Manchester United Dugout: Jose Mourinho

Showing posts with label Jose Mourinho. Show all posts

Best Summer Transfer Window for Manchester United

With the summer transfer window officially closed, several Premier League clubs have improved their squad, but I think Manchester United have done the best business in this window.

Replacing Van Gaal with Jose Mourinho, United brought in a top quality manager making their intentions clear that they are here to dominate the Premier League.

A big club like Manchester United needs big players who can win them games. And Jose has done exactly that with his summer signings. The Portuguese boss made four major signings as he promised, with Eric Bailly, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Paul Pogba.

A major boost for the Red Devils, that most analysts and pundits aren't talking about is, David de Gea has stayed at Old Trafford. Its definitely a big news and shows our power to not just buy big name players but to retain them as well.

With Manchester derby coming up next, and the squad that we have now, there's definitely a lot for Man United fans to be excited about.

Cristiano Ronaldo back to Manchester United. Is it possible?

Cristiano Ronaldo left Manchester United for Real Madrid last season for a record breaking fee. Though his form has been consistent for the Spanish side, but with the change of their manager, I wonder whether we can bring Ronaldo back to OT.

Real Madrid have announced the sacking of Manuel Pellegrini, paving the way for Jose Mourinho to take up the vacant Bernabeu hotseat. Its only a matter of time when the Special One will be unveiled as the new manager of Real Madrid.

Jose has special admiration for some of his Chelsea and Inter players and may bring them to Madrid. In such a case, its going to be difficult for Ronaldo to cement his place in the team.

Moreover, Jose and Ronaldo were never in awe of each other when they were in the Premier League. I remember, Jose saying that he would like to add Wayne Rooney and Thierry Henry to his Chelsea side then.

The Special One is known to be a firm believer in the importance of team work. He issued a stern warning to Real Madrid 'Stars' saying that there are no stars in his team. His message to the players of Real Madrid was, "If I train them, they are not stars, the star is not the coach, the star is the team. If they all accept this like when I was at Porto, Chelsea or Inter, the victories will come."

There's no doubt that both Ronaldo and Jose have huge egos and if Ronaldo isn't treated like a star, he's surely going to move on. So can Sir Alex bring CR7 back to OT?

Sir Alex generally doesn't like to pay extravagant prices to bring stars to Manchester United. However, he had said that he would spend $60mn to bring Ronaldo back to OT. I hope his contract has a buy-back clause. If it is there, then Ronaldo might be "The only" signing that Sir Alex has been referring since last week.

What say folks? Can we bring Cristiano Ronaldo back to the Theatre of Dreams?

Who will replace Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United?

Manchester United is one of the best football clubs in the world and Sir Alex Ferguson is the most decorated manager in England. It is very difficult to replace this man once he steps down. But that has to happen and happen soon. So who will replace Fergie?

I wish Sir Alex could continue forever at Old Trafford. But all good things come to an end and probably he might think of stepping down after the end of next season. Of course, there is ample amount of time for management to find his successor, but who will he be?

Manchester United CEO, David Gill and Sir Bobby Charlton have been asked to hire the successor to Sir Alex Ferguson. They have been considering lot of names and have even consulted Fergie about this matter. Its difficult to say who would be the next United manager, but there are some names being linked with the United hot seat.

First of all, Jose Mourinho - the Special One. He has time and again indicated his desire to return to England. There is no secret that Mourinho wants to manage Manchester United. In fact, he is optimistic that Sir Alex will recommend him as his successor when he retires.

Next in line is Carlos Queiroz who was the deputy of Sir Alex for more than 5 years. Queiroz left United when he was appointed as the new head coach of Portugal last year. I don't doubt his abilities but his managerial performance at Real Madrid and Portugal has not really been something which one could expect at Old Trafford.

Laurent Blanc has also been linked with Manchester United. This ex Red Devil is currently managing French club - Bordeaux. He has been instrumental in transforming the club from a being mere football team to becoming the French champions in a short span of time. A recent article on Mirror reported the Blanc has emerged to top the Manchester United short-list of managers to succeed Sir Alex Ferguson.

Though these 3 names are mostly discussed, I believe there are a few others who might be considered for this top job. Those include Mark Hughes, Sam Allardyce, Bryan Robson, Steve Bruce, Roy Keane (why not?) and David Moyes. Fergie has been a great admirer of Moyes (Scottish connection.. huh?) for his awesome work at Everton and might get a strong push.

But there's a clear message that replacing Sir Alex will be the toughest job since Matt Busby left the club. It isn’t just about winning at United. It’s about playing the game the right way and upholding the traditions. Fergie has done that for over 20 years and has nurtured and created legends at Old Trafford. It will indeed be a big day when he retires as the manager of Manchester United.

Who do you think is the best suited candidate for United job and why?

Jose Mourinho, Manager Manchester United

Jose Mourinho has hinted that he might manage Manchester United one day. He believes that he has what it takes to one day take over from Sir Alex Ferguson as Manchester United's manager.

"I have big jobs left in me that is for sure - but I can't commit to which ones," the News of the World quoted Mourinho as saying.

"If you want me to rule out ever being Manchester United manager I can't.

"Special clubs need special managers so in theory it could work, but nobody knows what the future is in football. If they did, that would make football betting very easy."

"The England national team wanted me as coach and that is the biggest job in England.

"So I am sure when Sir Alex retires they will look at the best managers in the world and I certainly fall into that category.

His comments come just before he and his Inter Milan travel to United this Wednesday for the return leg of their last-16 Champions League clash with the Red Devils. Having drawn the first leg 0-0 at the San Siro, Inter will fancy their chances of creating a major upset by beating the reigning champions.

So what do you feel, will Mourinho be fit to Manchester United's style of football?

Image Credit: Getty Images

Sir Alex and Jose to face each other.

Today the draw for the Champions League knock out phase was made and Man United was handed a tie against Inter Milan. This means that Sir Alex's team will face Jose Mourinho's Inter boys to progress in the next phase.

This 2 leg encounter will give former Chelsea boss Mourinho a chance to renew acquaintances with Manchester United manager Sir Ferguson. Mourinho had made it clear that he wanted to draw an English club and he has landed a mouth-watering clash with United, with the first leg to be played at the San Siro. The ties will be played on 24/25 February and 10/11 March as the Champions League knockout phase begins.

I know most of you will be thinking of the memories of Mourinho's famous dash down the touchline at Old Trafford in March 2004 when Francisco Costinha's last-minute equaliser sent United crashing out of the Champions League and saw Porto through and on to eventual victory in the final. But hang on, that was history. It wont be repeated again. The European, who would soon be world champions have the current Ballon D'Or winner (Cristiano Ronaldo), a great coach in Alex Ferguson and a stadium with a fantastic atmosphere. And given the fact that second leg would be played at Old Trafford, I am sure the fans would make it easy for United to progress to the next round and defend their title.