Don’t go buying your Jose Mourinho scarves just yet, Manchester United fans.
The former Chelsea boss seemed convinced that he was set to take the reins at Old Trafford, telling his close friends in London that he believed the move was “a done deal.”
But that deal is very much conditional and M.E.N. Sport have revealed that, according to their sources, Mourinho is only confident in succeeding Louis van Gaal if United fail to make the top four this season.
The Red Devils currently find themselves in fifth place in the league, six points off the final Champions League position but if they can claw back the deficit, the club may well stick with Louis van Gaal for another season.
Mourinho is still a firm 1/4 favourite to become the next permanent United manager but there are a lot of moving parts and claims from agent Jorge Mendes that the contract is all but signed are thought to be further from the truth than initially thought.
M.E.N. also report that Sir Alex Ferguson still maintains some of his reservations which led to his recommending David Moyes as his successor in 2013, rather than Mourinho, which could act as a further stumbling block.