Jose Mourinho would be the "perfect" man to bring success to Manchester United and is the only coach who could challenge Manchester City's incoming manager Pep Guardiola for the Premier League, according to former Porto striker Benni McCarthy.
Mourinho remains without a job after being sacked by Chelsea in December but, amid reports his representatives held talks with United about taking over from Louis van Gaal in the future, the Portuguese tactician admitted in his first interview since leaving Stamford Bridge he is keen to return to work in England.
United have not commented on the suggestion they are interested in hiring Mourinho although Van Gaal reacted angrily when asked about the rumours following the Red Devils' 1-1 draw at Chelsea on Sunday.
But McCarthy, who won two Portuguese league titles as well as the Champions League under Mourinho at Porto, thinks the 52-year-old is the right man to succeed Van Gaal at Old Trafford.
"Mourinho is one of those people who knows how to beat Guardiola's tactics," he told BBC Sport.
"When he was at Real Madrid, he beat him a couple of times. At Inter Milan, he also had success against him.
"At the moment, I can't see anyone taking on Pep and his tactics at Manchester City.
"But Mourinho at United, he would have the resources, the players and the financial backing to beat Guardiola.
"Everywhere he has gone, he has been successful.
"The fans, the media, the people don't know what went on behind closed doors at Chelsea and what caused the problems they had when he was in charge. I certainly don't think that experience makes him a bad manager.
"The problems he has had of late seem to be due to personality clashes. When you want more from your players and they think they can't give you more, it results in a clash and players don't play to the best of their ability."
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He added: "Manchester United have a lot of young players who want to achieve things and make names for themselves. He would come in and be the perfect man for the job.
"If the players give him 100% effort and show a willingness to succeed, he could definitely get Manchester United back to being one of those powerhouses in Europe, where teams fear to go."
"I definitely think he wants that opportunity to have a long-term spell at a club, where he can build a foundation and fix things properly. When he gets that, people will see the real Mourinho we all know."
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