Jose Mourinho is being tipped to take over as the new manager of Manchester United on July 1st, according to a report in Spanish newspaper Marca.

A tweet from Sky Italian reporter Alessandro Alciato sparked a Twitter meltdown earlier this week, after he claimed Mourinho was ready to agree a deal to take over from Louis van Gaal at Old Trafford last season.

Now Marca are claiming they have verified this report, as they suggest Mourinho is not keen to take over from Van Gaal mid-way through the season and will take up the role ahead of the new season.

They also report that Ryan Giggs will again step into the void as United caretaker manager if Van Gaal is dismissed before the end of this season.

Independent.ie understands that members of the Old Trafford hierarchy remain unconvinced that Mourinho is the right man to lead the club forward, but Manchester City’s appointment of Pep Guardiola as their new head coach has applied additional pressure to their neighbours to respond with a high profile appointment of their own.

Mourinho’s camp have made it clear that their man would relish the chance to take on the job at United and there is an increasing perception that a deal for the former Chelsea boss to take over at Old Trafford is close to being agreed.

Van Gaal continues to insist he intends to remain in charge at United until the end of his contract in the summer of 2017, but there is a growing expectation that he will leave the club at some point in 2016.

It also seems increasingly likely that Mourinho will be the man replacing him.

Online Editors