London, Jan 31 (IANS): Former France star striker and Arsenal legend Thierry Henry on Sunday urged English football heavyweights Manchester United to replace head coach Louis van Gaal with Jose Mourinho.

The Red Devils are currently fifth on the English Premier League (EPL) points table, 10 points adrift of leaders Leicester City and Henry believes Mourinho can drastically improve the performance of the club if he takes over.

"The club is crying out for success and Mourinho guarantees that, in spite of everything that happened at Chelsea this season," Henry was quoted as saying by the Daily Star.

"He is still an amazing coach and United have got to do something because it is simply not working for Louis van Gaal."

Henry added that if arch-rivals Manchester City rope in Pep Guardiola and Chelsea land Diego Simeone or Jorge Sampaoli, United just cannot sit back and carry on the way they have been doing.

"If Manchester City get Pep Guardiola and Diego Simeone or Jorge Sampaoli go to Chelsea, which is possible this summer, United have to react. They can’t just carry on as they are,” he said.

“Some fans want Van Gaal out immediately and they are the people who will ultimately decide his fate. No one can question van Gaal’s pedigree as a coach. But he has failed to get his message across at United and the players don’t know what is expected of them.”