The REAL reason Man Utd haven’t sacked Jose Mourinho will shock EVERY fan
MANCHESTER UNITED are reluctant to sack Jose Mourinho because they would be facing a pay-out of £24million.
Posted Tuesday, December 18, 2018 by Express.co.uk
Mourinho became the manager at Old Trafford in 2016 and won the Europa League and League Cup in the first season of his three-year contract.
Following a bright start to the 2017/18 campaign, the club extended the Portuguese’s deal by one season, keeping him in Manchester until June 2020.
But 11 months on from signing the extension, the ice on which 55-year-old is skating is becoming increasingly thin.
United sit sixth in the table and Sunday’s 3-1 defeat to arch rivals Liverpool left them 19 points off the table-toppers.
Mourinho now faces a tough task of leading his fractured squad towards a top-four finish, which could prove crucial in the termination of his contract.
According to the Daily Record, United will have to pay Mourinho £24m if they are to relieve him of his duties before the end of the January transfer window.
However, if Mourinho keeps his post and fails to qualify United for the Champions League, that figure will fall by 25 per cent to £18m.
The likelihood of United qualifying for Europe’s elite club competition next season looks slim, with The Red Devils as high as 14/1 with some bookies to make the top four, of which they are currently 11 points adrift.
Jose Mourinho would receive a hefty payout should he be sacked as Man Utd boss (Image: Getty)
Jose Mourinho guided his Man Utd side to a 3-1 loss to Liverpool on Sunday (Image: Getty)
Their only other route would be winning the Champions League, which Mourinho has achieved twice in his career with Porto and Inter Milan - both times against the odds.
After suffering a tough draw against Paris Saint-Germain in the last 16, United are one of the outsiders to lift the big-eared trophy, however, at 40/1.
Since Sir Alex Ferguson left in 2013, United have sacked both David Moyes and Louis van Gaal during their contracts, after they failed to qualify for the Champions League.
The board’s attitude towards Mourinho should be discernible in the January transfer window, during which Mourinho will remain adamant on the side’s need of a centre-back.
Jose Mourinho has maligned record-signing Paul Pogba this season (Image: Getty)
The Glazer family, which owns the club, and executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward, were not willing to leverage Mourinho the funds to complete that signing in the summer.
It’s been a point of contention for Mourinho all season, and he last week described the United squad as being “far” from the one he envisages.
"It’s not just about football players,” he added. "A football team is a little bit like a house.
"A house is not just about buying the furniture, you have to do work on the house, and when the house is ready then you buy the furniture, you spend money on the best possible furniture. And then you are ready to live in an amazing house.”
Jose Mourinho won the Europa League and League Cup in his first season (Image: Getty)
Former United captain and Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville believes Mourinho has been failed by the club’s white-collars, but that he should receive their backing in the transfer window after their unwise decision to hand him a contract extension last season.
"The board room is so naive. It’s unbelievable,” Neville told Sky Sports after the side’s 3-1 defeat to Liverpool on Sunday.
"To give him an extended contract, knowing the cycle of Mourinho over three years. The third year is always the difficult year for him.
Gary Neville spoke passionately about Man Utd on Sky Sports (Image: Sky Sports)
"Eighteen months in, he’s second in the league, he’s won two trophies in his first season, the players are happy with him. That point is the point to hold your nerve and keep him hungry in the third season.
"The moment he came back from pre-season he was at it, and the club lost control. There isn’t that experience or knowledge in the football club above him to be able to manage him and control him and handle him.
"They don’t know what to do with him. The problem they have now is it’ll cost an absolute fortune to lose him. It’s not as easy as sacking the manager. Manchester United need to reset. They gave him the contract then withdrew on the signings; it's a mess."
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