- Manchester United paid Jose Mourinho £4million to stop him joining rivals
- Former Chelsea boss will be on £75m five-year deal with £200m to spend
- Mourinho refused to accept a 'behavioural clause' in big-money deal
- An agreement with Mourinho was reached midway through the season
- Louis van Gaal was told of his sacking by his wife Truus after FA Cup win
Jose
Mourinho was paid a staggering £4million by Manchester United not to
take a job elsewhere while they decided the future of Louis van Gaal.
An
agreement was reached midway through the season to give United the
option of bringing him in if Van Gaal failed to meet their targets.
Sportsmail can
also reveal that Mourinho refused to accept a 'behavioural clause' in
his five-year, £75m deal despite concerns among the United hierarchy
over his eccentric touchline behaviour.
Jose Mourinho has been on the Manchester United payroll for months, and will be given £200m to spend
The former Chelsea boss is understood to have been paid £4m to stop him joining rival clubs this season
Louis van Gaal (centre right) will be sacked by Manchester United and replaced by former colleague Mourinho
The
53-year-old was fined £229,900 and received two stadium bans during his
two spells at Chelsea and United are desperate to avoid the negative
publicity those incidents generated.
However,
Mourinho refused to agree during negotiations in January, highlighting
his strong bargaining position as United's season unravelled. Unlike
Manchester City's pre-contract deal with Pep Guardiola, the unique
arrangement with Mourinho was merely to ensure he would be available if
required.
Had
Van Gaal been deemed to have been a success, by whatever criteria
United laid down, he would have stayed for the last year of his
contract. The deal was first reported by Spanish newspaper El Pais in March.
As it
is, former Chelsea manager Mourinho will have £200m to spend on new
players as United, who lifted the FA Cup on Saturday, plot a route back
to the top of the English game after missing out on a top-four spot for
the second time in three seasons.
United
hope to have their transfer business completed by the end of Euro 2016
to ensure their manager has his squad in place when they return to
training.
The
club wanted to keep the agreement with Mourinho secret from Van Gaal,
who was his boss at Barcelona, but by Sunday afternoon the United
hierarchy were left embarrassed by another PR own goal.
Van Gaal was notified of his departure from Manchester United by wife Truus (left) after the FA Cup final
Mourinho (pictured leaving his house in London on Sunday) will be on a £75m five-year contract at United
Van Gaal (centre) finished on a high as he lifted the FA Cup on Sunday following victory over Crystal Palace
The
fact Van Gaal knew he had lost his job within minutes of winning the FA
Cup is considered by senior figures as more shameful than the departure
of David Moyes, who learned of his own dismissal from media reports
before executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward had the opportunity to inform
him personally.
At Wembley on Saturday it was Van Gaal's wife Truus who told him she had seen the story on the BBC website shortly before he was due to give his post-match press conference.
Mrs
Van Gaal was said to be extremely upset, which would explain the tetchy
nature of the exchanges her husband then had with the media. He is also
understood to be furious with his Old Trafford employers.
News
of Mourinho's appointment, which is expected to be confirmed on
Tuesday, was not leaked by United. But Woodward will face questions
about how Van Gaal's moment of triumph was marred by such public
humiliation.
Van Gaal (left) leaves Stockport train station on Sunday morning, the day after his side lifted the FA Cup
Mourinho (centre) previously worked with Van Gaal (left) at Barcelona when he was the Dutchman's assistant
Van Gaal was involved in some tetchy exchanges with the media after being told of his dismissal by his wife
Once
again the pressure will be on Woodward to appoint a more experienced
director of football to handle football matters while he retains control
of off-the-field business.
Van
Gaal had a meal with his coaching staff on Saturday night and will now
prepare to leave Manchester, with a future role at the club considered
extremely unlikely given his anger at the situation.
The
Dutchman and his wife had immersed themselves in life in Manchester.
They were regulars at restaurants in the Cheshire village of Hale, while
Truus had become an active member of local sports clubs.
The future of assistant Ryan Giggs (left) is unclear; he is keen to stay and work alongside Mourinho at United
Under Van Gaal, Manchester United have disappointed and it is hoped Mourinho will take them back to the top
On
Sunday night the future of Ryan Giggs was still unclear. He will be
disappointed not to have succeeded Van Gaal but club insiders believe he
wants to stay at United and hope the prospect of working with Mourinho
will keep him at Old Trafford.
The
players would like Giggs to stay, given the central role he plays. When
they have 11 v 11 practice two days before a game it is Giggs who
organises the opposing team to mirror the side United will face. He also
works directly with the players on set-pieces.
Woodward, it is understood, met Mourinho in London on Sunday with a view to confirming the appointment on Tuesday.
By
Sunday sources were providing some insight into why it was felt United
had to make a change, and not just because of their failure to qualify
for next season's Champions League.
The
relationship between Van Gaal and his players had become fractured,
with senior players exasperated as much with his failure to control the
younger professionals as they were with some of his methods.
Woodward (second left), it is understood, met Mourinho on Sunday with an appointment due on Tuesday
Manchester United's players celebrate with the FA Cup after securing an extra time victory over Palace
Requests
not to post their personal videos of the Upton Park bus attack on
social media were ignored, while there was a suspicion among some
members of the dressing room that players were pulling out of games
simply because 'they didn't fancy it', only to train the next day.
Van
Gaal's insistence on playing a more regimented style of football became
a problem for some of the flair players, with one senior pro telling
the Dutchman he intended to play his natural game because following
orders would result in him being dropped again.
David
de Gea, as revealed last week, would have asked to leave Old Trafford
had Van Gaal been allowed to remain in charge for a third season.
It is understood David de Gea (centre left) would have asked to leave if Van Gaal stayed for another season
Van Gaal (right) is understood to have lost the respect of the players, and Mourinho will shake things up
Some
of the players would certainly like Mourinho to shake things up a
little. Stories of younger professionals asking catering staff to boil
them an egg to take home is one measure of how soft the environment has
become since Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013.
The
players would also like Mourinho to challenge Woodward over commercial
demands. After they suffered that crushing 3-2 defeat at West Ham at the
end of the season, the players had to report to Old Trafford the next
morning to drive miniature Chevrolets around the car park.
Mourinho
has already identified the players he wants to sign ahead of his
arrival, with 23-year-old Sporting Lisbon midfielder Joao Mario one of
his principal targets.
