José Mourinho: Ex-United boss reveals he snubbed chance to succeed Sir Alex Ferguson | OneFootball

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Former Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho had a stunning start to his Old Trafford reign, which ultimately ended in disappointment. The Portuguese manager took charge at the Theatre of Dreams in the summer of 2016, following the departure of Louis van Gaal.

The Red Devils enjoyed an impressive season under the Special One, winning the EFL Cup and the Europa League. They finished second in the Premier League the following campaign, before Mourinho’s third-season syndrome began to take hold.

The Portuguese failed to arrest the team’s downward slide in the 2018/19 campaign, and made way for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. The Premier League giants have since changed several managers, with Erik ten Hag replacing the Norwegian in the summer of 2022, before making way for Ruben Amorim in November 2024.

The former Sporting man lost his job in January this year before Michael Carrick took control of the ship temporarily, secured a third-placed finish and subsequently earned the full-time job. Mourinho, meanwhile, had stints in the Premier League, Italy, Turkey and Portugal since his departure and recently took charge of Real Madrid for his third spell at the Santiago Bernabeu. He has now shed light on his stint at Old Trafford and even made a startling revelation.

Mourinho turned down United

Speaking on a new Netflix documentary, as cited by ESPN, Mourinho revealed that he had initially agreed to take over at Old Trafford following Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement in the summer of 2013. He said: “I think the objective of this work that we are doing [shooting a docu-series] is to tell the truth. When I left Real Madrid, I signed with Manchester United to go to Manchester United after Sir Alex [Ferguson].”

Sir Alex also confirmed the incident and explained why Mourinho passed on the opportunity. The legendary Scot said: “He [Mourinho] was offered a job, yes. I sat him down and explained the situation. And as far as I was concerned, he was accepting. And then within hours it changed.”

“Evening he phoned me and he was crying and he says ‘Oh, I can’t take it, I’ve given my word to Chelsea and I’m not going to break my word. The reason he gave to me, I could understand. But I was disappointed.”

United eventually handed the reins of the first team to David Moyes, who lasted just ten months on the hot seat at Old Trafford, before Van Gaal took over in the summer of 2014.

Mourinho has no regrets about the decision

Mourinho went on to insist that he has no regrets about his decision, adding: “For me to lose the chance to be the coach to succeed Sir Alex Ferguson was dramatic. But I don’t regret because it was a decision that I made with my heart.”

“And I think it is Nietzsche that says that when you do something for love, you are never doing anything wrong. I think it’s nature. I did it for love.”

“I went back with the feeling of yes, I go home, but with a big responsibility because what I did before is history and you don’t want to destroy your legacy.”

Final Thoughts

United have had a series of false starts since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement, but that has not dampened the spirit following an impressive rise since Carrick took charge. There is an optimism now that the Englishman could be the right person to guide the fallen giants back to their glory days.