In Retrospect, Man United Should’ve Fully Backed Mourinho

Mourinho entered the United dressing room with the résumé, silverware and confidence that could usher the 20-time top-flight champions back to their former glory.

Yet, "The Special One" was sacked by the club after two and a half years in charge despite delivering one Europa League trophy, a League Cup victory, one FA Community Shield and one second-place Premier League finish.

While it’s true that Mourinho’s park-the-bus style clashed with the Red Devils’ lineage of front-footed attacking football, at least he got results. He may have fought with the board over transfers and fallen out with Paul Pogba, but all Pogba has done since is get banned and injured, while the board is yet to appoint anything resembling a serial winner.

Since Mourinho was ousted from the Old Trafford dugout, United’s trophy cabinet has collected more dust than silverware.

Permanent and interim managers and head coaches Ole Gunnar Solksjaer, Michael Carrick, Ralf Rangnick, Erik ten Hag, Ruud van Nistelrooy and recently axed boss Ruben Amorim followed and delivered scant success. If not for ten Hag’s 2023 EFL Cup triumph and 2024 FA Cup victory, the post-Mourinho cupboard would be completely bare.

Following Amorim’s recent dismissal, Mourinho reflected on his stint at Manchester United.

“One door opens, another one opens, which is what happened when I left Manchester United,” Mourinho said. “The story stayed there, the numbers stayed there, the three medals I won came home with me, and that’s it.”

Now that Amorim is gone, United must hire a proven head coach who can point to a CV of success and trophies. Given all the wrong turns and bad appointments that followed, United would have been better off sticking with Mourinho.