Baku-APA. Manchester United took the long-expected step of firing manager Louis van Gaal on Monday, as speculation continued over the appointment of Jose Mourinho as his successor, APA reports quoting the WSJ.
The club didn't immediately name a replacement, but it is widely believed to be holding negotiations with Mourinho, the spiky former Chelsea manager, who has been not-so-secretly courted by United for months.
“I am very disappointed to be unable to complete our intended three-year plan,” Van Gaal said in a statement released Monday. “I believe that the foundations are firmly in place to enable the club to move forward and achieve even greater success.”
The writing had been on the wall for Van Gaal since December. His fate was sealed when United finished in fifth place, outside the qualification spots for next season’s Champions League. Not even success in the FA Cup, which United won on Saturday by beating Crystal Palace 2-1, could save Van Gaal’s job with Mourinho on the horizon.
“I would like to thank Louis and his staff for their excellent work in the past two years culminating in winning a record equalling 12th FA Cup for the Club,” executive vice chairman Ed Woodward said. “He has behaved with great professionalism and dignity throughout his time here.”
United, a 20-time English champion, has been stuck in soul-searching mode ever since the retirement of Alex Ferguson in 2013.
The club followed his imperial tenure, which ended with a league title in 2013, by hiring David Moyes, a Scot recommended by Ferguson. But Moyes soon proved out of his depth, lasting just 10 months before being replaced by his assistant Ryan Giggs to close out the campaign. United finished seventh.
So the Red Devils turned to Van Gaal and his extensive, trophy-dotted résumé. The Dutchman had won silverware with Bayern Munich and Barcelona. In the summer of 2014, he was coming off a run to third place at the World Cup with the Netherlands national team. Here was a manager who understood attacking soccer and could shoulder a superclub.
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