Feature – Manchester United and Jose Mourinho clung on to the past, they are better off apart

It had been a long time coming. So much so, that when news broke of Jose Mourinho's dismissal on Tuesday morning, it actually came as a surprise.

Mourinho had survived the Monday after Sunday's loss to Liverpool, meaning there was every reason to believe he would soldier on, while news of the reported £24m it would cost to sack him made it seem all the more likely he would last until the New Year at least - particularly with games against Cardiff, Huddersfield, Bournemouth and Newcastle on the horizon.

But the trigger was pulled, Mourinho departed, shares soared, journalists typed, pundits reacted, and social media posts were, well, ‘accidentally scheduled’.

The Tuesday dismissal meant there was no poetic ending to this story, three years to the day since Chelsea showed him the door, and now we must settle for the narrative that it was in fact three years and one day after his Stamford Bridge departure that he waved goodbye to Old Trafford.

The break-up, for now, seems amicable. Perhaps because both parties knew the relationship had stagnated, the magic had gone, and had been seemingly heading for disaster for more than 12 months.

Together, United and Mourinho clung onto the past.

The club held on to the hope that another dynasty would follow Sir Alex Ferguson’s golden 27-year reign. It was evident in their delayed sacking of David Moyes, and this stubbornness persisted through a sheer desire to prove that constant changes in management would prove detrimental to the club.

Mourinho, meanwhile, reminded supporters and the media of his past glories with numerous three-fingered salutes, highlighting his three Premier Leagues with Chelsea, while United's Champions League exit to Sevilla last season resulted in the Portuguese boasting of the times he himself had sent the club crashing out of Europe.

But at least one party seems to be moving forward. In sacking Mourinho, United have finally conceded their mistake, and their decision to hire an interim manager until the end of the season shows they know a structural overhaul is needed at the club.

In the coming weeks, talk of a director of football at Old Trafford could even exceed musings regarding their next permanent manager. It is the logical next step for United, and an interim allows for this process to progress without hiccup or interference.

The next manager, for 2019-20, will likely be the final piece of the puzzle. When Unai Emery replaced Arsene Wenger at Arsenal, he arrived after Raul Sanllehi was appointed director of football and Sven Mislintat the head of recruitment. Now United have the time to follow suit and re-model the club.

And then you have Mourinho, so often labelled yesterday’s man, and made to look even more out-of-date when Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp arrived in England. His spell at United may have delivered two trophies, but it was outweighed by flat Old Trafford displays, public spats with players, and failures in the transfer window – the latter, of course, was not entirely his fault.

The bare reality of Mourinho’s stint at United was that the boot never really fit, and now a question mark hangs over his credentials.

He may be pure box-office for the media, but Mourinho will come with a hazard warning should the next struggling European giant look in his direction, and if he does not embrace – at least to an extent – the idea that clubs are pursuing head coaches over managers, then he could find himself jobless for some time.

There’s always international management – Portugal boss Fernando Santos is 64 after all – but there is still a place in club football for Mourinho, should the 55-year-old want to adapt.

Mourinho will now have time to introspection before pondering his next move. Football needs him more than he needs football, so he would be wise to take his time. It is anyone’s guess where he’ll pop up next.