Manchester United are set to appoint Jose Mourinho as their new manage. It is believed a deal with the 53-year-old Portuguese was agreed in principle before United’s FA Cup final win against Crystal Palace. 

The Portuguese manager, who left Chelsea under a cloud in December last year, turned down an offer from Paris Saint-Germain in the hope that United would come calling – and negotiations took place in the last few days after United had missed out on fourth place in the Premier League and therefore a Champions League berth. Mourinho has already agreed a salary and has discussed possible transfer targets with the club and is likely to be presented as United’s new manager once his agent, Jorge Mendes, has finalised the finer details of the contract.

Van Gaal leaves United after two seasons in charge. United finished fourth in the league in his first campaign and won the FA Cup but went out in the group stage of the Champions League and were then eliminated by Liverpool in the Europa League. United’s plan had always been to keep Van Gaal in the job for three years before handing over to someone younger, such as Ryan Giggs. But the lack of progress on the pitch and the fact that many of the club’s new signings failed to improve the team meant that the club decided to end the deal with one year remaining.