Jose Mourinho Sacked - Solskjaer Confirmed as Interim Replacement

[villa loyal]

I unfortunately remember United in the 90s . Hated them more than anything. Great great team though.

 

[Stevencc]

Maybe he is just temporary and in the summer it'll be Poch.

This seems to be the plan.

The rest of this season is now officially a write off (it was anyway, really), we'll "take the leash off" the players and play more attacking football. It'll definitely be different after years of pragmatic, tactical managers...and David Moyes.

The only reservation I have about Pochettino is his preference for a high-pressing game, I'm not sure how well our current squad is suited to that which means another rebuild - although this time with a Director of Football installed.

 

[Benji]

So Solskjaer is on loan at Man Utd? Has this sort of deal happened before?

 

[G.B]

Apologies to everyone but Rafa would be perfect.

stfu

 

[G.B]

I think Mourinho's problem is that he expects every player to be a hard arse who can accept intense criticism and use it to push themselves to levels that they never thought they'd get to. He started off in an era where disciplinarians excelled. Early noughties had Fergie still riding high, Capello excelling, Lippi winning the World Cup etc. Moving to Chelsea was a dream job for him really because the likes of Terry, Lampard and Drogba clearly led that changing room. Player power was through them and they were all on board with Jose's way.

Even at Inter, he had an ageing squad full of players as professional as they come. The likes of Zanetti, Cambiasso, Samuel, Cordoba, Milito etc. All names that you'd associate with hard arsed, yet very successful Italian sides. Which two players didn't make the grade at Jose's Inter? Balotelli and Arnautovic. That says it all.

I read a lot about how Jose's way of playing hasn't evolved. I think that's nonsense. Give him a squad of players on board with his way and he'd have them right at the pinnacle in my opinion. It might not be pretty, but it's no coincidence that he has such a good record in the latter stages of cup competitions. When all of the players are fully tuned in, his way works.

This Man Utd squad was not the one. Looking within that squad, very few have a character that you could see working with Mourinho. Pogba is one of the newer breed of egocentric plonkers that plague the upper regions of football. A talented plonker, but a plonker all the same signified by the way in which he originally left United under Fergie. So yeah, Mourinho coming in throwing his weight about was only ever going to end one way.

He needs to go back over to Italy I think. I think the likes of Juventus and Inter are the ideal clubs for him. That Juventus side has a character that I think would embrace Mourinho if Allegri ever decided to move on.

Good post except for that part ^

He left because Fergie would rather get a 45 year old Scholes out of retirement or play John O'Shea in midfield than give Pogba a chance. And you can't really argue Pogba was wrong, he went from reserve team football to key piece in Italy's best side almost instantly.

The idea of Mourinho back at Inter initially excited me but thinking on in a bit further, there's no way he can come back and better his previous stint. Juve would make more sense but whether or not he'd join a rival of Inter, I don't know. He has a really strong connection with Inter, oreso than Chelsea imo, and I'm not sure he'd go through with it.

 

[The Paranoid Pineapple]

I think Mourinho's problem is that he expects every player to be a hard arse who can accept intense criticism and use it to push themselves to levels that they never thought they'd get to. He started off in an era where disciplinarians excelled. Early noughties had Fergie still riding high, Capello excelling, Lippi winning the World Cup etc. Moving to Chelsea was a dream job for him really because the likes of Terry, Lampard and Drogba clearly led that changing room. Player power was through them and they were all on board with Jose's way.

Even at Inter, he had an ageing squad full of players as professional as they come. The likes of Zanetti, Cambiasso, Samuel, Cordoba, Milito etc. All names that you'd associate with hard arsed, yet very successful Italian sides. Which two players didn't make the grade at Jose's Inter? Balotelli and Arnautovic. That says it all.

I read a lot about how Jose's way of playing hasn't evolved. I think that's nonsense. Give him a squad of players on board with his way and he'd have them right at the pinnacle in my opinion. It might not be pretty, but it's no coincidence that he has such a good record in the latter stages of cup competitions. When all of the players are fully tuned in, his way works.

This Man Utd squad was not the one. Looking within that squad, very few have a character that you could see working with Mourinho. Pogba is one of the newer breed of egocentric plonkers that plague the upper regions of football. A talented plonker, but a plonker all the same signified by the way in which he originally left United under Fergie. So yeah, Mourinho coming in throwing his weight about was only ever going to end one way.

He needs to go back over to Italy I think. I think the likes of Juventus and Inter are the ideal clubs for him. That Juventus side has a character that I think would embrace Mourinho if Allegri ever decided to move on.

I don't necessarily disagree with any of this - I agree with rather a lot of it, in fact - but do you not think you're describing someone with rather substantial limitations as a manager? Surely the mark of a good manager, in any profession, is an ability to work with people with different personality types. There's no doubt that some footballers are difficult characters and, with paycheques ballooning I suspect a lot of egos have swelled to match, but I get the impression he's capable of alienating more than just these individuals. A player might be highly professional and yet still not respond well to public criticism from his manager (I feel this is one thing that the Mourinho of old - a frequent shield for his players - wouldn't much understand about the newer model). Ultimately, I think adopting a 'one size fits all management style' which doesn't take into account individual needs is dangerous and you shouldn't be surprised if it doesn't yield the desired results. Quite honestly, even if we give him the benefit of the doubt on this, he's been afforded quite a lot of money and opportunity to mould a side in his image at United, something which he has conspicuously failed to accomplish (again, this would once not have posed a great challenge).

In all honesty I think he's declined quite markedly. His best teams had great solidity but they could also excite. They were excellent, ruthless, efficient machines. His approach once appeared pragmatic. Now his teams play with an almost unrelenting negativity. He's long been a provocateur but whereas he once had the capacity to amuse, he's now permanently sour (it's little wonder that David Squires began depicting him as emo Mourinho). And I'm afraid that I think he's become a rather toxic individual. The best thing he could do right now - and this, indeed, is something he should have done after leaving Chelsea - is to take some time out from the game. I don't think the managerial cauldron and Mourinho are a good match for one another at the moment but I don't think he has the self-awareness to realise this.

I wouldn't rule him out him entirely - his style will still sometimes yield results - but I think he's been left behind and I don't think he's adaptable enough to enjoy the sort of sustained success that we came to expect from the younger Mourinho. I think players have to buy into his methods wholesale and, whilst still a forceful character, there will be more seeds of doubt as a result of his more recent failures.

I think he must realise deep down that he'll struggle to recapture past glories and I suspect that bothers him greatly. I'm not sure it should though. 15 years at the top is ultimately pretty impressive.

 

[mistermagic]

The idea of Mourinho back at Inter initially excited me but thinking on in a bit further, there's no way he can come back and better his previous stint. Juve would make more sense but whether or not he'd join a rival of Inter, I don't know. He has a really strong connection with Inter, oreso than Chelsea imo, and I'm not sure he'd go through with it.

It's not even possible he can better his previous stint. He won everything including the CL against a Barcelona side under Guardiola who were arguably better than the one that beat United a year earlier. Right now, Inter do suit Mourinho in that they are quite one-dimensional and rely on Icardi to provide the 3 points (bit like Milito back in the day only with much, much less talent all over the pitch).
I seriously doubt his future lies anywhere else than Italy. Conceiçao won't leave Porto to make way for Mourinho I don't think so that's a no go. Maybe South America?

 

[G.B]

Inter would give him money to rebuild at least, and they do have a solid base to build from. Top keeper, excellent defence, hard working midfield and Icardi. I just think sometimes you shouldn't go back and maybe he's learned from his return to Chelsea. It's rarely as good second time round.

No chance he goes to SA. He'll still find work in Europe given his accomplishments in the game. He's very fond of "Mr. Robsons Newcastle", maybe he can come here once Rafa rage quits.

 

[Benji]

He will end up in the Portugal job at some point. Dunno the situation there or if it' likely to be vacant any time soon though.

 

[mistermagic]

Inter would give him money to rebuild at least, and they do have a solid base to build from. Top keeper, excellent defence, hard working midfield and Icardi. I just think sometimes you shouldn't go back and maybe he's learned from his return to Chelsea. It's rarely as good second time round.

No chance he goes to SA. He'll still find work in Europe given his accomplishments in the game. He's very fond of "Mr. Robsons Newcastle", maybe he can come here once Rafa rage quits.

From Real to United to Newcastle. Some huge step down.

 

[Dirk]

From Real to United to Newcastle. Some huge step down.

Not that he'll ever coach Newcastle but it would be the first time that he would coach a club that I like. Doesn't mean that I would like him. Hope we'll see him never again coaching in a top league

 

[mistermagic]

Not that he'll ever coach Newcastle but it would be the first time that he would coach a club that I like. Doesn't mean that I would like him. Hope we'll see him never again coaching in a top league

You reckon he'll coach in Germany then?

 

[Dirk]

Nah, he doesn't like us. The French would suit him more and it would be a nice task for him to win something in Europe for a french team. That would outshine all of his trophys at Real, Chelsea, ManU.

 

[G.B]

From Real to United to Newcastle. Some huge step down.

You must have missed our Intertoto Cup triumph to make a stupid remark like that.

 

[Dirk]

Intertoto Cup >> CL

btw: HSV "won" it in 2005 and 2007. (If I remember it right from all the Intertoto Cup group winners they declared later the club the winner of the Intertoto Cup who reached the furthest stage in the UEFA Cup. )

 

[SALTIRE]

https://www.theguardian.com/footbal...-on-its-a-wonderful-life-the-mourinho-edition