Is the clock ticking on Mourinho's Manchester United reign?

We may have witnessed the beginning of the end of Jose Mourinho’s reign as a Premier League A-lister over the last month, with 2018 increasingly likely feature his departure as Manchester United manager.

A 2-2 draw against Burnley on Boxing Day was the latest blow for a manager whose image is being dented with each passing week, with Manchester City’s dominant lead at the top of the Premier League table something of a humiliation for a manager who has prided himself on trophy success throughout his magnificent career.

Yet Mourinho’s past glories will not help him unless he finds a way to revive a flagging United dream that has been on the rocks long before a month that is likely to have turned some wavering fans against him.

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The damage caused by United’s limp performance in their 2-1 home defeat against Manchester City left a lasting scar, with the 2-2 draw against Leicester last Saturday another blow to Mourinho’s approval-rating among United fans.

There were rumours earlier this year that Old Trafford chiefs were preparing to hand Mourinho a long-term contract to cement his status as the club’s king-maker, but that deal has yet to be presented, with his very public comments hinting he may be interesting in becoming Paris Saint-Germain last month unlikely to have been appreciated by his current paymasters.

If Jose’s curious mutterings were designed to generate a new contract for him at United, those ambitions have backfired, with his side’s dip in form over recent weeks and strong reservations from the club’s fans over the defensive-minded tactics he insists upon.

In so many ways, the events of December 2017 have re-enforced the reservations United fans had over Mourinho when he arrived at their club, with many now publicly questioning whether they want him to continue as their manager beyond this season for the first time.

Mourinho had the first blot on his C.V. when he was ousted as Chelsea manager in December 2015, with the manner of his demise – as players turned against him en-mass for the first time in his career – leaving a lasting bruise that had barely healed by the time he landed the job he always wanted at United.

This seemed to be the ultimate stage for Mourinho to mount his grand comeback, with the appointment of his old foe Pep Guardiola at Manchester City likely to fuel his enthusiasm to confirm his winning qualities all over again.

Surely this was the opportunity that would bring the devilment back into Mourinho? This is the dream post that would fire his burners and reignite his enthusiasm among a football family that used to begrudgingly respect his tactical acumen, whit and winning smile.

Mourinho initially promised to shed his tag as promoter of negative, defensive tactics, as he vowed to embrace United’s attacking traditions – and yet most of the hopes the club had when they hired one of the world’s most successful managers have now been chipped away.

The smiling, brash Mourinho who enchanted the Premier League when he first arrived at Chelsea back in 2004 has not re-emerged at Old Trafford, with the surly, grumpy, rude version, who was ousted from Chelsea, has remained in place in Manchester.

Public dressing-downs for his players, battles with match officials, claims of conspiracies being mounted against him by the Premier League fixture-makers have all be heard before from Mourinho, but the expectation was that he would change his ways when he donned the United blazer.

Writing off one of the game’s most successful managers of all-time is a dangerous game, but it seems like the fire that once gave Mourinho his ‘special’ quality is no longer flickering inside him, and while there may have been hope that Mourinho could change his ways at United, this maverick will not change for anyone.

That may be one of many reasons why Mourinho and Manchester United are not suitable bedfellows after all.