Manchester United should appoint Jose Mourinho over Ryan Giggs, Stan Collymore says

The ex-footballer turned pundit says United should turn to Mourinho and not Giggs if they decide to sack Van Gaal

(2014 Getty Images)

Former Liverpool and Aston Villa striker Stan Collymore has called upon Manchester United to overlook Ryan Giggs and hire Jose Mourinho as Louis van Gaal’s replacement when the Dutchman leaves his post.

The Red Devils are 10 points adrift of Premier League leaders Leicester City, and five short of fourth-placed Tottenham Hotspur, after being knocked out of both the Champions League and the Capital One Cup at early stages.

With Van Gaal’s position looking tenuous, assistant manager Giggs and former Chelsea boss Mourinho are among the favourites to replace the 64-year-old at Old Trafford if the United hierarchy decided to relieve him of his duties.

Writing in his column for the Daily Mirror, Collymore said: “Like Ryan Giggs, Pep Guardiola was a legend at his club Barcelona with aspirations to go into management.

“But just because Guardiola went on to achieve special things at Barcelona does not automatically mean Giggs will do the same at Manchester United.

“Guardiola is one of the most obsessive men you will ever meet in his craft and he has an ability to verbalise his exact thoughts.

“Giggs, on the other hand, is quite shy, and sometimes I look at his eyes and wonder what’s going on behind them.

“When we were players, there was nothing about him which made me think he’d make a great manager one day, and even though many believe he will succeed the beleaguered Louis van Gaal when time is ­eventually called on his troubled reign, I haven’t seen anything to change my mind.”

Collymore raised questions over Giggs’s suitability for the post, instead suggesting the Welshman wait for a position to become available elsewhere before taking the job at Old Trafford.

Ex-footballer turned pundit Stan Collymore (Getty Images)

He continued: “Giggs doesn’t look like a guy who is particularly proactive towards Van Gaal, in terms of his words and actions.

“And making him the United manager at this stage of his ­career could be an horrific move in terms of ­destroying the ­legacy of an Old Trafford great.

“Like his mate Gary Neville has done, Giggs needs to go off and do the knowledge away from the shadow of the Theatre of Dreams and, should success ­follow then, and only then, would his appointment be worth the risk.

“United have to pounce while Mourinho is out of work.”