Frank Lampard backs Jose Mourinho for big success at Old Trafford

By Daniel Lewis, Senior Reporter | 29 May 2016

Former Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard believes that Jose Mourinho is the perfect man to guide Manchester United back to the glory days of the past.

Chelsea legend Frank Lampard has predicted that his former boss Jose Mourinho "will have a massive effect" in terms of bringing success back to Manchester United.

The 53-year-old, who managed Lampard across two spells during his time in charge of the Blues, replaced Louis van Gaal in the Old Trafford hotseat last week.

Lampard is adamant that Mourinho was the only real candidate to take on the high-profile job, which he believes will help bring silverware back to the club following three years in the wilderness since Sir Alex Ferguson departed.

"Jose will have a massive effect at United," he told The Sun. "He knows how to get a team winning by putting his own imprint on them. His personality reflects his teams and, looking from afar, Manchester United have needed that. They had a lot of quality in their squad but not much oomph.

"He has a base there but will bring in players and he will galvanise players. Jose gives them the X Factor — he did that at Chelsea. I know it didn't end perfectly there but I can see him succeeding at United. Next season will be as competitive as it has been for a while because a lot of teams have something to prove.

"But he is a top manager and a team like United need a top manager. It's brilliant for the Premier League that Jose is back. I had a great experience with him, especially during his first spell at Chelsea because he really helped me take my career onto the next level. I know what he brings to English football."

During a 13-year managerial career, taking in spells at Porto, Chelsea, Inter Milan and Real Madrid, Mourinho has won a total of 22 major trophies.