Jose Mourinho has been made a heavy 2/5 favourite to take over as Manchester United manager by betting company William Hill.
The former Chelsea boss has been out of a job for two months now having been sacked shortly before Christmas after starting the season with nine defeats from 16 matches.
The reigning champions were more fragile than they have ever been with defeats coming at Stamford Bridge to Liverpool, Southampton, Bournemouth and Crystal Palace.
However, that has not stopped the rumours from circulating as William Hill have placed his appointment as likelier than evens.
Following United’s 1-1 draw with the Blues on Sunday, Louis van Gaal lost his cool when asked by a reporter as to whether he feels more secure in his position in light of the quality of his side’s recent performances.
The bookies’ stance on this question appears to be no.
United were 1-0 up thanks to Jesse Lingard’s stunning second-half strike, but the home side snatched a late point thanks to Diego Costa’s injury-time equaliser, and the bookmakers believe it is clear what the next big change at Old Trafford will be.
“With Jose waiting in the wings the pressure on Louis van Gaal is certain to build,” said William Hill spokesman Rupert Adams.
William Hill have placed Mourinho as 2/5 favourite to take over from Van Gaal while Ryan Giggs is next down the list at 3/1, just ahead of Mauricio Pochettino, Diego Simeone and Fabio Capello at 12/1.
Stoke City boss Mark Hughes, at 20/1, is only on narrowly shorter odds of taking the Red Devils job than Gary Neville, who is yet to win a La Liga game in nine attempts and saw his Valencia team defeated by Real Betis 1-0 this weekend. A bet placed on the ex-Red Devils right-back returns at 25/1.
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