Manchester United paid Jose Mourinho £4 million to ward off rival interest

If reports from Sportsmail are to be believed, Jose Mourinho was paid an astounding £4 million to stay away from rival clubs and sign with Manchester United. An agreement was reportedly reached between United and Mourinho to bring him in if Louis van Gaal failed to meet the club’s end of season targets.

The Old Trafford club won the FA Cup on Saturday defeating Crystal Palace 2-1 in extra time, courtesy of youth product Jese Lingard’s stunning volley.

But despite winning the trophy, widespread reports in the British media has suggested that the Dutchman is on the verge of a sack at Old Trafford. It has also been indicated that Jose Mourinho could be unveiled as the new manager as early as on Tuesday and will be signing a staggering £75 million five-year deal.

Mourinho though has refused to accept a ‘behavorial clause’ in his deal despite the United hierarchy having concerns over his eccentric touchline shenanigans. Mourinho has already had 2 stadium bans during his two terms at Chelsea and was fined £229,900 pounds as well. United desperately want to avoid such negative publicity as they have always remained the benchmark in English football.

It is alleged that Manchester United will be allowing the Portuguese to splash the cash as he will be receiving funds up to 200 million pounds to spend on acquiring new players and building the squad for the next season. The Red Devils hope to conclude all the transfer deals for the players they have in mind before the European Championships conclude so that Mourinho will have the entire squad at his disposal for the pre-season.

So, is it the end of the road for LVG at United? The Dutchman’s tumultuous two-year reign finally yielded a trophy, but it still might not be enough to save him from the sack. Fans and ex-players alike have been left disappointed by the 64-year old’s conservative approach and lack of results as United have always been known to be an entertaining and attacking side.

Indeed, players like Paul Scholes have criticized the management saying United have been poor and winning the FA cup was never their pre-season ‘priority’, even though it has been a substantial amount of time since they last won it.

He said, “It's long overdue but I also think it hasn't really been a priority. We all know it's a massive major competition but was it the priority over the Champions League or the Premier League?”

Ed Woodward, the current executive vice-chairman of Manchester United will once again be under pressure to appoint an experienced director of football to handle important on-field matters.

Assistant coach under Van Gaal, Ryan Giggs is also apparently set to “leave” the club although Mourinho is interested in keeping the Welshman. Mou is expected to be joined by his long-time assistant Rui Faria and goalkeeping coach Silvino Louro.

It remains to be seen how the Portuguese fits at Old Trafford though, as the club tend to have long term coaching plans whereas Mourinho is known for his short but successful stints. The 53-year-old is also known to inhibit young talent coming through the ranks at the club, a philosophy which has seen United succeed so much in the past, especially under Sir Alex Ferguson.