If we don't finish top four will it be curtains for Jose?

[Nytram Shakes]

The thing for me is Fergie was on an upward curve, he'd conquered the scottish league and the next logical step in his managerial career was to prove himself at a big club in England and Utd chose him. We were also in a period similar to Liverpool now, without a league title since 68, a problem with a drinking culture at the club. He was brought in to sort that mess out so it was right given his record and his no nonsense approach that he was given the time to build.

Jose on the other hand seems to me to be on a downward curve in his career. He's always had falling outs with players and clubs and his last season at Chelsea should have been a big warning side that maybe his days as a top coach are over. You only have to see how Chelsea are doing now to realise that it was Jose that was the reason for their disastrous season, Conte comes in and transforms them in a space of a couple of a months. If Jose was truly a great coach he'd have done a similar job at Utd.

Instead we're hearing of player fall outs again, martial, shaw and possibly a few others we don't know about. The football is uninspiring and he cuts a very miserable figure on the touchline. That doesn't lend itself to inspiring the players or getting the fans behind him. Not to mention all the stuff about him living in a hotel and how he's missing his family. Personally I think he will be lucky to get another season as to me we aren't really seeing any improvement in the football, certainly not in terms of lumping it into the box all game which seems to be the only tactic we know.

in fairness, we havn't heard about fallouts in a few months and while a few months back it did seem like Mourinho was more interested in picking figths and making a prat of himself then been a manager but of a football team.

But recently he seems to have got himself together and just seems more jokey and happy..... whether that will go out the window now that results have turned sour again i don't know.

I really don't know if he will get fired, i don't think anyone at the club has a desire for another managerial change, but it will be hard to justify him staying in the job if we finish 6th

 

[Van Piorsing]

Even if new manager comes he'll have to still play and assess almost the same group of players before doing anything... that same group of players with scoring disabilities.

Converting is Mou's only problem in this club and I think he could repair it if Ed will give him time of course.

 

[Nytram Shakes]

Even if new manager comes he'll have to still play and assess almost the same group of players before doing anything... that same group of players with scoring disabilities.

Converting is Mou's only problem in this club and I think he could repair it if Ed will give him time of course.

i think woodward will give him time if he can, but i think alot depends on Mourinho himself, we saw a few months ago what Mourinho can be like when things are going badly, he paddies he tantrums he picks fights........ But if Jose can hold himself together then i think he will get the time

 

[Van Piorsing]

i think woodward will give him time if he can, but i think alot depends on Mourinho himself, we saw a few months ago what Mourinho can be like when things are going badly, he paddies he tantrums he picks fights........ But if Jose can hold himself together then i think he will get the time

I would be pissed as a motherf*cker too if my players couldn't score from 3 meters too. If they could convert just one goal from today's chances, the game would open and we would probably twatted them 3:0 as Hull did nothing but buying time from a clueless ref. It really comes down to taking chances, doesn't matter if it's Rashford or Martial playing. The sitters were there to take them.

Unfortunately for Jose, Ed may have other factors in mind like money gain from being present in elite competitions as CL so it's nothing certain to that extent if you ask me.

 

[Bwuk]

If Simeone was available in the summer and Jose didn't finish in the top 4 I could see Woodward having a hard time thinking what to do.

We are improving though, I don't think sacking Jose is the answer - even if some of his decisions are very questionable.

 

[Damien]

Definitely won't be sacked.

 

[Kevin]

He deserves the same as Moyes got if results stay like this. LvG at least got us fourth in his first season and managed fifth (losing out on goal difference) and the fa cup the season after but was still fecked off.

 

[pascell]

Sack him after one season would be disgraceful on our part. At least we're attempting to create chances under Jose, 12 months ago we'd have still been playing it about at the back.

 

[Jacko21]

It should be curtains for several players, not Jose. No way.

 

[Wumminator]

Who else is there to replace him with? I would give Jose at least another season.

Even if you don't like the results/performances, he has two real positive attributes in that he has pulling power in the transfer market, and can attract the likes of Pogba, Zlatan etc. The other is that all of his transfers have turned out great so far, and generally has a good record wherever he has been, so I have faith that he'll be able to build a great squad by the end of next summer.

For me there is massive question marks over Mikhi, Pogba and Zlatan. Especially for the cost.

 

[KikiDaKats]

I really don't think the club should be firing anyone this season.. Continuity is very important. These grumbles are kinda similar to those heard early last season at a time when the squad that finished 4th just got gutted.
We are seeing partnerships and greater understanding developing, allow him time to nurture these well.
In truth, I'm not in the camp of people going on about the improvements. Yes, we have more shots attempts/goals now especially from Zlatan and Pogba but not much have changed. Let's be patient cos the sign are good with Mikhi, Ander, Martial,etc.. Reminder of how we criticised Valencia(RB/role)last season but time shown it wasn't a bad idea. So let's just allow him and players to know each other better.
There is no magic wand in football.

 

[Jed I. Knight]

Should definitely go if we finish outside of top 4, no question about it. He's supposed to be a top class manager. If anything, we should be raising our expectations, not lowering them, after bringing him in. Especially as he's been given unlimited support in the market.

If we end up giving him more leniency than we did Moyes and Van Gaal, it's just embarrassing, and shows how far our standards have slipped. He still has a chance though, so all is not lost for him yet.

 

[12OunceEpilogue]

I think Jose should and will get another year, even if he misses out on top four. We have a decent chance in three cups, so if he can secure the League Cup plus one of the others (hopefully EL) that gives him a good platform to build on for next season.

If however he only wins the League Cup, or worse still we are beaten by Southampton, and we're outside the top four the pressure will be massive.

 

[Josep Dowling]

I don't think sacking him whatever position we finish would be the right thing to do.

I think everyone can agree his signings were perfect. Zlatan has been better than expected but has slowed down now. Micky again was doing well before Xmas but now has slowed. Bailey was very good, then injured, then AFCON. Pogba has been a massive let down this season. Too many 5/10 performances, gives the ball away too cheaply, holds on to the ball when he should release. That's down to the player not Jose.

My only criticism of Jose is squad rotation and not using Martial more. Martial should start every game on LW. Jose should of used his strongest 11 from the start in the league then changed it up for the cup games. He ended up doing the opposite after the league form dropped. Rashford should of been used as a CF in cup. This would of also given game time to the likes Schneiderlin, Depay and Schweinsteiger. Personally I feel we are now too short of numbers after selling those two (though we did get good prices for both). It feels like Jose wants to keep some players game time like Rashford but ends up using him as a winger because Zlatan is undroppable. That is poor management.

This season feels very much like Liverpool were last year. We started off poorly in the league so Jose played strong sides in the cup competition. Now this is hurting us fitness wise as we have 3 cups as well as the league all coming up whilst others won't have any other distractions.

 

[AlwaysRed66]

I think we should sack him and bring in someone else to build a side, only to sack them straight away. And then sack his replacement afterwards and repreat the process until we're hiring Tony Pulis and Big Sam.

Mr Pulis is only two places & nine points behind us in the league, & only scored two goals less, despite having a supposedly far inferior squad & being renowned for his negative play.

 

[Born2Lose]

Mr Pulis is only two places & nine points behind us in the league, & only scored two goals less, despite having a supposedly far inferior squad & being renowned for his negative play.

14 points off Chelsea with 15 games to go is also a damning statistic for me.

If he keeps up this cautious crap up I couldn't care less if he goes. Give me decent football to watch and 6th place and I'm fine, but poor results and football, no thanks.

 

[Utd7]

I personally wouldn't sack him but to play devil's advocate, is it even financially feasible? He's in year one of a three year contract. Unless the club have inserted a lack of CL qualification clause in his contract like they did with Moyesy.

 

[Brophs]

Of course he won't be sacked. Nor should he be.

 

[ravi2]

Not sure what Jose is supposed to do when we aren't finishing point blank chances.

 

[fanutd]

Not sure what Jose is supposed to do when we aren't finishing point blank chances.

Amen to that. We have no one but ourselves to blame with the finishing ability we have displayed this season. Every team goes through certain games/period during a season where you have to score a decisive goal and grind out the result. Unfortunately for us, we seem to do that hardest part of creating the chances, something we were absolutely shit at under LvG, but we just don't apply the final finishing touch. It's quite frustrating to watch but I hope that as the season nears its tail end we start to convert more of these chances.

 

[Dogaholic]

We need to trust this manager. We didn't play too well today, but overall we've seen a big improvement in our style of play. Mourihno has taken us forward, he'll make some astute signings and improve further. If our finishing was up to scratch we'd be coming 2nd/3rd right now.

I've enjoyed watching most of our matches. Can't say that I enjoyed many of our last 3 years or so. It'll come

 

[Scholsey2004]

No we shouldn't sack him no matter where we finish. He's the right man for the job.

 

[NextSeason]

No.

 

[willhse456]

For me there is massive question marks over Mikhi, Pogba and Zlatan. Especially for the cost.

I know they all had a poor game tonight, but I disagree with you here.

Zlatan was signed on a free and has already scored 19 for us this season. A few have been saying that Zlatan has held us back in attack, but when we've played Rashford/Martial instead we haven't been much better. Mikhi when given the opportunity, has generally played really well apart from maybe 2/3 games, and only cost roughly £25 million. Pogba is the dodgy one, however he is only in his early twenties and will improve whether Mourinho is here or not. Although he should definitely be doing better with his price tag.

The result tonight has set us back a bit, but I feel that the dressing room is fully behind Mourinho, and I still believe we're going in the right direction under him.

 

[KanieKaned]

No chance we are going in the right direction and we've still got a shot at making the champions league. I expect Arsenal and Liverpool to still have further wobbles before the end of the season and if we can get back on another decent run we can make it into the top four. Add to that we can still get champions league by winning the Europa.

 

[sunama]

14 points off Chelsea with 15 games to go is also a damning statistic for me.

If he keeps up this cautious crap up I couldn't care less if he goes. Give me decent football to watch and 6th place and I'm fine, but poor results and football, no thanks.

You think he is being cautious?
In all the 0-0 or 1-1 draws we have had at OT, I feel we have been the team on the attack.
The LFC games, were even draws.

 

[r0663664]

I will keep Jose for 2 more season. Unlike other managers, he know what it takes to be champion. He has done it over and over again in his career and he will do it in Utd. I think the team is letting him down. Against a team unlike Hull, we should beat team even if we don't play our best XI. I am quite sure that there will be alot of activities in the summer. 1 CB, 1 striker, 1 winger and 1 CM.

 

[lawliet354]

If we won league cup and/or one of FA and EL, it would be stupid to sack him, but if we misses top 4 and we do not win anything, then I see why some of our fans are concerned about Jose, especially seeing his stubbornness with Martial right now and Mikhi early in the season

 

[Sarni]

For me there is massive question marks over Mikhi, Pogba and Zlatan. Especially for the cost.

Mkhitaryan cost £30m which is not much in this market whereas Zlatan was a free transfer. However all three were brought by a manager you absolutely despise so no surprises.

 

[Sarni]

And people need to stop comparing him to Moyes, 'Moyes got sacked so Mourinho also has to go'. With Moyes you could see he had no idea what he was doing, his comments, behavior showed a man who was completely lost at this level. Mourinho has previous experience and history of success at the highest level and you can see there's at least some degree of a plan.

 

[Wumminator]

Mkhitaryan cost £30m which is not much in this market whereas Zlatan was a free transfer. However all three were brought by a manager you absolutely despise so no surprises.

It's about 120 million on all of those and massive wages to all of them.

 

[Sarni]

Should definitely go if we finish outside of top 4, no question about it. He's supposed to be a top class manager. If anything, we should be raising our expectations, not lowering them, after bringing him in. Especially as he's been given unlimited support in the market.

If we end up giving him more leniency than we did Moyes and Van Gaal, it's just embarrassing, and shows how far our standards have slipped. He still has a chance though, so all is not lost for him yet.

Then a new manager comes and we also sack him for not finishing 4th? By 2022 we will run out of managers we can employ at this rate.

Moyes was lost and clueless, football was impossible to watch under van Gaal. It's different now.

 

[Wumminator]

And people need to stop comparing him to Moyes, 'Moyes got sacked so Mourinho also has to go'. With Moyes you could see he had no idea what he was doing, his comments, behavior showed a man who was completely lost at this level. Mourinho has previous experience and history of success at the highest level and you can see there's at least some degree of a plan.

Mourinho has also had at this point probably the worst managerial record compared to money spent/ expectations over the last two seasons.

It's absolutely hilarious how you can't compare him to Moyes all of a sudden. You most certainly can. They were both Manchester United managers who have massively underperformed. The only difference for a lot of people is that they've built up Mourinho as some kind of saviour for the last five years.

As Steve said earlier, for many Mourinho was the most despised man in football. However after bringing him in we haven't seen any upturn in results whatsoever.

 

[Sarni]

It's about 120 million on all of those and massive wages to all of them.

It's £120m because Pogba cost £90m. It's like saying Evra and Veron were terribly overpriced for £40m.

 

[Sarni]

Mourinho has also had at this point probably the worst managerial record compared to money spent/ expectations over the last two seasons.

It's absolutely hilarious how you can't compare him to Moyes all of a sudden. You most certainly can. They were both Manchester United managers who have massively underperformed. The only difference for a lot of people is that they've built up Mourinho as some kind of saviour for the last five years.

As Steve said earlier, for many Mourinho was the most despised man in football. However after bringing him in we haven't seen any upturn in results whatsoever.

Of course you cannot compare him with Moyes. Chelsea game aside we've been competitive in every single game this season and dropped a lot of points while playing genuinely good football and creating lots of chances but not converting them. We have gone three months without losing a single game. We are in the final of one competition and still competing in two more. Besides Mourinho and Moyes as football managers should never even be mentioned in the same breath but that's another story.

It reminds me of his 2013-14 campaign at Chelsea. They were also playing good football but missed out on the title because they could not score and failed under pressure towards the end of season. He then brought Costa and Fabregas to address two of their biggest issues and won a league at a canter. I expect him to get 2-3 big signings right in the Summer and get us competitive next season. You'll hate it but it'll happen.

 

[Jed I. Knight]

Then a new manager comes and we also sack him for not finishing 4th? By 2022 we will run out of managers we can employ at this rate.

Moyes was lost and clueless, football was impossible to watch under van Gaal. It's different now.

Yes, if you think that there's isn't a manager in the world who, with the current squad plus unlimited cash, can take United to a top four spot, that's how the story goes.

At the end of the day, it's the results that matter. In that regard, Mourinho is doing every bit as poorly as his predecessors or worse.

 

[Wumminator]

Of course you cannot compare him with Moyes. Chelsea game aside we've been competitive in every single game this season and dropped a lot of points while playing genuinely good football and creating lots of chances but not converting them. We have gone three months without losing a single game. We are in the final of one competition and still competing in two more. Besides Mourinho and Moyes as football managers should never even be mentioned in the same breath but that's another story.

It reminds me of his 2013-14 campaign at Chelsea. They were also playing good football but missed out on the title because they could not score and failed under pressure towards the end of season. He then brought Costa and Fabregas to address two of their biggest issues and won a league at a canter. I expect him to get 2-3 big signings right in the Summer and get us competitive next season. You'll hate it but it'll happen.

I have no doubt he will have a good second season. It's a staple of his management if you give him multimillions he improves in his second season.

It's what comes after that....

 

[2 man midfield]

We should know by now that sacking yet another manager is merely putting us back at square one. I expect us to stand by Jose regardless.

 

[Sarni]

Yes, if you think that there's isn't a manager in the world who, with the current squad plus unlimited cash, can take United to a top four spot, that's how the story goes.

At the end of the day, it's the results that matter. In that regard, Mourinho is doing every bit as poorly as his predecessors or worse.

Well most managers will need time to fix things because things certainly need to be fixed.

And performances also matter. The manner in which we are currently 'struggling' is completely different to the last two seasons. We have dropped literally 10-12 points in situations where slightly better finishing would have won us the game whereas when dropping points under van Gaal and especially Moyes we often looked absolutely clueless and got outplayed.

 

[Wumminator]

Well most managers will need time to fix things because things certainly need to be fixed.

And performances also matter. The manner in which we are currently 'struggling' is completely different to the last two seasons. We have dropped literally 10-12 points in situations where slightly better finishing would have won us the game whereas when dropping points under van Gaal and especially Moyes we often looked absolutely clueless and got outplayed.

No. A manager of Manchester United with a £150m transfer budget has to be expected to finish at least 4th.

A team like United should never be outside top 4, nothing unrealistic about wanting top 4 this year.

There is no chance Mourinho will set top four as his goal. He is a winner.

Your expectations have changed somewhat.