Manchester United fans got an early Christmas present this week.
On Tuesday, Father Christmas came down the chimney at Carrington and sacked Jose Mourinho.
It seemed inevitable that Jose wouldn’t last this season.
After 17 Premier League games, his United was 19 points behind league leaders Liverpool, who had given his team a meisie pak last Sunday.
It also left the Red Devils 11 points off the top four - a gap his bosses thought would have been too far for him to make up to land that Champions League spot, especially since drawing Paris St Germain in this season’s last 16 must have seemed like they were as good as gone.
United looked directionless since the start of the season.
After guiding the team to a second-placed finish at the end of the last campaign, Mourinho was asking for more money to build on the £400m he had already spent on players.
With Jose earmarking defenders, his bosses figured that he had spent enough in defence already since his arrival - £30m each on the likes of Victor Lindelof and Eric Bailly.
Now in this case, the boss must have been told to coach these players. He is Jose Mourinho after all - the high priest of parking the bus.
But his United defence was a joke, conceding 29 goals - only four teams in the division have a leakier defence.
And he already had the likes of Chris Smalling and Phil Jones there.
DISCARDED: Top earner Alexis Sanchez
Jose hardly turned to any of Manchester United's youngsters - youth being such a cornerstone of the club.
However, the Special One was never known as a coach or man who develops players. He is an organiser and motivator. And at United, he couldn’t organise or motivate.
Think of all the talent he had available to him. Alexis Sanchez, Paul Pogba, Antonio Valencia, Nemanja Matic and Juan Mata.
In Valencia, he had the club captain and a consistent performer who patrols the right flank, with the ability to attack and defend.
Then Matic is his defensive shield with the discipline to break up attacks and sensible distribution.
Mata is a playmaker on the same level as Man City’s David Silva and Alexis is a threat with his directness and hunger for goals.
And best of all, none of these guys were at the World Cup and could get the season up and running quickly.
Then there is Pogba. One of the stars of France’s triumph in Russia. But as soon as the midfielder lifted the cup, Jose was already criticising him.
SCAPEGOAT: World Cup-winning record signing Paul Pogba
No wonder he never wanted to come back and join up with such a miserable coach.
Pogba was pretty much the scapegoat of everything that went wrong for Mourinho.
He wasn’t the only one, though. Anthony Martial, Valencia, Sanchez and Mata all been linked with moves away.
But Jose beat them out of the door.
And he only has himself to blame for that. Not Pogba, not Alexis, not Martial. And not even CEO Ed Woodward.
Forget the tactics for a second, all-season-long the players have just looked like they had ran out of damns to give.
And like I said in this column two weeks ago, I was surprised that while the players seemed to be revolting against Jose, not one fan protest happened at the club.
There was no rage from the supporters. United fans didn’t raise a voice against what was happening at their club.
Instead, they went quiet. They hou’d their usually-grootbekke and watched as Jose ran the show like a spoilt teenager with divorced parents. At Real Madrid, the fans chased him weg.
When last did you even see a Manchester United jersey here in Cape Town?
After Sunday’s pak, one United fan who had the guts to wear his colours had to congratulate my Liverpool-supporting colleague for the demolition of his club at Anfield.
And he even threw in some well wishes for the rest of the season and wished that the Kopites win the league.
It’s definitely strange times. Jose Mourinho has humbled Manchester United. Can you believe that this mob don’t come rushing at you anymore?
They are seker all Pep Guardiola fans now.
Anyway, Red Devils fans, when the end of the season comes and you guys get a new permanent coach, maybe then we’ll hear from you guys again.
Until then, remember this: Jose Mourinho leaving your club is best Christmas present you could have hoped for.
And please stay humble. There was and will never be a divine right to success. Just ask Jose Mourinho.