United have been dealt a late blow in their pursuit of the Portuguese manager.

Manchester United have been forced to reconsider their plans regarding Ruben Amorim after a late twist in their negotiations with Sporting Lisbon.

An official statement from United on Monday afternoon confirmed that former manager Erik Ten Hag had been sacked after two years in charge of the club.

Just hours after the decision was confirmed, Sporting boss Amorim emerged as the favourite to take over in the Old Trafford dugout.

But now, United have been dealt a late blow in their plans to bring the 39-year-old to the club as negotiations appear to have reached the final stages.

Initially, reports had claimed that Amorim could be appointed as United manager in time for the highly-anticipated Premier League clash with Chelsea on Sunday at Old Trafford.

However, a new update from CNN Portugal claims that Amorim is expected to remain in charge of Sporting for their league match against Estrela da Amadora on Friday.

Furthermore, The Daily Mail have added that it could be even longer before the Portuguese manager will be seen in the United dugout, due to a notice period included in his contract with Sporting.

The report claims that Amorim must give a couple of weeks notice before leaving the club, rather than the mere days that had previously been reported.

With that in mind, it looks increasingly possible that Amorim may not take charge of United until their first match after the international break against Ipswich Town on November 24th.

Ruben Amorim was linked with a Premier League move over the summer to Liverpool or West Ham United. (Image: Getty)

This means that current interim manager Ruud van Nistelrooy would be in charge for United’s matches against Leicester City, Chelsea, PAOK and a second tie against Leicester ahead of a two-week international break.

However, United remain in negotiations with both Sporting and Amorim regarding this part of his contract, as they want to bring the manager to Old Trafford as soon as they can.

The Manchester club are set to pay €10 million to Sporting in order to trigger the release clause of Amorim, the same fee that the Portuguese side paid to lure him away from his previous club Braga in 2020.