Manchester United decided to sack Louis Van Gaal just hours after his team had won the FA Cup, although fans were not pleased with the Dutchman, the timing of the move shocked everyone. However few days later United announced that Jose Mourinho will be taking charge, which sent everyone into a delirium. Mourinho has a big task at hand, restoring United’s pride which has been badly damaged since the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson three seasons ago. The Portuguese brings with him wealth of experience and success that he has achieved with every club he has taken the reins of.
From Porto to the second term at Chelsea, Mourinho has worked with the best players in the world. Some of them haven’t been that close to Mourinho but in general the former Madrid manager is respected by his players and the support staff. United are looking to bring in fresh blood this summer, as a measure to stop United from sliding further away from the other elite clubs in Europe.
United have already signed Eric Bailly early in the window but are still on the lookout for players who can add quality to this stagnant United team. One thing most managers like to do when they join a new club is to bring in their old favourite players. Those could be the players that the managers gets on with or is one of the talented stars from the past. Here we look at three players that Mourinho could bring to Old Trafford that he has worked with earlier.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic
Zlatan announcement earlier in the year that he was moving on from PSG and could settle in England next, sent clubs into overdrive in trying to him. The Swedish player also announced his retirement from international football just this week at the ongoing Euros, which could set up his move to United perfectly. Having played under Mourinho at Inter Milan, Ibrahimovic knows the Portuguese well. With a host of Premier League clubs interested in signing him, his friendship with Mourinho could prove to be decisive.
Raphael Varane
Mourinho was the one who signed Varane for Real Madrid at a young age and the youngster has grown into one of the best defenders around the world under the guidance of the Portuguese. The youngster didn’t have the best year last season, after making just 33 appearances and suffering an horror injury which left him unavailable for the Euros. However his pace and reading of the game is second to none and could fit in perfectly at United, if signed. Varane enjoyed a strong relationship with Mourinho, during the managers time at Madrid.
Nemanja Matic
Matic was excellent for Chelsea the season he was bought by Mourinho, however he suffered a dip in form last season, which has led to many reports surfacing that the new Chelsea boss Conte is looking to sell the midfielder this summer, in order to make space for new arrivals. United struggled a lot in that position last term and are looking to find a reliable defensive midfielder who can shield the back four and launch attacks up front.