5 reasons to believe Jose Mourinho is a changed man at Manchester United

1. True Blue to Blood Red

Mourinho pointing to the United crest after beating Chelsea

It had been 12 years since the top tier of English football was revamped and named 'The Premier League' and Manchester United had won the league a breathtaking 8 times within that period. Sir Alex's mission was clear- to knock Liverpool off their perch. And United did that and then some.

Until Mourinho's Chelsea arrived on the scene. Sir Alex had lost the 2004 title to the Arsenal Invincibles and now Chelsea, backed by the Russian billionaire, Abramovich, had won back to back titles.

Mourinho's tactical expertise, game management and ability to react quickly and effectively as the game progresses makes him one of football's greatest ever tacticians. The self-proclaimed "Special One" took the premier league by storm and Chelsea fans worshipped him.

Until a fine evening in September 2007 when he was sacked by the club following a series of disputes with the board. He went to Italy, won a historic treble with Inter Milan, went to Spain, won the league with Real Madrid and returned to Stamford Bridge in 2013. The Portuguese went on to win the league in 2014-15 and was then shown the door again halfway through the 2015-16 season; when he took Chelsea to new lows. A section of Chelsea fans even turned against Mourinho, arguably the best manager in their history.

Manchester United came knocking and Mourinho pounced on the chance to become the main man at Old Trafford. The swagger, size and drive for success of this great club matched that of Mourinho and he was relishing the pressure. The pressure that other managers feared facing and the pressure that forced the mega million superstars to underperform.

And when Mourinho, who was at the bottom-most point of his career accepted the invitation with open arms, United fans knew that he was their special one now. Furthermore, when United beat Chelsea 2-0 at Old Trafford, after the final whistle he repeatedly pointed to the United badge on his tracksuit.

And Mourinho says he did that to show his loyalty is now completely with United. He said, “I come with the tracksuit, which normally I don’t do. I did it because it was Chelsea and I wanted to make clear I’m not Chelsea anymore. Chelsea is in my history, I’m in Chelsea’s history, I have huge respect for the fans, they gave me so much, but I’m not Chelsea anymore. So I came with the tracksuit because it has the badge and I could show everyone my feelings.Yes, it was calculated beforehand. I did it because I wanted to finish with my connection to Chelsea. It was just about the history."

There is no question now that Mourinho's loyalties now lie with the Red Devils. Under him, United have finally found the man who can lead them back to domestic glory in the coming years and perhaps trigger another era of supremity, although the Premier League is becoming tougher with each passing season.

Mourinho and Manchester could turn out to be a match made in heaven and the Portuguese is likely to stamp his mark in United's illustrious history as Manchester United try to win back the title that has eluded them for four years. But one thing is certain: Manchester United is slowly changing Jose Mourinho.