Former Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho has been upfront about the challenges he encountered during his two years leading the squad. He said that he found it difficult to communicate directly with the Glazer family and that he felt like a “fish out of water” in his first year as head coach.

However, Mourinho believes that improvements will come from the modifications to the current structure being made by new investor Sir Jim Ratcliffe, such as the addition of Omar Berrada.

In 2013, when both Sir Alex Ferguson, the manager, and David Gill, the chief executive, decided to depart, United found itself with two enormous holes to fill at a time when the major football clubs’ operating models were changing anyhow.

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Woodward’s professional background was in business and finance, therefore he had trouble understanding the nuances of football.

In 2018, a few months after the Old Trafford administration had failed to bring in Mourinho’s top transfer targets, his tenure came to an almost sudden conclusion.

Mourinho defended his former boss, saying, “When people criticise Ed Woodward’s job, I don’t like it because, for me, he is a good man,” on Rio Ferdinand Presents FIVE.

“He was just a dude, who wasn’t quite a fish out of water. He was really correct, courteous, and intelligent, but he was most likely unprepared for the sporting side of things.

“It was challenging for a coach not to have direct communication with the ownership,” Mourinho continued. It was also challenging for a coach to not have a framework that adheres to the same values and concepts, which was challenging and had repercussions on several fronts.

Richard Arnold, a group managing director with expertise in the business’s commercial side who succeeded Woodward as chief executive until his own exit from Old Trafford last year, was similarly commended by Mourinho despite his problems. Even yet, Arnold was not a “football man,” despite being “a proper guy with a good understanding of what sport is.”

Mourinho is now hopeful that Ratcliffe, who has already made money from other sports ventures, will lead the team to more success than it ever had.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe is someone I know. I have a very strong feeling about him and we had a great relationship years ago. I know him very well. I think it’s really important that a kid loves sports and is a sportsman,” Mourinho added.

“He has knowledge from past encounters, smaller groups, different sports, and riding. I hope that things will go in the correct direction because I have a good feeling about them.”

In the interview, Mourinho also refuted rumors that have been circulating that he wants to rejoin United because he feels he has “unfinished business” there.