RUBEN'S READY TO REPAIR ROCKY ROAD AS RATCLIFFE DELIVERS TIMELY VOTE OF CONFIDENCE

RUBEN AMORIM will have taken Sir Jim Ratcliffe's public vote of confidence in him one of two ways.

- BY DAVID MCDONNELL

The Manchester United manager may have welcomed his boss' public endorsement, along with Ratcliffe's belief that Amorim needs to be judged over the length of his three-year contract.

Or he could have viewed the backing, like so many did, as the dreaded vote of confidence - the precursor to the inevitable sacking. A haul of 37 points from a possible 102 is the kind of return that sees teams relegated - and one he knows cannot continue.

Ratcliffe, chief executive Omar Berrada and director of football Jason Wilcox will not hesitate to pull the trigger on Amorim if results do not improve significantly.

In the interview, in which he endorsed Amorim, Ratcliffe may have referenced the clamour for Sir Alex Ferguson to be sacked after a poor start to his United reign, before the era of unprecedented success he oversaw at Old Trafford.