Manchester United are reportedly ‘disappointed’ by Sky Sports’ Gary Cotterill for what they perceive to be a hostile approach to questioning new boss Ruben Amorim.
The Red Devils recently confirmed the 39-year-old as their new manager, with Amorim set to arrive as a replacement for Erik ten Hag.
At a recent press conference, Cotterill repeatedly asked the Portuguese to answer a question in English.
Amorim told Cotterill, however, that he would only be answering in Portuguese – leading to the Sky Sports reporter to say he was giving fans the ‘cold shoulder’.
Man United recently confirmed that Ruben Amorim will be replacing Erik ten Hag at Old Trafford
REUTERS
According to the Daily Mail, this hostile approach hasn’t gone down well at United.
It’s said they are ‘disappointed’ by Cotterill’s abrasiveness. While there’s no indication that they’ll launch an official complaint with Sky, they do believe the presenter was far too ‘hostile’.
The report also claims that United haven’t gagged Amorim.
Instead, he answered questions in Portuguese because that’s what his bosses at Sporting Lisbon want him to do.
He will only start answering questions in English after his last match as Sporting boss, which is against Braga on Sunday.
This incident isn’t the first time Cotterill has sparked controversy.
The Sky reporter chased Ten Hag when he was appointed as United boss in 2022, with the Dutchman attending a 1-0 Premier League defeat to Crystal Palace.
Ten Hag was so unhappy with Cotterill that he then declined to answer a question from the Sky reporter at his first pre-match press conference later that summer.
Cotterill did, however, have a positive relationship with Jose Mourinho.
And Mourinho gave him a signed shirt when United played Fenerbahce a fortnight ago, while also offering to take him out for dinner.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday night, Amorim’s Sporting side beat Manchester City 4-1 in Portugal.
It was a stunning result, one that only enhances the young manager’s reputation as he prepares for his move to England.
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Man United are unhappy with the way Gary Cotterill conducted himself when talking to Ruben Amorim
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Amorim was keen to downplay expectations, however, insisting United will be a ‘different world’ to what he’s used to.
“It was written, it had to be like this,” he said.
Amorim then added: “I already said previously you cannot transport one reality into another.
“Manchester United you cannot play exactly like this. You cannot play so defensively and so there we will have to adapt.
Man Utd’s new boss Ruben Amorim masterminded Sporting Lisbon’s stirring 4-1 win over Man City on Tuesday night
REUTERS
“Clearly it is really difficult to beat this team and to beat Pep Guardiola. And he is not a worse manager than me.
“It will be a completely different world, a different team, we won’t have that much time to train and we will begin from a different starting point.
“People can make their own judgements but I say to the people of Manchester that this was a one-off.”