Time for Jose Mourinho to lead Manchester United clear-out starting with raid for quartet

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Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho inherited a squad that had struggled in recent seasons, yet slowly but surely he’ll transform it into his own.

It’s been an underwhelming start to the campaign for United, as they sit in sixth place after 11 games, six points adrift of the top four and a further two off Premier League leaders Liverpool.

That comes after a busy summer transfer market in which Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Paul Pogba, Eric Bailly and Henrikh Mkhitaryan arrived, and yet it still doesn’t seem as though Mourinho is anywhere near content.

Similarly to his second spell at Chelsea, it appears as though the Portuguese tactician is no longer keen to deflect attention away from his players and soak up the pressure and criticism himself.

He has publicly slammed some individuals, with the latest being his critical view on the likes of Chris Smalling and Luke Shaw not showing enough courage by playing through the pain barrier in their trip to Swansea City prior to the international break.

It’s evident that Mourinho isn’t happy with the options currently at his disposal, and so over the course of January and next summer, plenty more movement is expected at Old Trafford as he may show a more ruthless side to his management.

As reported by The Daily Mail, in reference to the front cover of Monday’s Corriere dello Sport, his former club Inter are ready to offer him a chance to offload four players that are seemingly surplus to requirements in Daley Blind, Chris Smalling, Memphis Depay and Matteo Darmian.

Not only will their exits raise further funds, but it will create space in the squad for Mourinho to bring in players that he wants at his disposal.

If he doesn’t believe that these players can take his team forward, then now’s the time to act and get them out the exit door and continue to build his own squad.

Patience and time are rare in football these days, and every club from top to bottom including supporters are desperate for immediate results and success.

However, it feels as though Mourinho is going to be given a little longer than most to get things right, and his work in the transfer windows will now be key as to whether his time in Manchester is a success.

The ‘Special One’ isn’t looking particularly special right now and hasn’t done for a while, but it remains to be seen if he can turn things around and get United back on the right track by rebuilding a squad that still lacks quality across the board.

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