The following article was sent to me by Guy Bennett, it provides a few sobering thoughts for Manchester United supporters with the author asking whether they have the right man for the job.

Is there any evidence - beyond his own self-assessment - that Jose Mourinho is special?

Clearly, Manchester United Vice-chairman Ed Woodward thinks so. On May 27, 2016 he hired Mourinho, declaring:
'His track record of success is ideal to take the club forward.'

That track record includes 21 trophies over a 15 year period. An impressive haul. But you don`t need to be a master chef to make a delicious salad from expensive ingredients.

If the job of football manager is to get the maximum number of wins from the available players, then you can judge his effectiveness by comparing the quality of his squad against the table position on his last day of coaching.

For the purposes of this discussion, we will use the collective wisdom of the market (team wages) to value the quality of the squad. No, this metric isn`t perfect. But 49 times out of 50, having Chelsea`s Eden Hazard (£185,000 per week) on the pitch gives you a better chance of winning a football game than fielding West Bromwich Albion`s Gareth McAuley (£8,462 per week).

A manager`s skill must be judged in the context of player quality. No-one could reasonably expect Bournemouth`s manager Eddie How (team wages £25 million) to get the same number of wins as Manchester City`s manager, Manuel Pellegrini (team wages £203 million).

My Manager`s Effectiveness Rating (MER) is the statistical gap between the team wages ranking, and the final table position. If you manage a team with the 10th highest wages, and you finish 8th, that gives you and MER of +2. If you finish 20th with the same team, you get a -10.

Ten times out of the last 13 years, (with Porto, Chelsea, Interazionale, Real Madrid and Chelsea again) - Mourinho`s team had the highest wages in the league. In these years, he can reasonably be expected to win the league - which he did 79% of the time (giving him an MER of zero for those trophy seasons). The other 21% of the time, his teams under-performed and finished with an MER of -1, -1 and -15.

In 2011 with Real Madrid he had the 2nd highest team wages, and finished 2nd. In 2014 with Chelsea he had the 3rd highest team wages and finished 3rd. Just once in 13 years, Mourinho had positive MER: in 2015 Chelsea won the league with the 3rd highest wages (an MER of + 2). Over the last 13 years, his cumulative MER is -15.

History suggests that club owners must spend heavily to get results under Mourinho. Clearly he is no Claudio Ranieri (2016 MER +17). Mourinho lacks the skill-set to lead a group of infantrymen into battle against a better equipped army. To get good results, the preening Portuguese boss requires big, expensive weapons.

In 2016-2017, Manchester United is projected to have the 2nd highest wage bill in the English Premier League (EPL). So the team will probably avoid relegation. But fans anticipating aesthetically pleasing football or a league trophy are likely to be disappointed.

By all accounts, Mourinho is a manipulator - not an innovator. 'His methods are exhausting," stated former Chelsea striker Demba Ba. "He convinces you that if you do what he tells you to do, it will bring results," stated former Porto player Deco. 'He squeezes out what he doesn't like," recalled Xabi Alonso.

"We build very well from the back," confirms Mourinho, "We have a very good ball possession we don`t play counter-attack." This low-risk mechanical style requires followers, not leaders. That`s why Mourinho sells imaginative players like Kevin de Bruyne, Juan Mata and Arjen Robben, and hangs onto diligent proletarians like Didier Drogba, Frank Lampard and John Terry.

Manchester United fans should now be asking themselves two questions:
1 . To what extent is Mourinho`s effectiveness based on his 'winning mystique`?
2 . Is this mystique still intact?

To remember the power of Mourinho`s mystique, let`s go back to 2004 when the new Chelsea manager confronted Chelsea mid-fielder Frank Lampard after a training session.
"I was standing in the shower cleaning my balls," recalled Lampard, "he tells me, 'you`re the best player in the world, but you need to win titles. ` He has that air of arrogance, that confidence, and it rubs off. Not that I thought I was the best player in the world."

Eleven years ago, Mourinho inspired Lampard to be a better player by telling him a lie so transparent that Lampard himself knew he was being gamed.

Fast forward 11 years to August 2015: while the other 19 EPL teams were training, Mourinho gave his players a month's holiday. Chelsea subsequently lost all of their pre-season games, including a 4-2 defeat to the New York Red Bulls - a social-athletic club for retired international footballers.

Last year, Chelsea began its title defense with a home game against Swansea City. With Chelsea reduced to 10 men, Eden Hazard was fouled by the Swansea captain. Hazard fell to the ground and stayed there. The team doctor, Eva Carneiro, ran onto the pitch to treat him. Fifa rules state that Hazard then had to leave the field, temporarily reducing Chelsea to nine men.

After the match Mourinho had nothing critical to say about his own game tactics. Instead he told the assembled media, "My medical staff were impulsive and naïve. I was sure Eden did not have a serious problem. He had a knock. He was tired.'

A few eyebrows were raised. Was that smart to publically accuse the club`s most expensive player of malingering? Hazard never scored another goal under Mourinho. Dr. Carneiro was demoted. She resigned and launched a sexual discrimination suit against Chelsea, claiming that Mourinho called her the 'daughter of a LovePeddler'.

Given the power differential between the two parties, it was an unsightly squabble - as though Richard Branson had scheduled a press conference to castigate a drowsy parking attendant.

FA chairman Greg Dyke said Chelsea's manager had 'made a mistake' and should apologise. Mourinho disagreed.

From this low point, the 2015-2016 season continued downhill.

After getting crushed 3-0 by Manchester City, Mourinho claimed the result was 'fake' . After losing 3-1 at Everton in September, he stated that 'the game was completely under control' even though they were losing 2-0 within 25 minutes.

In early October, Mourinho was given a £50,000 FA fine for saying that referees were afraid to award Chelsea penalties. A few weeks later he was given a one-match stadium ban and a £40,000 fine for swearing at a referee.

Normally reliable players like Diego Costa, Branislav Ivanovic, Nemanja Matic and John Terry, all had sub-par seasons. By December 5, 2015 Chelsea had won only 26% of its games.

After a 2-1 defeat by Leicester City, Mourinho said that he felt 'betrayed' by his players. Again, he could locate no flaw in his own game tactics. "Sometimes I find myself thinking last season I did an amazing job," mused Mourinho,
"brought players to a level not their level."

On December 17, 2016, with Chelsea one point above relegation, Mourinho was fired.

Sports heroes with mystique are vulnerable to catastrophic and irreversible implosions.

Mike Tyson, 'the baddest man on the planet` was 37-0 when he lost to Buster Douglas in 1990. After that loss, he won only 68% of his remaining fights.

Tiger Woods was the world`s best golfer in 2009 when he was revealed to be a sexual deviant. Since then, he has not won a single major tournament.

Over the last half decade Mourinho`s MER is better than Mark Hughes (-18), but worse than Alan Pardew (-12), Sam Allardyce (+1), Arsene Wenger (+6) and Tony Pulis (+9).

Has Mourinho learned anything from last season`s epic failure? Can he recover? Will the players be inspired if this insecure, self-aggrandising little man flatters them shamelessly while they are washing their testicles?

Manchester United fans are about to find out.

Writer - director Guy Bennett authored the best-selling book, Guy`s Guide to the Flipside and has twice been named British Columbia`s best weekly newspaper columnist for his work in The Westender.

Nice Observations but I beg to differ

What made Mourinho special was winning the Europa and Champions League in 2003 and 2004 respectively with Porto. What was his MER in the UCL that year? How often do middleweight teams win the Champions League?

Mourinho in Chelsea
Before Mourinho came to Chelsea, Chelsea were already heavy spenders. Chelsea already had the unenviable record of being the first premier league team to feature a starting 11 without a British Player.It was Mourinho who turned Chelsea from an also-ran to Champions.

Mourinho in Inter.
Inter Milan have always been big spenders breaking world record fees with the purchases of Christian Vieri and Ronaldo Da Lima. Yet in 45 years, they hadn't won the champions league. Mourinho comes and breaks the Jinx. Not one or two but three trophies. What was his MER in the UCL that year?

Mourinho in Real Madrid
Real Madrid are traditionally big spenders. Between 2004 - 2009, Madrid bought Ronaldo (€94M), Kaka(€65M), Robben(€36M), Benzema(€35M), Alonso (€30M), Huntellar(€20M), Sneijder(€27M), Van Nisterooy(€15M), Pepe (€30M), Ramos (€28M), Higuain(€13M) and others. With all the money spent, Real Madrid in the aforementioned years failed to make it to the last four in the UCL. In fact, they couldn't even go beyond the last 16 between 2005 and 2010. Mourinho goes there and Real Madrid make the semis three years in a row. They also win the league (which featured possibly the best club side (Guardiola's Barca) in history). Also Real Madrid wins the Copa Del Rey for the first time in 18 years.

Yes, he spends money but money alone does not guarantee success. Knowing who to buy and how you use what you buy does.

People will always find fault in everything you do. Mourinho is not different. But records dont lie

P0intBlank:
Nice Observations but I beg to differ

What made Mourinho special was winning the Europa and Champions League in 2003 and 2004 respectively with Porto. What was his MER in the UCL that year? How often do middleweight teams win the Champions League?

Mourinho in Chelsea
Before Mourinho came to Chelsea, Chelsea were already heavy spenders. Chelsea already had the unenviable record of being the first premier league team to feature a starting 11 without a British Player.It was Mourinho who turned Chelsea from an also-ran to Champions.

Mourinho in Inter.
Inter Milan have always been big spenders breaking world record fees with the purchases of Christian Vieri and Ronaldo Da Lima. Yet in 45 years, they hadn't won the champions league. Mourinho comes and breaks the Jinx. Not one or two but three trophies. What was his MER in the UCL that year?

Mourinho in Real Madrid
Real Madrid are traditionally big spenders. Between 2004 - 2009, Madrid bought Ronaldo (€94M), Kaka(€65M), Robben(€36M), Benzema(€35M), Alonso (€30M), Huntellar(€20M), Sneijder(€27M), Van Nisterooy(€15M), Pepe (€30M), Ramos (€28M), Higuain(€13M) and others. With all the money spent, Real Madrid in the aforementioned years failed to make it to the last four in the UCL. In fact, they couldn't even go beyond the last 16 between 2005 and 2010. Mourinho goes there and Real Madrid make the semis three years in a row. They also win the league (which featured possibly the best club side (Guardiola's Barca) in history). Also Real Madrid wins the Copa Del Rey for the first time in 18 years.

Yes, he spends money but money alone does not guarantee success. Knowing who to buy and how you use what you buy does.

But the facts are there to back it up somewhat;-

- Mourinho has never really had success without spending huge amounts of money in order to accomplish it.

-The clubs he’s been at are all clubs expected to win the leagues, winning them is no real shock.

- The signings made by Mourinho have always been an extraordinarily high outlay.

Let’s start by looking at Benfica, Mourinho took his first steps into management with 9 games at Benfica, he got 5 wins from 9, but lost twice, and left after a dispute with the high ups at the club - and it wouldn't be the last time.

He then ended up at Uniao Leiria where he took charge for the last 7 games of their season, securing their highest spot ever of 5th, a position that they already occupied prior to his arrival so he can't really take the credit for that despite various sources claiming it was all his work.

In his second season he kept the team solidly in 3rd where he attracted the attention of Porto.

Up to this point in his career Mourinho had show promise, that cannot be denied, but from this moment onwards his career would spiral and spending for success would be the norm.

He joined Porto who were in fifth spot and he promised that they would win the league. In his first full season in charge Mourinho spent approximately £10 million despite having a strong squad anyway.

This would become his calling card, taking top squads and spending large sums of money on them, in his second season he spent nearly £10 million again and this time won the Champions League, and that’s when Mourinho started one of his seconds traits.

Mourinho will take a club to its highest high and leave, knowing he cannot again take them to those heights, and if he fails during a season he gives up and leaves.

Following his Champions League win with Porto he left for Chelsea and became one of the highest paid football managers of all time with a Salary of £4.2 million, this is where the nickname the Special One originated, during an interview with him saying: "Please don't call me arrogant, but I'm European champion and I think I'm a special one."

Mourinho started his career at Chelsea by spending £140 million on 10 players; players if anything they didn’t desperately need at an average of £14 Million per player.

Mourinho managed to do the double and in doing so setting a series of Premier League records as they did.

In his second season he spent £80 million, that’s £80 million on the reigning champions, the reigning champions who lost none of their first team players, again they won the league. Was Mourinho the 'Special One' he declared himself to be?

His third year Mourinho spent another £80 million but this year missed out on the trophy and that was it. After spending nearly £300 million on players in total the league couldn’t be won, and Mourinho packed his bags in late September to take over Inter Milan.

He realised he couldn’t win the league and was out of the Bridge like a shot once the Internazionale job came up.

In his first season he spent £50 million to try and strengthen the squad and despite winning the league fell short of the expectations that came with it, so Mourinho spent £83 million on a squad that again really needed no improvement.

Mourinho won the Champions League with Inter thus fulfilling the duty he was brought in for, much to everyone’s delight, not much mention of the £120 million though; so what next for the special one?

One of the richest clubs in the world of course. Real Madrid came knocking and thus started one of the biggest rivalries in recent generations.

The summer of 2010 Mourinho took the reins at Real Madrid, one of the richest teams in the world, a team that a year previously had spent £225 million on getting some of the best players in the world.

Yet Jose still felt necessary to spend £82 million - much the same in 2011 when Mourinho spent £43 million and just managed to pip Barcelona to the La Liga Title. Finally after two years and £125 million, again he’d done what he was brought in to do.

But again no-one seemed to care about the millions he had spent doing so. The ‘Special One ‘ had now spent nearly half a billion to achieve what he had, yet was still heralded as a great manager.

Mourinho spent one final season at Real and having only spent £29 million seemed to be destined for England once more, and that he was it for his La Liga Career.

Mourinho’s dream of managing Manchester United didn’t come off though and he ended up back at the Bridge.

And here we are, Mourinho has completed the signing of Nemanja Matic, A player sold for under £4 million bought back at £22 Million, bringing the total spending of Chelsea this window to £88.5 million and pushing Mourinho’s total spending as a manager to £562.5 million.

At Manchester United fc JOSE MOURINHO has wasted no time in going about spending his £200million transfer budget at Manchester United. Eric Bailly, Villarreal, £30m. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Paris Saint-Germain, free transfer on 1 year deal, £230,000 a week to play at Old Trafford, meaning the one-year deal will cost United £12m. Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Borussia Dortmund, £26m. Paul Pogba, Juventus, £89m. Taking his total spending spree to (£145m).

This article isn’t to question Mourinho’s abilities as a man manager, something he is surely very good at, but it’s to raise the question, "How come no-one has questioned him for spending so much?"

Of course to maintain the stature of some of the biggest clubs in the world money has to be spent, but since taking over at Arsenal in 1996 Arsene Wenger has spent only £430,850,000 but through diligent spending and purchasing only actually lost £13,800,000 in that time – whilst also winning the Premier League 3 times and the FA Cup 4 times.

The man is clearly not a bad football manager but when we talk to the best players we always level them with one question, ‘Could they do it on a cold wet night in stoke?’