Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim thinks it is important Sir Jim Ratcliffe went public with his long-term thoughts - but says nothing is certain about tomorrow in football, let alone three years. In an interview with The Times last week, Ratcliffe said it could take Amorim three years to make a significant impact at Old Trafford. Coming in a period when Amorim's future has been under scrutiny following an extended sequence of disappointing results, the comments helped quell some of the immediate pressure.

But, speaking before the 100th meeting with old rivals Liverpool at Anfield, the United boss stressed that the future is hard to predict in football. "It is really good to hear it but he tells me all the time, sometimes with a message after games - but you know, I know and Jim knows, that football is not like that," he said. "The most important thing is the next game. Even with owners, you cannot control the next day in football."

Chief executive Omar Berrada has admitted it has taken far longer for Amorim to adapt to the Premier League following his move from Sporting last November than anyone imagined. United have won 10 times in 34 Premier League matches under the 40-year-old. They are yet to win two league games in a row and have not ended a round of league games this season higher than ninth. The dire statistics are stretching belief in the manager among the United fanbase heading into a sequence of matches their club has been awful in for the past two seasons.

Amorim said he does not feel the uncertainty internally at the club's Carrington training ground and is adamant nothing can match the pressure he puts on his players - and in some senses, he would prefer Ratcliffe not to be trying to bring a sense of calm because he fears the impact it could have on the team. "It's not just a thing that people talk about, I feel it every day," he said. "It's really good to hear it because it helps our fans to understand the leadership know it is going to take a while.

"But at the same moment, I don't like it because it gives a feeling that we have time to work things out. I don't want that feeling in our club. "The pressure I put on the team or on myself is so much bigger [than that from outside]. In football, especially in big clubs, you need to prove yourself every weekend."