Ruud van Nistelrooy disclosed that he has not yet received any communication from Rúben Amorim about his future, following Manchester United's long-awaited European victory after more than a year. United's triumph against Greek champions, Paok, at Old Trafford propelled them to 15th place in the Europa League standings with six points. Sunday's encounter with Leicester marks Van Nistelrooy's fourth and final game as United's interim manager. Whether he will stay on under Amorim remains uncertain, and the Dutchman mentioned that he has had no contact with the 39-year-old, who officially takes over on Monday after Sporting's match against Braga on Sunday.
"I need to check my phone now [to see if Amorim has messaged] – we'll see later. I believe Rúben is concentrating on Braga and I am focusing on Leicester," Van Nistelrooy stated. "That's the current situation, and it reflects our focus on the daily tasks. Let him concentrate on Braga and I'll focus on Leicester, and we'll see what happens after that. My sole focus is on one thing.
"I want to prepare my last game as interim manager as best as I can and give everything to the players. That is my absolute focus, and beyond that, I don't look too far ahead. It's too crucial." United's victory was secured by two second-half goals from Amad Diallo, who was the standout player of the match. This means Van Nistelrooy has managed two wins and a draw since Erik ten Hag was dismissed last Monday following a loss to West Ham.
"This brief period is a crucial time to respond since we lost to West Ham," he said. "We needed to start securing results, which is why I emphasized its importance. For me, it's vital to continue and build on the results from Leicester, Chelsea, and Paok. We can build on our first European home win in a year. We addressed this in the dressing room; it was time to change that, and we did. Sunday's game is significant for us in the league, and we need to deliver a strong performance.
"The first half [against Paok] was not good. We barely created any chances, and neither did Paok. We didn't get into our stride, and our possession wasn't good enough, with many technical errors. Our shape wasn't consistent, it was at times, but not for long enough in the shape we wanted to play. The second half was much improved."
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