Source: REUTERS/Andrew Boyers
[Saba Sports News] Manchester United’s new head coach Ruben Amorim is about to officially take office, and as a Portuguese coach, the language issue regarding his coaching in the Premier League has attracted attention. In a press conference before the match against Manchester City, Amorim answered reporters’ questions in his native Portuguese in Lisbon, the capital of Portugal. After 20 minutes of the press conference, Sky Sports reporter Gary Cotterill said, “Hello, Ruben. Did we miss something?” Amorim responded, “What?” The reporter then said, “Your wonderful English.” Amorim apologized for this, and the translator sitting next to him stated that the press conference would continue in Portuguese. Gary Cotterill asked whether Manchester United requested him not to answer questions in English, which Amorim denied. Despite Gary Cotterill’s repeated requests, Amorim only apologized and insisted on answering reporters’ questions in Portuguese. In response to this statement, Gary Cotterill complained, “They have listened to 25 minutes of Portuguese; we want to hear 10 seconds of English. All British fans are being neglected.” To such remarks, Amorim just smiled and apologized again while continuing to answer reporters’ questions. His translator claimed that before officially becoming a part of Manchester United, Amorim would only focus on Sporting Lisbon.