‘Mourinho nearly made me cry before I left Man Utd – now Amorim wants me back’

Angel Gomes was almost in tears when Jose Mourinho told him that his level was below Manchester United but that he could now make a remarkable return.

Although he joined the Red Devils at the age of six, Gomes was unable to cap his rise through the ranks at Carrington with a consistent starting spot in the starting line-up. Four years ago he was released under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and moved to Lille.

Still, a quick move to Boavista boosted his confidence, and when he returned to the French team a year later, Gomes' gamble to leave English soil reaped insurmountable dividends, with Lee Carsley handing the England U21 star his debut in September the first team delivered.

Now reports suggest that almost half a decade after his departure, 24-year-old Gomes could be in line for a shock return to Manchester, with new boss Ruben Amorim said to be keen.

According to The Sun, Lille's Gomes, whose contract expires at the end of the season and would therefore not command a large fee, is now a prime target for United and has long been admired by newcomer Amorim.

Should Gomes return to the Red Devils' midfield, it would mark the start of a journey that began in his infancy and make up for the heartbreak he felt when his contract expired in 2020.

Speaking to the Times, Gomes opened up about the struggles he faced when he was told he wouldn't make it after United and Mourinho's brutal dismissal.

“He didn't think I had played at a high level [in a reserves match] to guarantee a place in the first-team squad, and he just really let me know,” Gomes admitted. “At the time I thought, 'Why did he do that in front of everyone? Couldn't he have pulled me aside?'

“A few players came up to me and said, 'He just wants a reaction from you, don't let that fool you,' but at that moment I didn't want to hear anything. I ran to my room and called my father and my brother. There really isn't much they could say to me. I almost cried. I was very young.

'It wasn't until I got older that I realized that Mourinho is always looking for ways to get more out of you. I think he showed that, in front of everyone, that he appreciated me as a player. I probably needed it.”

Gomes called his departure from United the most difficult time of his young career – something he could try to rectify if he were to make a comeback.

“It was the most difficult period of my career,” Gomes added. “On the field and off the field I didn't know what was going on. I spoke to [Solskjaer]. I also spoke to the assistants because [assistant manager] Kieran McKenna was my under 18s coach. It just felt like they wanted me to stay and go with the flow. They wanted me to go out on loan, but nothing much had been arranged.

“I felt like after being in the academy all my life, there would have been a plan for me to progress. That was the hardest pill to swallow.”

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