A club official told Reuters they would be making no response to the story in Spanish newspaper El Pais which cited sources close to former Chelsea manager Mourinho.

The Portuguese, who also managed Real Madrid and Inter Milan, has been persistently linked in the media with the Old Trafford job since departing Stamford Bridge for the second time in December.

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United, who are sixth in the Premier League, face fourth-placed Manchester City later on Sunday needing a result to boost their chances of qualifying for the Champions League.

Under the terms of the agreement - which was apparently agreed back in February - El Pais reported that United would have to pay Mourinho £5 million if they did not offer him a full contract by May 1 and another £10 million if they failed to give him the job by June 1.

Van Gaal signed a three-year contract in May 2014 but is not expected to see out the deal with fans unhappy with the style of play and poor results.

The report, which cited a source with links to the company run by Mourinho's agent Jorge Mendes, said United wanted a flexible deal because of a split in the Old Trafford board as to whether the 53-year-old was the right choice for the club.

OUR VIEW

It'd be the easiest thing in the world to deny that there is anything in this story, and United have denied speculation in the past. So this non-denial will be taken as a confirmation by fans; depending on how Sunday's Manchester derby goes, it might get a proper confirmation sooner rather than later.

Two other things make us think that the original story has to be true, incidentally. Firstly, El Pais is far and away the most reputable newspaper in Spain, and rarely touches the rampant speculation about transfers and managers that the likes of Marca and Sport trade in. Secondly, this all sounds such a bizarre set-up that it's hard to imagine how it could have been invented. The odd situation is apparently down to Bobby Charlton and Alex Ferguson being unsure about Mourinho being the right man for Old Trafford.

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