling calls for his axe for a number of weeks before the Leeds game after picking up just 30 points out of a possible 60 during the 2025/26 season. His side managed maximum points in just eight of 20 games that campaign alone and ended his reign with a dismal 40% win rate and a measly draw against bitter rivals Leeds.

But it was revealed later that Amorim's fate was sealed two days before the Elland Road visit after he "blew up" in a meeting with United's director of football, Jason Wilcox. The club chief had planned for the meeting to be productive and to assess where the team stood days after a 1-1 draw with bottom-placed Wolves.

But when Amorim's unchanging views on the 3-4-3 system were brought up, he reportedly "blew up", and any hopes of reconciliation ended. The Telegraph reported at the time that a decision was made to get rid of the manager, without the need for a board meeting.

The report claims this verdict was reached with the full support of United's co-owners, Sir Jim Ratcliffe and the Glazer family, meaning Amorim was a 'dead man walking' before he went postal after the Leeds draw. In his post-match press conference, the Portuguese head coach was asked if he still had the backing of the club chiefs - and this didn't go down well.

Amorim said: "Guys, to stop with that, and I noticed that you received selective information about everything. I came here to be the manager of Manchester United, not to be the coach of Manchester United. That is clear. I know that my name is not Tuchel, is not Conte, is not Mourinho, but I'm the manager of Manchester United.

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"It's going to be like this for 18 months or when the board decided to change. That was my point. I want to finish with that. I'm not going to quit. I will do my job until other guy is coming here to replace me. I just want to say that I'm going to be the manager of this team, not just the coach. I was really clear on that. That is going to finish in 18 months, and then everyone is going to move on.

"That was the deal. That is my job, not to be a coach. If people cannot handle the Gary Nevilles and the criticises of everything, we need to change the club. No, no guys, I would say that I came here to be the manager of Manchester United, not to be the coach. Every department, the scouting department, the sport director needs to do their job. I will do mine for 18 months and then we move on. Thank you, guys."

The next morning, chief executive Omar Berrada and Wilcox formally sacked Amorim in what a senior United source called "a sad, tough and disappointing day." An insider source claimed Amorim wanted to "blow it all up" at the club due to his "erratic behaviour."

They added: "We supported Ruben through thick and thin – through bad results, erratic behaviour, all those public statements – so to turn around now and say it’s a power struggle is ridiculous. There has barely been a cigarette paper in the relationship between Jason, Omar and Ruben. This is a manager who basically decided to blow it all up. He’s been looking for the opportunity. He wanted out."

Now, Carrick is facing the same fixture with some wildly similar surroundings. He has won just one Premier League match this season, losing two and drawing three as United sit in 13th place.

The team are in the same position in the Champions League, having beaten newcomers Sabah 4-0 and lost 2-0 to Atletico Madrid midweek. Carrick does have some merit left at Old Trafford thanks to his history with the club, coupled with his success as interim last season, which ended with a third-place result in the league.

But the current United boss is all too aware of the team's last visit to Elland Road and just how important it is to secure a win against their rivals.