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• Amorim told Europa League qualification is 'mandatory' in first Man Utd season

  Ruben Amorim must at least guide Manchester United back into the Europa League in his first season as the club's manager.

  That is the view of ex-Manchester City defender Danny Mills, whose former side were beaten 4-1 by Amorim and Sporting CP in the Champions League earlier this month.

  Amorim has been hired by Man Utd to replace Erik ten Hag after the Dutchman was sacked midway through his third season in charge at Old Trafford.

  Having taken charge of his final games in Lisbon, a spell which included that famous continental win over Man City, Amorim started his work at United during the international break.

  His first game at the helm comes this Sunday away at Ipswich Town and while Mills acknowledges the task of rebuilding United's team is a long-term project, he feels there is still a certain level of results Amorim needs to hit in the 2024-25 season.

  "Amorim needs to figure out which players fit his mould and buy into his project," former England international Mills said to Stats Perform.

  "That will take six months or so. Then he will need to move some players out and bring new ones in. 

  "This season, though, they still need success. European football – Europa League – is probably mandatory. They must avoid the Conference League. 

  "Without being disrespectful, third-tier European football isn’t good enough for Manchester United, so it has to be the Europa League or Champions League. 

  "The Europa League is very achievable and not making it would be a huge disappointment. 

  "There are still good players at the club and they have still got to aim for the Champions League, but [getting into the top four] will take good coaching, a big turnaround, and maybe a bit of luck."

   

  Amorim is the seventh different manager to take charge of the club since Alex Ferguson's retirement in 2013. 

  The 39-year-old won three Portuguese league titles with Benfica as a player while he left Sporting as head coach after guiding them to two league titles and two Taca da Liga trophies.

  Sporting also started this season by winning all 11 league games under Amorim before his departure.

  "The appointment of Ruben Amorim is a good one," added Mills. "You have to look at the people involved [in the appointment] as well.

  "Dan Ashworth hasn’t made too many wrong decisions as a sporting or technical director. Throughout his career, at West Brom, England, Brighton, and Newcastle, his recruitment has been very good. 

  "Jason Wilcox, who sits under him, did incredibly well at Manchester City. He identified many young players who, if they didn’t become stars at City, went on to become stars elsewhere.

  "Recruitment will be handled well in terms of managers, coaches, and players, but that takes time and it’s going to take at least two or three transfer windows. 

  "I like that Amorim came in and said, ‘Right, that’s it. A new start’. He has moved away from the Ferguson era that people keep harping on about.

  "Ten-plus years ago, we knew how good Manchester United were, but football moves on. Liverpool went through a similar phase after their success in the 1980s."

   

  Amorim takes over at United with the club 13th in the Premier League with 15 points from 11 matches and having collected just one win from four matches in the Europa League. 

  Mills believes there is plenty for United fans to like about the new boss' approach on and off the pitch.

  "Football has evolved faster in the last 10 years than ever before and Amorim deals with the press well," he said.

  "When Sporting beat Manchester City, he admitted they played well but got a bit lucky. People appreciate that honesty. 

  "Fans and pundits are more knowledgeable now than ever before, thanks to the amount of football they consume and the opinions they hear, especially on social media."

   

  After facing Ipswich, Amorim's first two home games will see Man Utd take on Bodo/Glimt in the Europa League and Everton in the Premier League.

  He will then take the Red Devils to the Emirates Stadium for a huge clash against Arsenal on 4 December.

  United reached this season's Europa League by winning the FA Cup under Ten Hag and they have that potential path again this season, while they are also still in the EFL Cup, a competition in which they will play Tottenham in the quarter-finals.

  Winning the Europa League itself, meanwhile, would mean qualification to the Champions League.

  But while there are multiple routes open to Amorim in his bid to secure a continental spot, the Opta supercomputer does not like his chances of doing that through United's league placing.

  After their poor start to the season, United have just a 13.2% chance of finishing in the top six, and a 33.1% shot at reaching the top eight.

  As things stand, they are most likely to finish between ninth and 11th, meaning they are on track for their worst-ever Premier League finish unless Amorim can lead a rapid revival.

• Pan Am 2024 Athletes’ Forum kicks off in Dominican Republic

  The third edition of the Panam Sports Athletes’ Forum begins today, November 21, in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, bringing together representatives from 41 member countries of the Pan American Sports Organization. The event, which runs through November 23, will feature discussions on key topics affecting athletes across the Americas.

  The Forum will address issues such as mental health, post-career opportunities, personal branding, artificial intelligence, safe sport, and many other pressing topics. This year’s gathering boasts a lineup of over 20 distinguished speakers, including some of the continent’s most celebrated athletes.

  Among the notable participants are Félix Sánchez, a two-time Olympic champion from the Dominican Republic; Mariana Pajón, a three-time Olympic medalist from Colombia; and Alejandra Orozco, one of Mexico’s top diving champions. Additionally, sports and government authorities from the Dominican Republic and the full Executive Board of Panam Sports will also be in attendance.

  “We are very happy and eager to open this III Panam Sports Athletes' Forum. A paradisiacal place, great speakers, and a spectacular response from all the Athletes' Commissions of the Olympic Committees that are members of our organization give us reasons to dream that this event will be a great success. We want the ‘Voice of the Athletes’ to continue to be heard loudly in the continent and around the world,” said Panam Sports President Neven Ilic, who is already in Punta Cana.

  This year’s event marks the third time the Forum has been held, following successful editions in Miami and Cancun. The Panam Sports Athletes’ Forum is supported by Solidaridad Olímpica, emphasizing its commitment to advancing athlete welfare and development.

  In addition to the star-studded lineup of speakers, the forum will focus on themes such as sustainability, financing and support for athletes’ commissions, anti-doping, and athletes’ career transitions, providing athletes with valuable tools and insights to navigate their careers and post-sporting lives effectively.

  For those unable to attend, the entire Continental Athletes’ Forum will be broadcast live from Punta Cana via the Panam Sports Channel, ensuring that the discussions and insights reach a global audience.

  As the Dominican Republic hosts this renowned gathering, it reinforces the importance of athlete representation, welfare, and empowerment, further cementing the legacy of the Panam Sports Athletes’ Forum as a critical platform for the voices of athletes to be heard.

   

   

   

• Slot deserves praise for modest approach to Liverpool job – Mills

  Arne Slot deserves praise for not being "arrogant" with his approach to succeeding Jurgen Klopp as Liverpool boss, according to Danny Mills.

  The Dutchman has made a hugely positive start to life at Anfield since replacing long-serving Klopp ahead of the 2024-25 season.

  The 28 points Slot has collected is the joint-most of any manager in their opening 11 Premier League games along with Guus Hiddink at Chelsea.

  Liverpool's only blemish on an otherwise perfect start to the top-flight campaign was a 1-0 loss to Nottingham Forest in September.

  Indeed, only in 2019-20 (31 points) have Liverpool collected more points after 11 games of a Premier League season than their 28 this campaign.

  Former Leeds United and Manchester City defender Mills has been particularly impressed by Slot's approach to a new era at Anfield.

  "Arne Slot has surprised me," Mills told Stats Perform. "They did have a difficult defeat against Nottingham Forest at home. That was a defeat not many people saw that coming, but the start he's had is unbelievable. It's incredible.

  "Training might be slightly different, but the style of play is very similar. The players are comfortable with it. They've been high-energy, closing people down, and playing at 100 miles an hour when they win the ball back.

  "It shows managerial intelligence to understand the players' qualities and build on what they had when they were successful. He hasn't overthought it or tinkered too much. 

  "He hasn’t been arrogant and said, 'I'm going to rip it up and start fresh'. It wasn't broken; it was already successful. He's just added to it."

  Liverpool won a first ever Premier League title during Klopp's eight-and-a-half years in charge, as well the Champions League in 2018-19.

  Klopp also lifted the FA Cup, two EFL Cups, the UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup, setting a high benchmark to follow.

  "Liverpool identified the man they wanted, brought him in, and he's been very clever," Mills added. "He looked at the squad and thought, 'these are good players. I don't need to change too much'. 

  "That's smart because Liverpool were very successful under Klopp. If you come in and rip up the playbook and it doesn't work, players will question why they're not doing what worked under Klopp."

  Liverpool have conceded just six goals in the Premier League this season – four fewer than next-best Nottingham Forest.

  They are conceding at a rate of around 0.5 goals per game, compared to around 1.1 in Klopp's final season in charge (41 goals in 38 matches).

  "Slot has tweaked things slightly, maybe made them more defensively solid, which they needed to really challenge," Mills said. "Championship-winning or Champions League-winning teams are built on solid defences. 

  "You don't win without that. He's shored up the defence and allowed the players to continue doing what they were doing before."