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Carlo Ancelotti believes Jose Mourinho can make an immediate impact at Manchester United and quickly restore the club to the top of English football. Mourinho is expected to sign a deal to succeed Louis van Gaal by Thursday and will be tasked with lifting the 13-time Premier League champions after their fifth-place finish last season.Saturdays FA Cup win over Crystal Palace was Uniteds first silverware in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era, but Mourinhos targets will be much higher and Ancelotti, who is to succeed Pep Guardiola as Bayern Munich manager this summer, says Mourinho to Old Trafford is a good fit for both parties. James Cooper is at Old Trafford and has the latest on Manchester Uniteds negotiations with Jose Mourhinos representatives Mourinhos biggest job? Why Jose Mourinho might be taking his toughest managerial project yet at Man Utd. It is a fantastic challenge for both sides, he told Sky Sports News HQ. Mourinho is one of the best managers in the world. He has good experience of the Premier League and Manchester United needs this kind of manager.Ancelotti is looking forward to watching the next chapter of the Mourinho-Guardiola rivalry from Germany after the pair clashed during their time at Real Madrid and Barcelona respectively.It will be exciting to have two of the best managers in Manchester, he added. It will be fantastic. It will be exciting. Mourinho mythbusting Is Jose Mourinho really a defensive coach who doesnt trust youth? Louis van Gaal celebrates after winning The FA Cup Final on Saturday Ancelotti had words of support for Van Gaal, saying the Dutchman was still having to deal with the loss of both Ferguson and several senior players. Van Gaals job was not bad, he added. It was not easy after Ferguson left and top players like [Rio] Ferdinand, [Paul] Scholes and [Ryan] Giggs to rebuild the team. He did a good job, but Mourinho and United could be good for both. Also See: Mourinhos biggest job? Jose to Utd in 48 hours Giggs to be offered new role Van Gaals reign in quotes . The attacking midfielder arrives on a free transfer from Spains Malaga. The 28-year-old joins Scottish striker Kenny Miller and Argentine midfielder Matias Laba as designated players on the Whitecaps roster. . The Vancouver coach and an announced sellout crowd of 18,910 watched in dismay as the Canucks lost 7-4 to the New York Islanders on Monday night by squandering a 3-0 lead in the third period. . CHAUNCEY BILLUPS (Pistons): Yes they got Josh Smith and Brandon Jennings in the off-season and Andre Drummond is a beast (teams are kicking themselves for passing on him - he rebounds and block shots every game - thats two more discernable and significant skills than most guys in his draft class), but dont for a second discount the impact of having a savvy veteran like Billups on your team. . The redshirt freshman finished the regular season with nearly 3,500 passing yards, and 35 touchdowns with another three on the ground while leading the Seminoles to the top of the BCS Rankings. . Despite 11-1 records, theyre out and Big Ten winner Ohio State is into the national semifinals.PARIS -- The closest thing to intrigue or drama involving Rafael Nadal on Saturday came after his 31st consecutive French Open victory concluded. Thats when the eight-time champion revealed that a painful back is slowing his serves -- and, all in all, giving him more trouble than his opponents so far. For now, leave the on-court theatrics to others. Wimbledon champion Andy Murray, for example, was clutching at aching hamstrings while being taken to 7-all in the fifth set by No. 28 Philipp Kohlschreiber before their third-round match was suspended for fading light. No. 23 Gael Monfils acknowledged tanking a set en route to a 5-7, 6-2, 6-4, 0-6, 6-2 victory over No. 14 Fabio Fognini, who was docked a point for chucking his racket near a ball boy. "They make a good show for the crowd," Nadal said. "Long match. Crowd involved. Good for tennis." Well, aside from the fact that Monfils and Fognini combined for more than twice as many unforced errors, 137, as winners, 66. Nadals play was much, much cleaner: During the entire course of his 6-2, 7-5, 6-2 win against 65th-ranked Leonardo Mayer of Argentina, the No. 1-seeded Spaniard made 10 unforced errors -- two in the first set, three in the second, five in the third. Hes dropped a total of 19 games through three matches. More worrisome would be his back, which also acted up in January during a loss to Stan Wawrinka in the Australian Open final. "During my career, I had (a) few problems. ... Hopefully will not be (the) case" the rest of the way in Paris, Nadal said. Against Mayer, Nadal averaged only 102 mph (165 kph) on first serves, with a top speed of 114 mph (184 kph). That was down from an average of 111 mph (179 kph) and top of 122 mph (197 kph) in the first round last Monday. Through two matches, Nadal faced five break points and lost serve twice. He dealt with eight break points Saturday, losing two. The last time Nadal won 31 matches in a row in Paris, he failed to get No. 32, losing in the fourth round in 2009 to Robin Soderling -- a defeat that later was blamed, in part, on injured knees. That remains the Spaniards lone setback in 63 matches at the tournament. Next for Nadal is 83rd-ranked Dusan Lajovic of Serbia, who beat Jack Sock of the United States 6-4, 7-5, 6-3.dddddddddddd Another American, Donald Young, lost in five sets to Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain, leaving No. 10 John Isner as the last U.S. man. Before this French Open, Lajovic had a 10-21 career record in tour-level matches, never winning two in a row. "I saw him play a few times on TV. Sure, its great to have new players on tour, young players on the tour that are coming strong. Hopefully not too strong," Nadal said with a smile. "Well see on Monday. I hope to be ready." Asked whether he would seek advice from another Serbian, No. 2 Novak Djokovic, before facing Nadal, Lajovic joked: "Yeah, I will try to ask everybody (for) some tips." That wont help if Nadal produces shots of the sort he did when Mayer served at 5-all in the second set -- a stretching, scooping backhand lob to break. As Mayer watched the shot sail overhead, he waved his left hand to signal to the ball to go out, then rolled his eyes when it curled in. Nadal pumped his fist, ahead 6-5 and on his way to reaching the fourth round for the 10th time in 10 French Opens. Monfils will take on Garcia-Lopez for a quarterfinal berth. Whoever emerges from Murray-Kohlschreiber meets the winner of another suspended match scheduled to resume Sunday: No. 24 Fernando Verdasco led No. 12 Richard Gasquet 6-3, 6-2, 2-2. Womens fourth-round matchups set up Saturday were No. 4 Simona Halep against No. 15 Sloane Stephens, 2009 champion Svetlana Kuznetsova against Lucie Safavora, 2012 runner-up Sara Errani against Jelena Jankovic, and Andrea Petkovic against 148th-ranked qualifier Kiki Bertens of the Netherlands. As the sun came out and the temperature topped 70 degrees (20 Celsius) after several days of overcast skies and occasional rain, Stephens eliminated No. 22 Ekaterina Makarova of Russia 6-3, 6-4, while Halep beat 55th-ranked Maria-Teresa Torro-Flor of Spain 6-3, 6-0. Halep is the highest seeded woman left, following losses by No. 1 Serena Williams, No. 2 Li Na and No. 3 Agnieszka Radwanska. Said Halep: "Thats a surprise for everyone." ' ' '
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