Ruben Amorim admits David Moyes is doing a better job at reviving Everton than he has managed at Manchester United.
Moyes has won four of his six Premier League games and lost just once since returning to Goodison Park where United play for the final time on Saturday afternoon.
Amorim, on the other hand, has four wins and eight defeats from 14 league games as United have dropped below Everton to 15th place in the table.
Asked why Everton have enjoyed a new manager ‘bounce’ and United have not, Amorim replied candidly: ‘David Moyes is doing a better job than me, it’s quite simple.
‘We have to give merit to the players of Everton and especially to the coach of Everton, and we need to do the same.
‘It’s an amazing job by David Moyes to recover the team. You feel the confidence and belief are there.
‘Sometimes it’s frustrating when you hear out loud "four wins in 14 games for Manchester United". You get really angry.’
Moyes was the first manager to replace Sir Alex Ferguson in the United hot-seat, and nearly 12 years later the Scot’s success still casts a shadow over Amorim.
‘It shows it’s a difficult job,’ added the 40-year-old, who also held talks with West Ham last April over replacing Moyes at the London Stadium.
‘We have to try to understand the history. This club had a figure in Sir Alex Ferguson that you cannot replace.
‘Everything was connected with one person and when that person leaves it’s really hard.’
Amorim wanted to delay joining United from Sporting Lisbon until the summer and admits that would have been better, adding: ‘I think that’s clear. It’s commonsense. When you start a season it’s completely different.
‘I had my reasons to ask for it and I have the most important reasons to accept the job. I knew it would be tough and a risk, but it’s Manchester United and you can’t say no.’