Report: Jose Mourinho 'Increasingly Baffled' by Manchester United's 58 Scouts

Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho has reportedly been left "increasingly baffled" by the club's restructuring of their scouting department, which is now comprised of 58 scouts. 

According to the Daily Mail's Jack Gaughan, United have been increasing their number of scouts over the last three years, but it is a source of "major concern" for Mourinho, as he would prefer "a more streamlined operation."

The Red Devils have brought in new faces in a bid to "modernise" the club since the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson, who relied on a "small circle of scouts and contacts," but Mourinho feels the system now in place is inefficient.

It's said that Mourinho knows little about what many of the club's scouts do, save for chief scouts Marcel Bout and Jim Lawlor, with whom he is in contact.

The manager is unhappy with the club's inability to deliver his top transfer targets and is worried they'll continue to fail moving forward, with those fears linked to his ongoing concerns regarding the scouting department.

In the summer, football writer James Horncastle told BBC 5 Live Sport the Red Devils don't make enough use of their network as it is:

If that is the case, it makes even less sense for there to be such a large number of talent spotters.

Bleacher Report's Rob Blanchette recently called for the club to address and improve the recruiting systems they have in place:

According to Gaughan, Mourinho feels Borussia Dortmund—who have a transfer committee making the recruitment decisions—are an example to follow.

A disappointing season so far has left United seventh in the Premier League, eight points off the top four and 16 points behind leaders Manchester City.

Mourinho's failure to get the best out of the players available to him is a significant contributing factor, but it's clear there is much behind the scenes at Old Trafford that is not working as well as it could be, and that too has had a knock-on effect on the team's ability to deliver success on the pitch.

United have spent almost £400 million on transfers in Mourinho's tenure alone, but despite that they are being left behind by their rivals this season, so it's clear their recruitment should be a big cause for concern.

The coach could and should be getting more out of those he has, but until the Red Devils are capable of bringing in the right players to improve the team's performances and results, their struggles will only continue.