Richard Hughes proven right AGAIN

Ruben Amorim was described as a strong candidate for the Liverpool head coach’s job during the search for Jurgen Klopp’s successor.

It was initially believed the Reds turned to Amorim after failing to tempt Xabi Alonso away from Bayer Leverkusen and only moved on to Arne Slot after the 39-year-old’s ill-fated trip to meet West Ham in London.

READ MORE: Liverpool midfielder NAMED as Real Madrid's €100m Toni Kroos replacement

The reality, as it transpired, was somewhat different. Slot was always seen as the “perfect” successor to Klopp during the process, according to James Pearce of the Athletic, with the then-Feyenoord coach’s test scores “blindingly impressive”.

Liverpool’s new sporting director Richard Hughes flew to the Netherlands to conclude the deal and a couple of weeks later Slot was on his way to Anfield.

It has been portrayed that Slot was maybe a back-up option for the Reds after failing to lure Alonso and backing off from Amorim.

But according to Pearce both Richard Hughes and Michael Edwards - the FSG CEO of Football - had well-placed reservations over Amorim. He was never the frontrunner for the Liverpool hotseat and there are a couple of reasons why.

Firstly, “They were unconvinced that his preference for a three-man central defence — shared by Alonso at Leverkusen, incidentally — would suit many of the players he would be working with,” wrote Pearce. And secondly: “more significant was a nagging concern about Amorim’s playing style.”

Anyone watching Manchester United over the past two and a half months might well concur. "We are being the worst team, maybe, in the history of Manchester United," the former Sporting CP coach said after yet another defeat on Sunday - this time 3-1 at home to Brighton.

Amorim making fans SUFFER

Amorim has presided over three wins in 11 Premier League matches. He’s not improved on Erik ten Hag’s record; he’s worsened it. The Reds Devils are 13th, on 26 points, and looking over their shoulders for relegation.

It’s patently obvious that Hughes’ warning over Amorim was justified because Man Utd simply do not have the players to do things Amorim’s way right now. But he STILL persists.

"I'm not going to change the way I see the game. I'm very clear on that," he said. "The players are going to suffer, I'm sorry, the fans are going to suffer. I have one way of doing things, I know it's going to [bring] results."

Anyone who’s seen Diogo Dalot repeatedly exposed at left wing-back - or a midfield duo of Casemiro and Christian Eriksen - would be able to tell you that this appointment is showing no signs of working out.

There is nothing to suggest that Amorim would have done anything different had he got the job at Anfield. He would have been shoehorning players into an unsuitable formation and making fans “suffer” as a result of those choices.

With Liverpool sitting top of the league and looking like a good bet for the Premier League title there is no doubt that the club made the right choice.

Maybe one day if Amorim has several hundred million to spend he might well get the players he needs to perform in his system. And he would never get that under Liverpool's ownership.

Slot didn’t spend a penny of his own choosing - with Federico Chiesa bearing all the hallmarks of a “club” signing - and instead set about improving the players at his disposal.

Hughes and FSG are not getting a lot of credit for much this season but this is one call they most certainly got spot on.

READ MORE: Liverpool make first steps to sign £60m star