Jose Mourinho reckons his Manchester United team have a good chance of winning the Premier League
Mourinho has won the League title in his second full campaign in charge of Porto, Chelsea, Inter Milan, Real Madrid and Chelsea again.
And he believes he can extend the sequence with Manchester United, especially as he has confirmed he has opened talks with Ibrahimovic to re-sign for the club when last season’s 28-goal top scorer has recovered from ruptured knee ligaments.
The out-of-contract Swede is conducting his rehabilitation at United’s training camp and Mourinho said: “Zlatan showed very clearly that what he did last season was not enough for him. He wants more football at the highest level so we are having conversations and discussing the possibility of him staying for the second part of the season.”
Mourinho insists he is in a far better position to deliver the title this season because he and his players understand each other better while winning the Europa League will give his squad greater confidence.
He is also drawing encouragement from the fact all of the so-called big seven clubs will have to cope with the extra burden of being involved in European competition. Last season champions Chelsea, fourth-placed Liverpool and seventh-placed Everton were not in Europe.
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We're discussing the possibility of him staying
Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho
“It’s not because I have always done it [won the title in his second season] that I am going to do it again,” he said.
“There’s no guarantee but naturally a manager in his second season knows the club and the players better.
“We have had a better pre-season than last year and we have the confidence levels of a team that has won a European competition and returned to the Champions League.
“I have better conditions to deliver a better season than my first one.
"All the top seven are in Europe – last season three were not – so we are all in the same basket. There is no advantage for anyone.”
Mourinho knows United must improve their goal output and cannot rely purely upon £75m new boy Romelu Lukaku, who hit nine in 10 games for Everton against West Ham.
Hammers boss Slaven Bilic remains relaxed over his future as he prepares to head into the final year of his contract.
“I’ve been in football long enough to know if it doesn’t matter if your contract has one year left or five years left. I don’t get obsessed with it,” he said.
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