With the news that Alex Ferguson will retire from his position as manager speculation immediately turns to who will follow the Scot and the bookies and press pack are all looking at two faces in particular; Jose Mourinho and David Moyes.

The odds on David Moyes were cut drastically on Tuesday, as large wagers were placed on the Everton man coming in to replace his compatriot. However, Jose Mourinho remains the favourite as he steadily makes his way out of the Bernabeu and heads, by all accounts, north to the comforts of the Premier League. Reports, and Mourinho’s own words of late, had heavily suggested Mourinho would return to Chelsea. However, there is cause to suspect Ferguson – who has always greatly admired the Real Madrid manager – may have made the decision to leave United as now would be the opportunity to get Mourinho into the Old Trafford hot seat as his successor.

Mourinho had seemed an almost sure bet to return to the Chelsea dugout, a suspicion most recently bolstered by the words of current Chelsea interim-manager Rafa Benitez, who yesterday said when asked if he knew who would be the next Chelsea manager said, "I think everybody knows who will be here."

If the bookmakers odds are a fair guide it appears we can forget about everyone outside of Mourinho and Moyes, with Borussia Dortmund boss Jurgen Klopp coming in a distant third at 14/1 and Ferguson’s current assistant, Mike Phelan, at 16/1.

Former United players Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Ryan Giggs, Gary Neville and Laurent Blanc are also considered outside shots, priced 20/1, 20/1, 40/1 and 50/1 respectively.

Ladbrokes odds on next Manchester United manager