Four reasons why Jose Mourinho will not be a good fit for Manchester United

Mourinho has not stayed at any club for an extended period of time, making him an unreliable option for the long-term.

Shuja Haider May 27, 2016
Since the legendary Sir Alex Ferguson left Manchester United (Man Utd), the club began witnessing a downward spiral and failed to impress its fans around the world. After retiring at the end of the 2012-13 season; Sir Alex appointed David Moyes as his successor.

But Moyes was sacked after a short period of 10 months due to his lack of success and Dutchman Louis van Gaal became the first non-British manager in the club’s history. Van Gaal had a successful career with the Netherlands, Spain and Germany. AFC Ajax won the Champions League title under him in 1995. But during the 2015-16 season, Man Utd, the 13 times English Premier League champions, failed to qualify for the Champions League under the very same man’s management.

David Moyes believes failure to finish in the top four could have repercussions for Louis van GaalPhoto: Sky Sports

After this unfortunate debacle, the Man Utd management decided to replace Van Gaal with Jose Mourinho. There is no doubt that Mourinho’s tactics and success ratio make him one of the best football managers in the world. But will his appointment as the new United manager prove beneficial for the club? Will United fans accept him as their new manager?

Here are four issues that must be addressed now that Mourinho has been elected.

1. Strained relations with the board members and directors

Chelsea crisis: Jose Mourinho could be gone after Saturday's trip to Stoke, win or lose. Photo: AFP

Mourinho left his job at Chelsea when differences between him and the club administration emerged. As previously witnessed, Mourinho doesn’t appreciate the board dictating terms to him, which puts a strain on his relationship, not only with the board, but with the club owner as well. And so, one of the major questions that arise is; will he accept decisions made by the United Director, Sir Alex, who seems to be the in charge of United’s footballing affairs?

2. Anti-football tactics

Despite all his success, Mourinho has been continuously criticised for his defensive football strategies. Many critics term his style of tactics as anti-football, which is in complete contrast to United’s attacking strategy (the trademark strategy during Sir Alex’s era). In an effort to make sure his team secures goals, Mourinho has taught them to be incredibly defensive, which has not been appreciated by fans. Needless to say, United fans will not be satisfied with his style of play.

3. Referee and officials

Mourinho’s behaviour is United’s number one concern.Photo: AFP

Mourinho’s behaviour should be United’s number one concern. He has received several warnings regarding disciplinary issues on various occasions. In November 2015, he served a one match suspension because of his poor reaction to Nemanja Matic being carded off the field, followed by a confrontation with the match referee, Jon Moss, in the 2-1 defeat against West Ham at Upson Park.


In March 2005, Mourinho accused referee Anders Frisk and Barcelona’s Coach Frank Rijkaard of breaking FIFA rules because they held a meeting at half-time during the Champions league clash between Chelsea and Barcelona. Mourinho insisted that this meeting ended up in biased refereeing which resulted in the referee sending off the Chelsea striker, Didier Drogba, in the second half of the match. Mourinho was given a two match touchline ban and he and his club were fined by UEFA.

On August 17, 2011, he was punished for jabbing a finger in the eye of late Barcelona Assistant Coach Tito Vilanova at the end of the second leg of the Spanish Super Cup.


4. Not a long term option

One of the reasons behind David Moyes’ appointment as manager was his association and commitment to his former club, Everton. But Mourinho has not stayed at any club for an extended period of time, thereby making him an unreliable option for long-term reliability.

Only time will tell if appointing Mourinho will prove to be the right decision for the club.

One of the most important jobs the Portuguese manager has to undertake is satisfy United fans across the world by addressing their concerns in regard to him and his footballing ways.

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WRITTEN BY:
Shuja Haider The author is a student of media arts at Karachi University. Interests include literature, film, international affairs, issues related to students and an Arsenal fan since childhood.
The views expressed by the writer and the reader comments do not necassarily reflect the views and policies of the Express Tribune.

COMMENTS (3)

Saad Hasan | 7 years ago | Reply Jose's longevity at any club is suspect. If he can change his ways a bit then he could be an immense boost to MUFC. However that is not who Jose is. He does not change for others. Perhaps more importantly we need to consider the reality of football as the game is played today. Its all about immediate wins and silverware. The longevity of team managers/coaches is no longer the all important thing and is becoming a rarity. After the departure of Alex Ferguson from United, only Arsene Wenger remains of the long serving "career" managers and his future too is suspect after so many "so close yet so far" seasons at the helm of Arsenal. So perhaps Jose is the right man for giving the much needed shot in the arm to MUFC. Having followed him closely at CFC, I feel its a loss for Chelsea because where ever Mourinho goes, he takes a whole lot of drama and panache with him.
Kazim Hamdani | 7 years ago | Reply Four reasons you're not fit to write a blog. 1) You don't know how to. 2) You're an Arsenal fan like me. 3) You must be a specialist in failure too. 4) keep quiet
Latif | 7 years ago You have nailed it! Well done Kazim
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