Nicky Butt has revealed he enjoyed bragging rights in Manchester after beating City as a player, but has urged his old side not to underestimate Pep Guardiola's men.
The two teams go into Sunday's derby on the back of poor form, with the encounter at the Etihad expected to be a close affair.
Amorim replaced beleaguered boss Erik ten Hag in November and made a solid start to his tenure, winning back-to-back games against Everton and Bodo/Glimt.
But the Portuguese's progress has been hit by damaging defeats to Arsenal and Nottingham Forest and concerns the Red Devils may have to sell players to comply with the Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR).
City, meanwhile, are at their lowest point since Guardiola took over in 2016, at one point losing six in a row while sitting in fourth place, nine points behind leaders Liverpool.
Ahead of the much-hyped grudge match, United legend Butt, who featured heavily, has shared his memories of the rivalry with talkSPORT.
He said: 'It was a fan in me that loved it. Not only that, we won pretty much all of them, so it was like bragging rights when you went home.
“The local rivalry, the build-up to a derby match: if you grew up in the region and are a Man United fan, you can't really describe what it feels like. I remember getting up on the day of a derby – at 7am and the atmosphere in the environment was just amazing.
'Liverpool was the one I looked forward to at the start of every season.'
City have dominated the derby in recent years, winning five of the last six and 14 in 25 against their bitter rivals, while securing seven Premier League titles since their neighbors won one.
And despite their recent woes, Butt has warned against underestimating Guardiola's men in Sunday's crucial encounter.
“I don't think in a derby you can't really determine a league position based on the facts of us winning or not winning,” he said.
'I think it's just a one-off match. Anything can happen in derbies. It's passionate, it's emotional.'
In the most recent edition in March, Phil Foden bagged a brace to complete a sensational comeback for City after Marcus Rashford's early opener.
A late goal from Erling Haaland saw United lose for the first time in the 143 games they had led at half-time.
The City duo were behind the home humiliation for the Red Devils in October, with Haaland punching from a penalty before a finish in the penalty area secured his double. Foden completed it after being played in by the Norwegian.
United are under pressure to sell players to meet Profit and Sustainability Regulations (PSR), and raise money for Amorim to strengthen his squad.
Switching homegrown players counts as a 100 percent gain on the PSR balance sheet, and the spotlight has been on Rashford for some time now, who has been with the club since he was seven.
Another option would be for the Red Devils to sell one of their two crown jewels, Kobbie Mainoo or Alejandro Garnacho, but that is something the club wants to avoid.
Meanwhile, Guardiola promises to delve into his tactical playbook to solve his side's injury crisis ahead of the derby.
The Spaniard, who insisted City were performing well despite seven defeats in 10 games, ruled Manuel Akanji out of the clash against United, leaving him with three available defenders.
Rico Lewis is suspended and the City boss is considering starting Matheus Nunes or Bernardo Silva at wing-back.
Comments