Ruben Amorim Achieves Feat Last Seen at Man Utd Under Sir Alex Ferguson in 1987

Ruben Amorim must have been a little apprehensive coming into his 50th game in charge of Manchester United.

To kick things off, it emerged on the eve of Saturday's Premier League clash against Sunderland that Amorim was under a serious amount of pressure heading into the must-win game.

In fact, a report from The Telegraph claimed the Portuguese head coach could be sacked if they lost to Regis Le Bris's side at Old Trafford.

It was also suggested that 'concerns' have been raised about how consistently poor results are impacting the confidence of the squad, and a growing number of players are 'losing faith' in Amorim to improve matters.

As well as question marks around his job, a 38-year hoodoo lingered over the manager ahead of his 50th game in charge.

Amorim pictured during Saturday's Premier League clash against Sunderland. Image credit: Getty

It emerged ahead of kick-off that none of the last five United managers to hit 50 games have won their 50th, with Sir Alex Ferguson being the last to win his back in November 1987 against Bury.

How did the five managers post-Ferguson get on in their 50th game?

Less than a year after succeeding Ferguson and David Moyes watched his 50th game in charge from the Allianz Arena touchline as his side suffered a 3-1 defeat to Bayern Munich in the Champions League.

Louis van Gaal was the next manager to take the hot seat, although his 50th match at the helm – a visit to Swansea City – also ended in defeat.

Of course, former Chelsea and Real Madrid boss Jose Mourinho replaced Van Gaal in May 2016, and he managed to win the Europa League and the League Cup in his debut campaign.

But just like his two predecessors, the self-proclaimed 'Special One' failed to record a victory as he celebrated half a century of games in charge (although he went one better with a 1-1 draw against Everton).

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was the next manager to take the seemingly cursed job at United and, although he enjoyed an impressive start to life at Old Trafford, his 50th match in charge ended with a 2-2 draw against Aston Villa.

Finally, the man who came before Amorim, Erik ten Hag, also recorded a 2-2 draw on his anniversary – a Europa League quarter-final tie against Sevilla in April 2023.

Ten Hag failed to win his 50th game in charge of United. Image credit: Getty

But despite the bad omens coming into this weekend's clash against Sunderland, a much-improved United secured all three points as first-half goals from Mason Mount and Benjamin Sesko sealed a 2-0 win.

"That is the kind of game where when we're not playing well, we're defending well," said Amorim in his post-match interview.

"We had our moments, we were focused and competitive. Not the perfect performance. Senne [Lammens] did really well. We were a competitive team today. We need to win these games with a clean sheet. Good for us."