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Ruben Amorim's tenure at Manchester United has been labeled a major letdown. By any measure, his record is notable for all the negative reasons. During the Premier League era, not a single Man Utd boss has recorded a worse points return, or achieved a final position as low as 15th in the table. Looking deeper into history, you have to return to the manager Frank O'Farrell in 1972 to find a United boss who lost a higher percentage of fixtures. Additionally, he notoriously etched his name in club lore by experiencing a cup final defeat to Tottenham, namely Postecoglou's iteration of the North London club.

Life, though, is rarely so straightforward. In spite of the negative press of his favored system, Amorim exits a squad in a significantly improved condition than that which he found. Earlier this season, following a win against Brighton, Danny Welbeck shared that his colleagues were praising United as the best opposition they had played against in some time. The performance in a exhilarating high-scoring tie with Bournemouth was both encouraging and thrilling.

Although it is tough to dispute the decision to sack him—especially given it was allegedly sparked by his criticism of bosses with even worse histories—Amorim's demise was finally stymied by awful fortune. If injuries to key personnel not occurred alongside the unavailability of other important figures, he could remain in the role—maybe even.

Fletcher Takes the Reins

Therefore, the interim boss Fletcher takes over a reasonably solid situation. Key players like Mount, Bruno Fernandes, and Mainoo are now fit, while Diallo and Mbeumo will shortly be back from the Africa Cup of Nations. Merely sensible husbandry of this talented squad should be enough to ensure a finish in the European spots and, with it, continental competition for next season—probably in the prestigious European Cup.

The Clarets' Daunting Challenge

The home side, however, won't roll over. Despite boasting only twelve points and having lost 3 of their last five outings, their displays have at times been more impressive than the scorelines show. Manager Scott Parker will surely have his team revved up to take the game to United who are likely to play an XI that has not had time to gel, deployed in a setup they have gone without for more than a year.

Match begins: 20:15 GMT.