When hit by the prospect of José Mourinho replacing Louis Van Gaal mid-way into the season, Manchester United fans were blatantly equivocal as to whether the special one would be a good fit for Manchester United.
While there was some uncertainty surrounding Mourinho’s ‘imminent’ arrival, the fans of the club were prepared to give the ex-Chelsea boss a chance even if it meant them experiencing short term success before a long-term replacement (possibly Giggs) takes over in the next couple of years.
At the moment, the Red Devils look set to move into the Mourinho era with Van Gaal’s time at the club being done and dusted. LVG had a rocky stint at United as he never actually seemed to get things right even though he was ever so close to bringing the glory days back to Old Trafford.
The managerial position has become more unforgiving than it was ten years ago due to the level of expectancy associated with managing the so-called Big Clubs. Most would say that LVG survived a little more time than he deserved but the outlook of things are far more complicated than that.
Mourinho is finally set to continue his longstanding rivalry from his La Liga days as Pep Guardiola will also be joining him in Manchester but on the Blue side.
What’s going to happen with Mourinho in Charge?
1Re-evaluation of Youth Philosophy
The harsh reality of Jose Mourinho’s arrival at United is the fact that the youth players will be left on the fringes.
It’s a near-certainty that José Mourinho will underutilise Manchester United’s starlets due to his preference for more experienced players.
Despite Manchester United’s disappointing League campaign, the fresh talents which LVG brought into the first team setup were arguably the bright sparks in a relatively dim season.
Mourinho has never been known to give youth a chance as seen in his previous stints with Chelsea, Porto, and Real Madrid. He infamously sold Kevin De Bryune to Wolfsburg as he deemed him not ‘competitive’ enough to play regularly for Chelsea but £50million later, KDB is now one of the Premier League’s finest talents.
Judging by his track record, the rate at which youth players get promoted to the first team is set to face an immense depletion unless the Manchester United hierarchy places emphasis on the importance of the youth system.
2Less Attacking, More Tactics
The “attack attack attack” cries from the United fans are unlikely to have a major effect on United’s style of play as Jose Mourinho will be keen on implementing his trademark tactical approach.
Mourinho is well known for his tactical masterclass as he’s able to switch from the classic Italian Catenaccio (defensive football) to playing attacking and counterattacking football. His tactics involve extreme competence in defence as the backline is more or less the foundation of Portuguese’s ‘perfect’ system.
United fans should not expect free flowing attacking football from Mourinho’s side – José’s a proven winner, but he doesn’t win in grand style.
3Ibrahimovic?
After another phenomenal season in France, Zlatan Ibrahimovic has been on the lookout for a new challenge following the expiration of his PSG contract.
As expected, Zlatan has many suitors to choose from but on that note, Jose Mourinho’s arrival at United may just be a game changer in the clubs attempt to secure the Sweed’s signature.
Ibra and Mourinho have a standing relationship from the latter’s time in Milan and on that front Ibrahimovic has some affinity towards the special one so judging by the outlook of things Zlatan may very well be on his way to United to rejoin his old boss.
4Arrival of More High Profile Players
Mourinho has the presence and prestige required to attract big names to Manchester United even if they’re without Champions League football next season.
Mourinho surely has a huge transfer budget at his disposal so judging by his transfer exploits In previous clubs we’re going to see some high profile players at Old Trafford.
5Short term success
Mourinho has a proven track record of winning League titles as well as other cup competitions within a short space of time but what follows the short term success is usually spell of a downward spiral.
Unquestionably, United sealed the deal with one of most coveted bosses of the game to win silverware that he will most certainly do, but it’s almost certain that he’ll move on after a couple of seasons.
6. Intimidating officials 7. Cynically fouling opponents. 8. Goading other clubs and their managers. 9 Spewing sheer evil. 10. Lowering the tone of EPL football in every way he can think.