If Ruben Amorim spent his Sunday in Lisbon tuning into events at Old Trafford, he will have witnessed a graphic illustration of the task awaiting him when he finally arrives as Manchester United manager.
United, under the temporary leadership of Ruud van Nistelrooy following Erik ten Haag’s sacking, were not short of effort in the 1-1 draw with Chelsea, but this grim evidence of an acute lack of quality and creation, bolted on to the vast millions wasted on poor recruitment, will have been a sobering experience for Amorim.
If he did not know the industrial scale of the job he has taken on, then Amorim will no longer be under any illusions.