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- Manchester United are close to appointing Jose Mourinho as manager
- Previously, fans at Old Trafford didn't want him anywhere near their club
- Supporters are apprehensive but excited to see what Mourinho will bring
- He has a winning mentality United have missed since Sir Alex Ferguson
Manchester United are close to appointing Jose Mourinho as their new manager, with an announcement expected in the next 48 hours.
Louis van Gaal was sacked despite an FA Cup triumph at the weekend, and the prospect of Mourinho's arrival has the majority of United fans excited.
Sportsmail asked Manchester United supporter Sam Peoples from The Peoples Person for his thoughts on the former Chelsea boss, and what we can expect at Old Trafford next season.
Jose Mourinho is in advanced talks with Manchester United and will become manager in the next 48 hours
The ex-Chelsea boss has been continuously linked with Manchester United and they will soon get their man
Jose Mourinho. Manchester United manager. If you'd offered that to me in 2013 after Sir Alex Ferguson retired I'd have told you where to go yet he is about to be announced as Louis van Gaal's replacement and I'm happy about it.
I was on a moral high horse after Fergie retired. We were champions and having only watched Mourinho as an opposition fan, I didn't want his negative style of football gracing the turf at Old Trafford. We deserved better football than that... at least that's what I thought at the time.
Then, David Moyes came in and the less said about that the better but it was actually Van Gaal's tenure which pained me more. Under the Dutchman, we saw the pragmatic approach to playing football which Mourinho was renowned for, but without the results. 0-0's became the norm at half-time, mundane football the usual and all entertainment was sapped out of United. His sacking was inevitable regardless of the FA Cup win
Louis van Gaal (right) has been sacked and United will appoint a manager they previously hated at Old Trafford
Mourinho has a winning mentality, and is the person United need to return them back to the top in England
So, we now find ourselves with Mourinho and if there's one person who is going to be most happy with his appointment, it's Jose himself. After all, he's wanted this job for years and if he was offered it when Fergie retired he'd have come running to Manchester. He's always wanted to emulate Fergie, to reach that demigod-like status as a manager, and now he's got the platform to do it at the club he's dreamed of managing.
But, his appointment comes with plenty of trepidation from myself and lots of United fans. Will he play the youth? Will he leave the club in a mess? Who knows. Due to the last three years we've been left with little choice but to appoint him and accept these risks because Ryan Giggs certainly isn't a gamble we can afford to take at this point.
I'm excited to watch the football Mourinho plays. It was convenient to label it as anti-football and negative as an opposition fan but that's never been the case. The fact Mourinho outscored Pep Guardiola's Barcelona in two out of three seasons in La Liga, a side touted as one of the best of all-time with Messi, Iniesta and Xavi, says it all.
Under Van Gaal (centre) United played the pragmatic football Mourinho is renowned for, but without the results
When Nani (right) was sent off against United in 2013, Mourinho changed the game with an astute substitution
He does play attacking football but only when it suits; Mourinho knows when to park the bus and when to attack. Fergie was very similar in that respect, and it's not a fair reflection to say he's purely negative. He just knows how to win.
I remember when Nani was sent off against Real Madrid and saw just how tuned on Mourinho is in the big moments. Fergie was blood red and fuming at the fourth official while Jose calmly told Luka Modric to start warming up. He came on, scored, and the game changed. Madrid won 2-1 because of that quick thinking, while Fergie lost his marbles.
As an opposition fan it was easy and enjoyable to slam Mourinho's negative football but winning breeds jealousy. Mourinho got it done, and sometimes in style - hopefully he does the same at Old Trafford.
United have lacked a winning mentality since Sir Alex Ferguson (left) retired, but Mourinho could bring it back
Mourinho wouldn't be most United fans' first choice but he is needed to get the club out of a difficult spot
Would Mourinho be my first choice? Absolutely not. I think Manchester City's appointment of Guardiola is one which is far more in-line with United's natural history but we missed out on him. As a club we've backed ourselves into a corner, and we need a man like Mourinho to get us out.
We've lost our fear factor, we've failed to qualify for the Champions League for the second time in three years and we need to recover if we are to avoid slipping into mediocrity like Liverpool did in the early 1990s. We couldn't mess up van Gaal's replacement and I don't think we have.
Mourinho will come with his flaws and he'll come with controversy but we all know that... you've got to accept it with him. What he will bring is a driving force to reinstate United's winning mentality which was so embedded under Fergie, and hopefully he will bring the club back to the top and competing on all fronts.
Am I glad Mourinho is going to be United's next manager? Absolutely. The most hated manager at the most hated club in England? It's going to be mint.