Ruben Amorim is one of the leading contenders to replace Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool
Ruben Amorim has rejected the ‘Special One 2’ nickname given to him by some members of the English press amid strong rumours indicating that the Sporting CP manager could succeed Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool.
The 39-year-old has emerged as the favourite to become the next manager to occupy the home dugout at Anfield after previous frontrunner Xabi Alonso announced he would be staying at Bayer Leverkusen for the 2024/25 season, having put the German club within touching distance of a first Bundesliga title.
Amorim, who recently told the media he was focused on Sporting and very happy to be there, is now the focus of heightened attention in England, with some even dubbing the Portuguese manager ‘the Special One 2’.
The former Benfica player, though, has rejected the nickname which likens him to fellow Portuguese coach Jose Mourinho. “It makes no sense and I have no illusions about it,” the Portuguese said. “I still remember last year everyone was speculating about whether I was going to leave Sporting.
“There are no comparisons between the great Jose Mourinho and the Sporting coach.”
Amorim is currently on course to lead Sporting to a second Primeira Liga title, with the Leões (Lions) leading the second-placed Benfica by one point with a game in hand.
Two league titles in Portugal would equal Mourinho’s tally. Mourinho, of course, also had tremendous European success with Porto, winning the UEFA Cup in 2002/03 and most notably the Champions League in 2003/04.
It was off the back of this that ‘the Special One’ departed for England. At his Chelsea unveiling, Mourinho said: “Please don’t call me arrogant, but I’m European champion and I think I’m a special one.”
He backed up his talk by winning two consecutive Premier League titles at Stamford Bridge, dethroning Arsenal’s ‘Invincibles’ and a seeing off a resurgent Manchester United.
Even if Amorim has no interest in proclaiming himself as ‘the Special One 2’, that sort of impact on Merseyside would certainly make him a special one.
Asked ahead of Sporting’s Taça de Portugal semi-final second leg clash with Benfica whether talk of him joining Liverpool bothers him, Amorim responded in a light-hearted manner. “The only thing that bothers me is that they [Sporting] had a replacement for me,” he joked. “Even today I told [Hugo] Viana [Sporting’s Football Director] to take it easy.”
Amorim does have some European pedigree, having beaten Borussia Dortmund in the 2021/22 Champions League group stage. In the same competition the next season, his Sporting side beat and drew with Tottenham Hotspur, before knocking Arsenal out of the Europa League having finished third in their Champions League group.
If Liverpool are to land the highly rated tactician, they would need to pay the reported €20 million (£17 million) release clause to poach him from Sporting before 2026.
