Mourinho Was Not United’s First Choice Managerial Candidate
Former Chelsea manager José Mourinho was appointed as Manchester United manager during the summer, after previous manager Louis Van Gaal was sacked after failing to finish in the top four.
Chelsea won the league by 8 points, and also the League Cup in 2014-15 campaign, but had a terrible 2015-2016 season. Chelsea had lost 9 of their 16 Premier League games and were 16th in the table, one point above the relegation zone. As a result José Mourinho was sacked, just seven months after winning the Premier League.
And now, it has now come to light that José Mourinho was not the first choice to take the manager’s seat at Old Trafford.
According to former Tottenham Hotspurs player Jermaine Jenas, Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino was the favourite target for the managerial position at Manchester United.
Pochettino began his managerial career at Espanyol in January 2009, remaining in the post for nearly four years. He then managed in the Premier League, with Southampton and Tottenham.
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Jermaine Jenas spoke about the managerial situation at Old Trafford on BBC Radio 5.
He said: “If Pochettino would’ve been available he was Manchester United’s first choice, 100 per cent. I think they would’ve taken him over Mourinho all day long.”
He added: “The beauty with Pochettino is that Spurs are up to speed already. The players that are there have gone into training on the first day of pre-season and know exactly what he demands.”
Mourinho has won the first three Premier League matches with Manchester United, which has been the best start Manchester United have had in five years.
