What would Manchester United look like today had Jose Mourinho taken over? The question is, of course, a fanciful one, but the idea that Mourinho could be running United did not seem beyond the realm of possibility ahead of David Moyes’ announcement as "The Chosen One."

The day that the United squad learned about Sir Alex Ferguson’s impending departure, they attended the Chester races. According to the Irish Examiner's Miguel Delaney, the chatter amongst the players was mostly centred around the idea of Mourinho getting the job.

So, here is some "Special One" speculation, imagining a world where that had come to pass.

• Transfers :

Marouane Fellaini would probably not be at United. Given that Juan Mata was deemed surplus to Mourinho’s requirements in real life, it seems unlikely he would have brought him to United in the parallel universe we are discussing here.

Mourinho did not bring anyone in tow from Real Madrid to Chelsea but given United’s desperate need to improvement in the centre of midfield, perhaps he could have persuaded Luka Modric to move to Manchester with him.

Given that Cristiano Ronaldo "considered" a return to Old Trafford last summer, per Sky Sports, maybe a detente between the two Portuguese men could have been arranged, following their "falling out," per The Telegraph.

Of the players Mourinho has signed for Chelsea, perhaps a similar hijacking of Tottenham Hostpur’s move for Willian would have been arranged. Willian has been a revelation for Chelsea, and his pace, power and tactical flexibility would have been a welcome addition at United.

Given Mourinho’s tactical preference for a 4-3-3, one new midfielder probably would not have done the trick and a more physical, ball-winning type might have been on the shopping list. It is probable that the summer’s transfer business would have been carried out in a more decisive fashion.

As for departures, Anderson would likely still have been on his way, his injury record and his lack of consistency probably would not have fit into Mourinho’s plans.

Shinji Kagawa might have found himself in the Juan-Mata-At-Chelsea role, on the bench because of a perceived lack of defensive contribution.

Nemanja Vidic, on the other hand, may well have been more likely to stay under Mourinho, given John Terry’s return to form this season, could the Portuguese have revitalised Vidic’s United career in similar fashion?

It is hard to imagine any really high profile departures from United. Although, given Mourinho’s history of isolating a key player in his sides (Iker Casillas at Real Madrid, Juan Mata at Chelsea), perhaps someone unexpected would have found themselves out of favour.

• Tactics :

The Portuguese's tactics at Chelsea this season are somewhat un-Mourniho like. Playing a true 4-2-3-1 with one centre forward, three players behind him with two holding midfielders is atypical for him.

United’s squad, with a couple of additions would lend itself to either the 4-2-3-1, or the more expected 4-3-3. Much hinges on how Mourinho would have used Wayne Rooney.

Given Chelsea’s summer-long pursuit of Rooney, presumably to play as an out-and-out centre forward, there is some irony in the idea that Rooney is in many ways, Mourinho’s ideal wide inside forward. Dangerous and creative in attack but also disciplined and dogged when the opposition has the ball.

A 4-3-3 with Robin van Persie central and Rooney and Danny Welbeck cutting inside from wide positions, in front of Michael Carrick, Luka Modric and, say Arturo Vidal, with attacking full-backs, seems like a very Mourinho-esque set up.

However, he is a manager who has demonstrated considerable tactical flexibility, and his current Chelsea side show he is not afraid to vary his standard tactics based on the personnel available to him. Given the excellent centre-forwards United have available, could we have seen a 4-4-2 from Mourinho? It seems unlikely but certainly possible.

• Results :

Given how difficult Moyes has found life at United, it is hard to imagine how Mourinho’s results could have been worse. The key question is how much better they would have been.

This whole discussion is, of course, speculative, and this is the most speculative area, but it seems to me a solid argument exists to suggest Mourinho’s results would have been dramatically better than Moyes’ have been.

The fallout from Ferguson’s departure has been about as cataclysmic as it could have been. With Vidic leaving, reports than van Persie is unhappy, per The Independent's Jack De Menezes, and under-performance throughout the squad, it is not a huge leap of imagination to suggest that the new manager’s regime is not working for his players. As a consequence, they do not really seem to be working for him.

Moyes has problems Mourinho would not have done. Mourinho is a serial-winner, and he could point to domestic and European success equivalent to, or better than, United’s medal-laden squad. Given the suggestion, mentioned earlier, that the players wanted Mourinho, presumably they would have taken a good deal less convincing that his methods would be successful.

Losses at home to Newcastle, West Bromwich Albion and Swansea, the draw with Fulham, the loss to Sunderland in the Capital One Cup and the first leg at Olympiacos. It is hard to imagine all these fixtures having gone the same way had Mourinho been in charge.

Much has been made, by those who would defend Moyes, of some apparent lack of quality in the United squad but do the most hardened of Moyes’ defenders truly believe United would have been out of the running for Champions League qualification if Mourinho was in charge?

• The Future :

Moyes’ appointment was heralded by Manchester United’s PR roll-out as being an appointment for the long-term. It is an attempt to recreate Ferguson’s dynastic, era-spanning reign and empower a manager considered to have the raw ingredients to be a success, if not the CV to match.

Mourinho has never built a dynasty. In 14 years he has managed six clubs and one of them in two separate spells, making his average tenure two years. Manchester United, though, has something his previous clubs have not. It has both profile and behind-the-scenes stability and typically the sides Mourinho has managed have had one or the other but not both.

He left Chelsea because of a "troubled" relationship with Roman Abramovich, per BBC Sport. He left Inter because Real Madrid came calling, he left Madrid because he had apparently exhausted Madrid’s patience, as noted in the Daily Mail.

So what would have made him leave Manchester United? Would he have poked Steve Bould in the eye during a touchline scrap? Would he have fallen out with David de Gea? Would he and Ferguson have clashed over the unseen influence of the elder?

Or would he have settled down and spent a few years at a club which seems a reasonably good match for his personality and abilities? Even if he had left after a couple of years, having won a couple of trophies, would that not have been an easier transition to manage than the precipitous drop off in results that has occurred under Moyes?

We will probably never find out what Mourinho’s United would have looked like. Although it has been a long, difficult and fundamentally unsuccessful season, some hope remains that Moyes will find his feet and we will see why Ferguson made the choice he did.

By Paul Ansorge, B/r.

Considering PL actual level, i think Mourinho could have qualified ANY English team to CL, and make Tottenham champions if he spent himself the 100 M of Bale departure. He was righ to comeback and unless a dramatic end, he has already won EPL considering he managed well all the big confrontations, only 2 remains 1 at home Vs Arsenal, and one at Anfield.

we would probably be 2nd or 3rd...
sadly Mourinho would have not been the right manager for United and would never be but Moyes isnt exactly the perfect choice for the club...

^Why would Mourinho never be the right choice for ManUtd? That statement by ManU fans always baffled me.

He definitely would have made them a top 4 (probably 3rd place) team. He wouldn't have made them concede silly goals against teams like Sunderland, Stoke, Newcastle, Olympiacos, etc. He also would have brought in signings that would have made a huge impact.

United don't look for short-term managers.
We look for long-term managers and Moyes is exactly that type. You can go on and on about how our season might be (and it wouldn't even necessarily be) much better than right now but i honestly wouldn't really care because Mourinho would probably leave in 3 seasons or so. I'd rather have Moyes stick around for 10 years or even more with having a bad start and starting to challenge for the title every season.
Moyes will do well at United and that's been my statement for all this season. Just wait.

Even with Mourinho united will still be 7th or 6th. I cant fuckin stand people saying sack the manager does it look like the manager plays and scores goals??? Its the players fault not manager. Just look at United squad. Nearly all of them are 30+ in age. Vidic,Evra, Van Persie, Carrick, Rooneys nearly 30 and so on. The players have all been playing garbage so you cannot blame the manager. Tactics dont change the game by much. I dont know why people see alot in tactics, it doesnt work. So Mourinho wont change the club.

Vendetta: Mourinho is one of the best managers in the world but he is not the type of manager United is used to have. Mourinho is a guy who needs a club with a relatively big financial support that will allow him to spend as he wants to, United is not that kind of club. Yes, maybe we bought some high priced players but only because it seemed very necessary at the time. Ferguson not only helped the club win many tittles but he also helped the club financially in ways no other manager in history of football has. In the ferguson era United sold three times what they bought and that is something that not every team takes into consideration this days. Just like Man_utd said, Mou is not a long term manager and he likes having control of the team almost as if he was the president, also he likes having some money and freedom to buy whoever he thinks is right for the team. He has proven that when he gets what he asks for he can do miracles, no wonder why he has Chelsea in 1st place on his first season. If you ask me, United needs something like Guardiola because of his mentality about buying young players and turning them into top players, sadly Guardiola is not a manager for long terms.

Fru_Toot: I dont usually reply to people with such a negative comment score but Ill make an exception with you.
Managers in football are probably the most important part of the game, yes more than the players. There are many cases in which a team gets a new manager and one of two things happen, either the team does poorly or the team does great. Chelsea's improvement with Mourinho is impressive this season, that is no coincidence and it would be ridiculous to say the manager theory doesn't apply to this case. Let me rephrase the question: Where would Chelsea be if they had sticked with Benites? Probably 4th or somewhere around that place.

Now in United's case... How do people with a little sense of critique know that Moyes is the responsible with the team doing so poor? Because just the past season we ended up champions, not second or third, but first! There is no way in hell a team can be champions one season and the very next season fail to even qualify to european competition without the manager being involved in the failure. Its not like players would all agree on going out of form for the whole season right after they won the league. If we were around the top 4 then it would be reasonable to say Moyes is starting a new process in the team but going from 1st to 7th is just ridiculous. Moyes in many occasions hasn't even used his three available substitutions in a game we en up losing having lots of players capable of turning around a game in the bench. And why is this happening? because Moyes doesnt know what he is doing in United, he doesnt even know who to play anymore. Moyes will take about 4 seasons to build an entirely new team after spending tons of money on the club, we wont save this season, next season we will probably end up around 6th place again. I try to look at things the best way I can cus' Moyes is sticking around for at least the next 5 seasons.

In conclusion, saying the Manager has no real effect on the team's performance is one of the silliest things you can say when talking about football.

I know it seems as if I hate Moyes and I probably sound like an angry fan who wants him out. The truth is I simply dont think he is the appropriate manager for United at this time. I dont hate they guy, he had a great run with Everton but look at how things ended up with Everton and their new manager, they are in the same place they ended up last season, just as it should be.

@Tuanis you are wrong. The players are more important than the manager. You can play with players but not with a manager you idiot. Without players football wont exist. Players should play well with or without a manager no exception because it dumb to put blame on a guy who just watches his team play. Chelsea are good because of their top performers like Hazard, Terry, cahill, cech, Ramires not because of a dude standing on the side.People are getting too addicted on blaming managers because of performances but its the players fault. How can a manager control people who are playing shitt themselves?

My problem with Mourinho is that he moves too much! You can never trust him, he plays too many mind games.
Quite frankly I'm glad to drop down the table a bit to bring out the real under lying problems at United. It's time to shell out the glory hunters from the real fans. Now if Moyes had an inch of Mou's tactics lol >_<. I'll make my manger decision in the next couple years, you have to give the man a chance it's not like we got relegated or something.

Guys, i dont agree. Look John Terry/Nemanja Vidic case : When you respect and love your coach, its felt on the pitch. Moyes is even not respected by anyone, he is not trrusted by players themselves.
Mourinho makes an unknown player gain full potential in less than 3 month, he gives confidence, maturity and defensive work to his team.
Im sorry to say that, but a team without a coach is nothing. The Inter of Mourinho was the proof, they made miracles with a limitted squad.
Mourinho can make a cat looks like a Lion, he could have qualified Everton or Newcastle easily, and im sure he could have built a strong United to win the title the first year.
Manchester has the 2nd best squad in England if not the best, thats my opinion.

@tiki_taka
What makes you think players don't respect Moyes? Just because Vidic left you think the players at United don't respect him. Sure he's not as charismatic as Mourinho but how many other coaches are like him? And this respect and loving of coach has no value if that coach is going to leave in 3 seasons.
And no, Mourinho wouldn't have been able to qualify Everton or Newcastle easily. You're being delusional here.

Just you guys wait until next season and all the other United fans doubting him. You'll swallow your words.

@To all ManU fans in this thread:

About his short-term moves to clubs:

Mourinho has won everything possible in all the leagues he wanted to go to, and he came back to England to settle down long-term. In an interview, he stated that he wants to manage Chelsea for 13 years or more and then a national team. If that's not a manager willing to stay long-term then I don't know who is.

About his mind games or antics:

I'll easily admit Mourinho uses too many "mind games" or can have a bad behavior some times, but that's something I love about the guy. But, this also adds up to something that baffles me once again from ManU fans; don't you guys think Ferguson was also the exact same as Mourinho? Playing mind games, even in his final season, fighting with managers constantly (Fergie v Mancini), talking smack in interviews, and criticizing the ref too heavily. I don't know if you ManUtd fans have noticed but choose to ignore it or not, but you can't seriously say you don't want Mourinho because of his "mind games" and bad behavior. That's really hypocritical considering you had a manager who did both for 26 years.

About his transfer policy:

Mourinho sold Mata and KdB for nearly 60 million combined and then brought Matic, Zouma and Salah instead for around 40m. Matic, Zouma and Salah would have definitely been an upgrade over Cleverley, Vidic/Rio and Valencia. There's also his transfer history with Porto to show he can deal with not having a lot of money. Besides, if United fans were to stick to their long-term policy, then they would know a squad isn't built in one transfer window and would be patient with Mourinho's transfers during 2 or 3 seasons.

"...he likes having control of the team almost as if he was the president...":

That is some intense BS. Mourinho controls the team as any other manager does. He controls the transfers, squad, training, tactics, and a bit of the scouting. Besides, let's say IF he is given more power than other managers, and that's a big IF, wouldn't it be expected if Mourinho were to have stayed long-term with ManUtd? After all, you could say Ferguson was the manager with the most power in the football board. His decisions would match that of a sporting director if you ask me.

There we go ManUtd fans. These are all the reasons you guys say you wouldn't have wanted Mourinho, and I just debunked them. Would he really have not been a fit at United, or has the media portrayed him into a person that is not "United material" so hard that it's impossible to think it's inconclusive?

@Man UTD i've already posted a thread listing Moyes mistakes since he joined the club.

http://footyroom.com/forum/football-talk/manchester-uniteds-poor-form-has-created-premier-league-excitement-56321

Here is an extract :

{........While much has been said of Manchester United is no longer being a team to fear at Old Trafford, I’d argue that the problem is more severe. The main concern is not that teams no longer fear United, but that Manchester United players no longer fear the manager, or give him the respect he deserves.

While it’s difficult to know for sure what’s happening inside Old Trafford, the body language and reaction from the Manchester United footballers is that now that Ferguson is gone, the players have taken their foot off the pedal. You have instances of Fellaini texting while sitting in the stands at Old Trafford. Plus you have former captain Rio Ferdinand laughing behind Moyes’s back during a game, and going public to share his frustration with Moyes’s methods. These are instances that Sir Alex Ferguson would have not tolerated. But more importantly, these are instances whereby the players would have never acted in this manner in the first place if Ferguson was still in charge......}

I dont like to argue this much but some time its necessary...

Ill be as objective and as breve as possible...

Moyes is the responsible for United's failure this season, I dont think anybody can argue about that, we could have gotten an even worst manager but definitely we should have gotten a better one. Or a better prepared one. I dont doubt in his abilities to coach but he is not or was not the appropriate choice. No one to blame, he seemed the perfect choice at the time.

Short Term moves by Mourinho

I woudnt believe in everything he says, why didnt he signed a longer term contract with Chelsea then? He is a very conflictive guy who can explode any time and head out of the club. Im sure he said something similar when he got to Madrid. He had his differences with Abramovic in the past which was one of the reasons for his departure from Chelsea.

His transfer Policy

Selling a player who was key to the squad doesn't mean he is has any intention of helping the club financially, and he would have also brought those three players if Mata stayed at Chelsea. What I mean with the transfer policy a club like United is looking for is that the club wants a coach who buys cheap and sell later on for twice the price, a coach who buys young talent who would eventually become regular top class players for the club... Has Mourinho in his reacent years of career scouted a player that would later become a top class player for the team? I dont think so, with the exception of Varane Mou is not the guy with that transfer mentality.

And he definitely likes having control of the whole club...

He left Chelse because of Abramovic forcing him to work with some staff and probably players.
He was the reason why Valdano left Madrid, and even after leaving Mourinho asked Florentino Perez not to feel that vacant spot, precisely because he wanted more control of the team. He left Madrid with not a very warm relationship with Perez.
We cant argue he is a controversial coach not every President would love having.
And Ferguson's "power" at the club was given to him because everyone in the club trusted him, he earned it after many years of coaching and he never proved them wrong.

Im starting to understand what many people talk about in the forum regarding Chelsea fans treating Mourinho as their god. We all can agree he is one of the best coaches in history but you cant hide the fact that he is many other things outside the pitch.

@ Vendetta

About his short-term moves to clubs

Mourinho is indeed a "short-term" manager. He joins a club with potential, takes them to the highest point that he personally believes he can take them, and then leaves for another club. He only joins clubs where he sees the potential to do so, and where he has money to spend. Look at his record,

Porto: Joins a very talented outfit, wins the treble in his second season, then leaves.

Chelsea: Joins an already very good Chelsea squad. Tries to win CL three years and fails. Won the league title 2x however. After failing to win the league in his third season, he decided to terminate his contract into his 4th season.

Inter: Joins a team that Mancini built with great success. Spends a couple years, wins treble, then leaves. Fully aware that his team would be on the decline as the entire team was aging.

Real Madrid: Joins a team with Kaka, Ronaldo, Alonso, Ramos, Casillas, and basically a ridiculously good squad. Overthrows Barcelona off their throne, but fails to win CL 3 years in a row. Too many rifts between the most important players in the squad (Ronaldo, Casillas, Ramos, Alonso) and too much controversy (poking Vilanova in eye, talking sh*t about Pellegrini and other managers, press not liking his 'mind games'), and leaves after a miserable season by his standards.

Chelsea (2x): Joins a club with massive potential in the squad. Loads of young talent that can be used to win CL later in their careers.

So when United fans say that Mourinho is not a long-term manager, they are correct because they are basing their statement on his current record. He has never stayed at a club longer than 3 years. He may say that he wants to stay at Chelsea for a decade, but it is still his first year, and there is no proof of him dedicating himself to a club previously.

About his mind games or antics

I find it funny that whenever anyone says Mou is controversial, Chelsea fans say things like "we find it funny/amusing", "well, so is Sir Alex, so stfu", and other bullcrap like that. Just admit that he is a controversial twat. Because if someone else ever poked Mourinho in the eye, you'd be all over them like "wtf get this guy a 4 match ban for poking a manager in the eye. How rude and immature of him". United fans don't defend Sir Alex's controversy. They never say "I think it's funny". They just accept that he can be a d**k sometimes, and move on.

And his antics are very immature. A true professional doesn't go around making rude comments about other managers and professional footballers. It's the term "professional" that Mourinho doesn't seem to understand. He thinks he can do whatever he wants and get away with it. A real professional is someone like Guardiola, who always treats his opponents with utmost respect, and never draws out controversy. That is why no one can ever say anything against Guardiola's press conferences (because he never says controversial things), but Mourinho has plenty of press conferences where he says rude comments or controversial things.

About his transfer policy

Mourinho's spendings at clubs.

Porto: ~ 20.000.000 Pounds in 2 years
Chelsea: 250.000.000+ Pounds in 3 years (and the beginning of his 4th season)
Inter: ~ 130.000.000 Euros in 2 years
Real Madrid: 163.500.000 Euros in 3 years

And his deficit?

Porto: No information
Chelsea: -164.200.000 Pounds
Inter: -53.950.000 Pounds
Real Madrid: -104.500.000 Euros

So you see, Mou has never been much of a 'businessman type of manager'. He likes to buy without limitations, and that's what United fans are arguing.

"...he likes having control of the team almost as if he was the president...":

I agree with you here. He gets into trouble with the clubs' seniors because of things he says, not because of him "wanting power". What more power does he want? He already has everything he needs. That's why I call BS on him "wanting power".

@tiki_taka
Fellaini texting does not mean he does not respect Moyes... (http://strettynews.com/fellaini-moyes-is-like-a-father-to-me/) TL;DR Fellaini: Moyes is like a FATHER to me. And if you saw the match against West Brom, Fellaini was BRILLIANT.
And it's only one match but I feel like Moyes is getting his tactics correct and the situation at United seems to be improving.
And Ferdinand? pft. He's always been a vocal person and you know what, if he leaves, it's all the better because he isn't getting younger or better.

@everyone
Mourinho might claim he'd stay at Chelsea for a long time, and let him be! We're talking about UNITED'S case. He wouldn't have stayed at United for 10 years and that's why we're relieved he isn't at United.
listen. No one is denying his talent but sometimes, he goes overboard. Point is, I feel like Moyes is one of the few "traditional" managers left. I don't know how to explain but I feel like he is the right man for the job. Mourinho's a great manager, but the short-term thing is probably one of the reasons as to why he wasn't chosen by SAF, although he would've probably been right behind Moyes.

Here's a read to try and understand why United bought Fellaini and why we cross a lot (Although we've been playing the ball through the middle more. If you read it, it shows you Moyes knows what he is doing, (although it may not be executed properly mainly due to the fact this is his first season and that full-backs are such an important part in his tactics.)
http://www.thefalse9.com/2014/03/a-look-at-manchester-uniteds-system.html

@dynastin98

I think you need to check your numbers and also show not just how much he spent but what was the net total .
Also , mention that every time he spent , it was justified later on down the season .

To briefly go over

Not going to go Over what he has done at Porto and Inter , it speaks for itself .

At Chelsea people forget that he came and stopped Arsenal and Untied's domination of the league . Arsenal just had invincible year and Jose comes and almost repeats the Arsenal's season with one controversial defeat throughout the whole 2004-2005 season . It was season with some incredible performance from Chelsea and some records that were set that season still have not been beaten .

In Madrid he stopped the best Barcelona there ever was by setting 100point record and 127 goals in one season . Three years in a row Champions League semifinal . Last season he lost semifinal purely due to squad unrest . Team was not united and underachieved .

Saying This Carlo Ancelotti now is having an easy job . He made few changes but overall this team is the product of Jose's three years of work .

Nowadays a coach has to be multi-faceted. He has to master a lot of areas. From planning to implementation, methodology and leadership. Jose Mourinho is master of all the areas . He will have a long stay at Chelsea and he will make Chelsea dominant club of EPL .

@Marcus

I am not questioning Jose's ability as a manager. I understand how brilliant he is (he managed Madrid after all. I got to see his effect for 3 years). But what I mean is that he couldn't achieve all this success without spending bucketloads of money. He's not the type of "Sir Alex" manager that can use young talent from academy systems, or buy cheap and raw talent and make the player into a finished product. He needs and depends on LOTS of money to succeed. Not the case for most other managers.

Just to give you an example, after Mourinho came for Chelsea, he spent a total of 94.450.000 Pounds. Chelsea were 2nd in the season before he came, and he took them that one step further and brought home the title in his first season there. Now look at this. After his title victory, Mourinho spent another 58.400.000 Pounds the next season. That's almost 60 Million Pounds on the reigning champions.

In contrast, Sir Alex spent 13.000.000 in the 2006-07 season to win the PL, and to retain the title again next season, he spent 32 Million. That's a total of 45 Million spent to win 2 league titles. Mourinho spent more than that just to retain the title.

The CL game will be decisive, The Comeback is possible, Good luck United.

@man_utd: Get a clue man, You must really really like Moyes, because you defends for him for almost every post that relates to him. You even mention Moyes was not a problem ever in the thread when someone shows the clip "how to use Kagawa". Wake up man, Moyes IS THE PROBLEM, a big one! Before 5 matches ago I was still behind him, I didn't like what he has done but didn't turn my back on him either.

But now, he has struck us as a clueless, slow adaption and tactically inadequate manager for Manchester United. Not only his selections is questionable, but also his motivation, his reaction to the game, reading the game are ALL horrible.

If it were MOU, we might not play the best football, but we would surely be 2nd or 3rd. Our defend might be sh!t, but our attack are decent if the manager knows how to get the best out of it. Im not saying Mou should be or is suitable. I am saying: Moyes is destroying this club!

@tuan_jinn
Look at my comment on the "Man United 0-3 Liverpool " thread...

I am going to try compare and contrast

Jose Mourinho as long term coach :

Every team he went to, he had to dramatically change team's philosophy and build champion side that will bring titles not just domestically in very short period of time . I think we both agree he succeed on all those tasks .

He wins at least one title every year and drastically improves team that goes on to be strong for several more years after he leaves , unless new manager comes around and decides to change everything . Think about it , if he stays with team and continues to work with same team ? He can become a coach who can create a dynasty and after he has spent time in Italy and Spain , he has returned as more mature coach who is still hungry , but ready to settle for one team for a while now . Why ? Because Mourinho likes to challenge himself and he will try to emulate Sir Alex . This is his new challenge to help Chelsea built empire just like Sir Alex's United . And I think he will succeed if no one gets under his skin in management just like no one questioned Sir Alex's management at Manchester United .

Mourinho's transfers

Fair point , he spent a lot after he left Porto , because he always built his team that was capable of winning titles . He was forced to spend . Just like any manager spends when he comes to new club . However, Not sure where you got your sources but I have slightly different numbers .

My source is ESPN and Business Insider .

P.S. I calculated nets so I rounded numbers

Chelsea 2004-2005 - In: £56.9m Out: £11.7m

Chelsea 2005-2006 - In: £93m Out: £20.8

Chelsea 2006-2007 - In: £15.8 Out: £20.8m

Net spent : 112 Million .

Result : 2 EPL Titles , 2 English League Cups , 1 FA Cup and 1 Community Shield , ( I think he should also get credit due the way he won , because he set some records in Epl that still no one has beaten ) . Team has stayed same until 20012 and brought 6 more titles . Why I think he should get some credit for that ? Because literally nothing major Changed at chelsea until we won CL 2012 and more young players started to come in .

Inter 2008 - 2009 - In: £53.3 Out: £6.5m
Inter 2009 - 2010 - In: £82.9m Out: £95m

Net Spent : 35 Million

Result : 2 Seria A league titles , 1 Coppa Italia , 1 Supercoppa Italia , 1 Champions league . Inter won another Coppa Italia and Supercoppa right after he left . However, Inter brought some idiot by the name of Benitez the Spanish waiter and he literally changed the whole club philosophy that was destroyed in one year !

Real Madrid 2010 - 2011 - In: £78.3m Out: £8.8m

Real Madrid 2011- 2012 - In: £48.4 Out: £4.8m

Real Madrid 2012 - 2013 - In: £29.5 Out: £29.5m

Net Spent : 115 Million

Result : 1 La Liga title , 1 Copa Del Rey , 1 Super Copa de Espania . This was all against the best Barcelona there ever was . Obviously I don't need to explain to you because you are Real Madrid fan and you know what he did and how he made Real more dominant and again most valuable club in the world . And all that was against Barcelona in their prime . He made Real as the dominant one in EL Classicos ( I certainly thought so especially in the last year , Barca started to fear Real not other way around ) . We can agree i think Ancelotti got it fairly easy . Real Madrid does not lack any quality in any area . Ancelottie barely made any changes . And He is smart not to do any changes .

Chelsea 2013 - 2014 - In: £108m Out: £57.6m

Net Spent : 50 million

Result : In process . However, only three 4 players were added due to his wish : Eto - free , Nermaja Matic 21 million , Salah 11 million , Schwarzer free . Matic and Salah were justified with sales of De Bruyne , Essien , Mata . Other players that we got this year we were scouting long before Mourinho , so he only had to agree to go head on transfers .

NET SPENT - 312 Million Euro

So roughly net spent is 312 in total for his career since he left Porto , because at Porto he did not make any looses . Considering again that he had to built or rebuilt team to make them to champions or revive the club to become champions again . He was forced to spent and could not rely on academy players due to short patience of presidents or owners of the clubs . Especially at Real Madrid where he had world stars at his disposal . It would make president of Real foolish . Or at Chelsea where he brought 10 new players that is a whole new team and they justified their price .