Posts Tagged ‘Jose Mourinho’
Spurs Balls: Manchester United’s Paul Pogba rattles Jose Mourinho
Spurs manager Jose Mourinho says he “couldn’t care less” about what Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba says about him. Mourinho cares so little about it that he’s told the media how little he cares.
Mourinho managed Pogba a t United before he was sacked in 2018. Pogba opined that current United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer “wouldn’t go against the players” like former manager Jose Mourinho.
“I would like to say that I couldn’t care less with what he says,” says Mourinho. “I am not interested at all.”
As George Carlin put it: No comment is still a comment.”
Posted: 17th, April 2021 | In: manchester united, Sports, Spurs | Comment
Specialist in failure Jose Mourinho bleeds Spurs dry
Spurs were abject in their defeat to Dinamo Zagreb in the Europa League. But do not blame the coach Jose Mourinho. He is after all (it says here) a born winner and not a “specialist in failure”, a bitchy comment he aimed at former Arsenal great Arsene Wenger
“To say that I feel sad is not enough, because what I feel goes further than sadness,” he said. “I feel sorry that one team that is not my team won the game based on attitude. I believe that for every Tottenham fan at home, every match matters. I can only apologise to Tottenham’s supporters and I hope the players feel the same way I do. Football is not about players who think they have more quality than others. The basis of football is attitude and they beat us on that. At half-time I told them the risk of playing the way they were playing.”
And players who would run through walls for Mauricio Pochettino, the man Mourinho replaced, didn’t respond.
Jose Mourinho rewrites Chelsea history; Petr Cech and me
News that Arsenal goalkeeper Petr Cech is to retire at the season’s end is exciting the mouth of Jose Mourinho, who managed the goalkeeper when they were both at Chelsea. Talking to beIN Sports about life at Manchester United before he was sacked and more, thoughts turn to Cech.
“When I arrived in Chelsea, he was a kid, only 20 years old. The goalkeeper was Carlo Cudicini – the season before he was elected the player of the season – and the first game of the season was Chelsea against Manchester United and I decided to leave out our player of the season before, and play a kid that nobody would know how to even say his name because Petr Cech was quite difficult to say. After that everything was about him. My influence was zero.”
Really?
On 2 June 2004, Mourinho moved to Chelsea on a three-year contract. Chelsea bid for Cech (born 20 May 1982) on 7 January 2004 – when Claudio Ranieri was Chelsea manager. Real Madrid and Inter Milan were also interested in him thanks to, as the BBC put it, “some stirring performances for his club and country over the past 18 months”. Cech was in goal for the Czech Republic team that reached the semi-finals of Euro 2004. Chelsea got their man in February for £7 million. Cech signed a five-year contract, to commence in July 2004. He was 22. Cech competed for a first-team place at Stamford Bridge with Cudicini, Marco Ambrosio, Jurgen Macho and Neil Sullivan.
The Chelsea player of the season the year before Cech arrived was Gianfranco Zola.
Mourinho did not decide to leave out Cudicini. The Italian was injured. Sky Sports reported:
Czech Republic international Petr Cech was satisfied to keep a clean sheet on his competitive Chelsea debut. Cech was given the nod by Jose Mourinho to start Sunday’s Premiership meeting with Manchester United and he repaid his manager by shutting out the opposition. The summer signing had relatively little to do between the posts and is hoping to retain his spot ahead of Carlo Cudicini.
But after all that Mourinho says his influence was “zero”. Claudio Ranieri is away.
Posted: 18th, January 2019 | In: Arsenal, Chelsea, Sports | Comment
What Jose’s hotel cost Manchester United in rent
Freshly sacked by Manchester United, surly Jose Mourinho is back living at his London home. The Riverside Suite at Manchester’s Lowry Hotel, where he stayed since July 2016, is available to any new manager unwilling to commit to living in the city. But what was the bill for Mourinho’s stay?
The Sun: “Jose Mourinho hotel: Inside the exclusive Lowry where axed Man Utd manager lived for 895 days and spent £779,000 on rent.”
The Mail: “Jose Mourinho finally checks out of the Lowry Hotel… after 895 days and an astonishing £537,000 bill.” Although the Mail also notes: “What’s so special about the Special One’s £600,000 hotel suite? That’s the bill Jose Mourinho ran up in nearly three years.” Are we including tips?
Does the Lowry charge the Sun’s holidaymakers more than Mail guests? But the bill could have been higher. In January 2018, 442 magazine told us: “If Mourinho stays at the Lowry until July 1 2021, it will have cost him £1,489,200.” That figure is based on the rooms costing £816-a-night. But the Guardian can get the same digs for £600-a-night.
It pays to shop around.
Posted: 31st, December 2018 | In: Back pages, manchester united, Money, News, Sports | Comment
Manchester United fans in Mourinho Instagram time warp
Manchester United manger Jose Mourinho was so upset following his side’s defeat to Chelsea in the FA Cup final that he deleted his Instagram account. Well, so say the papers. The Daily Mirror reports: “Jose Mourinho ‘deletes’ Instagram after abusive comments as Man United lose FA Cup final against Chelsea’.” The Sun says Jose “has deleted his Instagram account after copping a load of online abuse following yesterday’s FA Cup final defeat”.
And more: “Jose Mourinho deleted Instagram account after Man United’s FA Cup final defeat” – Irish Independent
Pesky fact: Jose Mourinho deleted his Instagram account on the Thursday BEFORE the Cup Final.
Posted: 21st, May 2018 | In: Back pages, manchester united, Sports | Comment
Joe Mourinho admits something is wrong with De Gea at Manchester United
How are things progressing for Manchester United with Jose Mourinho in charge? Pretty good. Second in the table, albeit a mile behind Manchester City, and in the final of the FA Cup, United are competitive. Mourinho will have been two years in the job this May 27. Has progress been made under his pragmatic methods?
This is what Jose said in January 6 2017:
“I think when a goalkeeper is a player of the season, it’s because something is wrong. Of course I would love goalkeepers to be recognised, to win the golden ball (Ballon d’Or), to be player of season in the Premier League because goalkeepers are lonely guys with a different shirt to everybody else.
“When they play phenomenal people forget, when they make a mistake, everyone remembers. That’s why I hugged David at the end of the West Ham game because no save, Antonio goal, no three points.
“Season after season the goalkeeper is player of the season, it means that something is wrong. Hopefully he’s not player of the season this season but hopefully he keeps making important saves for us like he did in last week”
And so to today’s news:
David De Gea has been crowned the Sir Matt Busby Player of the Year for 2017/18. The coveted award is certainly in safe hands as the Spanish stopper has now won it more times than any other player in United’s history. It’s the fourth time in five seasons that De Gea has claimed the historic accolade.
De Gea is the only goalkeeper to have won the award. He’s won it in both season’s Mourinho has been in charge.
This is the list of all the winners to date since the award was first given in 1988:
1987–88 Brian McClair, Forward
1988–89 Bryan Robson, Midfielder
1989–90 Gary Pallister, Defender
1990–91 Mark Hughes, Forward
1991–92 Brian McClair
1992–93 Paul Ince, Midfielder
1993–94 Eric Cantona, Forward
1994–95 Andrei Kanchelskis, Midfielder
1995–96 Eric Cantona France Forward
1996–97 David Beckham, Midfielder
1997–98 Ryan Giggs, Midfielder
1998–99 Roy Keane, Midfielder
1999–2000 – Roy Keane
2000–01 Teddy Sheringham, Forward
2001–02 Ruud van Nistelrooy, Forward
2002–03 Ruud van Nistelrooy, Forward
2003–04 Cristiano Ronaldo, Midfielder
2004–05 Gabriel Heinze, Defender
2005–06 Wayne Rooney, Forward
2006–07 Cristiano Ronaldo
2007–08 Cristiano Ronaldo
2008–09 Nemanja Vidić, Defender
2009–10 Wayne Rooney
2010–11 Javier Hernández, Forward
2011–12 Antonio Valencia, Midfielder
2012–13 Robin van Persie, Forward
2013–14 David de Gea, Goalkeeper
2014–15 David de Gea
2015–16 David de Gea
2016–17 Ander Herrera, Midfielder
2017–18 David de Gea
And next year’s winner is…
Posted: 2nd, May 2018 | In: manchester united, Sports | Comment
Luke Shaw attack splits Manchester United dressing room
Jose Mourinho says he wants to build a legacy at Manchester United. Nothing about his past suggests that he will. Mourinho leaves clubs spent and exhausted. He’s never lasted more than three years in one place.
One player tired of the tiresome manager is full-back Luke Shaw. Mourinho thought it right once again to criticise Shaw in public following United’s FA Cup win over Brighton on Saturday.
A fit Shaw was substituted at half-time. Mourinho says Shaw and fellow full-back Antonio Valencia failed to follow his tactical instructions. “I could have changed both of them at half-time.,” said Mourinho. “…I had to change one and I chose Luke because at least Antonio defensively was capable of good positioning. Luke, in the first half, every time they came in his corridor, the cross came in and a dangerous situation was coming. I was not happy with his performance.”
Reports suggest United players think Shaw is being “bullied” by his pouting manager. Mourinho says only Nemanja Matic and Romelu Lukaku – the goalscorers against Brighton – would escape his anger. The rest possessed “a lack of personality, lack of class and lack of desire”. When you get schooled in class by Mourinho, you give Dr Eva Carneiro the side eye and check your finger for bits of eyeball.
“I didn’t have many managers in my life but he is special because he wants to win always,” says Matic, in full teacher’s pet mode. “You can see when we lose a game he cannot accept that. Probably that’s why he won more than 20 trophies in his life. It is very difficult to work with him because he always wants more and more. Even if you win the league he wants to win again next season. He is like this and the players need to be ready for that. Because at this high level, at Manchester United and where I used to play Chelsea, the players need to be ready for that because the pressure is big. Everyone expects you to win every game. Obviously it is not possible, but supporters always expect. It doesn’t matter if you are tired or not, supporters want high quality football. It is normal.”
He had us up to ‘high quality’. Mourinho’s win at all costs approach is anathema to the so-called Manchester United way. At Chelsea and Inter Milan, success-starved clubs with no adherence to a style, Mourinho delivering silverware was the be all. Does grinding out a result work at United?
Alex Ferguson used to give under-performing players a blast of the ‘hairdryer’. But always in private. Mourinho makes it all about him. In reviewing Mourinho’s turgid 12-minute speech delivered after United’s defeat to Sevilla in the Champions League, Oliver Holt spoke for many:
Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address lasted two minutes. Martin Luther King’s ‘I Have a Dream’ speech lasted 17 minutes. John F Kennedy’s Inauguration Speech lasted 14 minutes. Winston Churchill’s ‘Fight on the Beaches’ speech lasted 34 minutes.
Acclaimed as football’s answer to all of them, Jose Mourinho’s self-serving, self-aggrandising, self-regarding, self-pitying, melodramatic, hard-luck claptrap that passed for his attempt at oratory on Friday afternoon lasted 12 minutes. His only theme was Jose Mourinho. He used his moment on the stage to deliver a homage to himself.
Ask not what Mourinho can do for Manchester United but what Manchester United can do for him. His was a dystopian vision of a great football club as a vehicle for a narcissist. His was a speech that denigrated United so that he could vindicate himself. Some managers subjugate themselves to their clubs. Mourinho asks that the club subjugates itself to him.
Holt’s a United fan. They want better.
Posted: 19th, March 2018 | In: manchester united, News, Sports | Comment
Manchester United balls: Jose Mourinho and the Sun’s selfie preservation society
So how does the Sun headline nine photographs of Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho minding his own business on a walk close to his London home?
Like this:
WHY SO GLUM?
Well, there is a stranger with a camera tracking his private life, possibly calling out his name, as paparazzi are wont to do, in the hope you’ll look at them. But the Sun doesn’t think the man with the big camera is making the Manchester United coach look at the pavement. And that’s odd because in one image, Mourinho is seen posing happily for a selfie with a passer by. Both Mourinho and the celeb spotter are smiling. Or as the Sun has it:
Jose Mourinho looks fed up as he poses for selfie with a workman…
No. He looks happy posing for a photo with a man who took the trouble to ask for a selfie. Might it be the other cameraman belching out his name like a lobotomised parrot that’s making him “moody” and “glum” as he walked down a Knightsbridge road close to his London home?
Posted: 23rd, January 2018 | In: manchester united, News, Sports, Tabloids | Comment
Manchester United Balls: Mourinho accepts defeat
Football moves pretty fast at the Sun, where the paper continues to cheer for Jose Mourinho, currently turning Manchester United into a pragmatic, defence-minded grinding machine. Second in the Premier League, a not inconsiderable 8 points behind Manchester City after just 11 games played, the Sun explain that none of it is Jose’s fault.
On November 8, Sun readers were told:
“JOSE MOURINHO is heading for a clash with the Manchester United board over further backing in the transfer market. Mourinho has spent £300million in less than 18 months — but still wants more to strengthen his squad as they fight on four fronts… Now he is concerned he may not get the funds he needs to boost his squad in the New Year and next summer.”
One day on and United are in a panic. Mourinho’s off to PSG:
Things move pretty fast. After all, way back in August, the Sun was telling us that Mourinho was living the dream:
“JOSE MOURINHO has told his Manchester United players to do the Double this season. He said their aim had to be to win the Premier League and FA Cup and at least reach the last eight of the Champions League. But as Sunsport today reveals, Mourinho was so confident of what this squad could do he had raised the bar ahead of the new season”
Nothing a few hundred million can’t fix.
Posted: 9th, November 2017 | In: Back pages, manchester united, Sports, Tabloids | Comment
Clickbait Balls: Manchester United and Arsenal fans tricked by world’s worst journalism
Transfer Balls: The Manchester Evening News has big news for Arsenal and Manchester United fans: “Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho talks Alexis Sanchez.”
Can it be that Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez is on Manchester United’s shopping list? Having reached the MEN’s scoop through Google News, the story begins:
Jose Mourinho has admitted it is a ‘shame’ Manchester United did not sign Alvaro Morata and appeared to dismiss any chance of a move for Arsenal forward Alexis Sanchez.
He only “appeared” to. So there’s a chance Mourinho wants Sanchez.
When Mourinho was asked by a Spanish journalist if United were attempting to sign Morata, he replied in Spanish: “It is a question for Florentino [Perez, the Real president]. I don’t know the first thing about Sanchez.”‘
Weird answer, no? Mourinho just tags Sanchez onto the end of a reply. Has he done that to wind up Arsenal and Manchester City, who were said to be keen on the Chilean? No. He’s not talking about Alexis Sanchez. He’s talking about Jose Angel Sanchez, Real Madrid’s director general.
Mourinho: “A possibilidade de Morata jogar no United é uma questão para Florentino Pérez e Jose Angel Sanchez.” pic.twitter.com/MPK28aTI4P
— Portal Madridista (@RMadrid11BR) July 16, 2017
But The Metro didn’t even bother to read that. It thunders:
Freudian slip? Jose Mourinho mentions Alexis Sanchez to send Manchester United fans into transfer meltdown
Undeterred by fact, the Metro coughs up a cut-out-and-keep guff of dire journalism. This is it pretty much the clickbait balls in full:
Jose Mourinho has got Manchester United fans very excited by accidentally mentioning Alexis Sanchez’s name when asked an unrelated question at his post-match press conference.
The Portuguese oversaw a 5-2 victory against LA Galaxy in the early hours of Sunday morning, and afterwards he was asked, among other things, about Real Madrid frontman Alvaro Morata.
But curiously, Mourinho appeared to get the Spanish striker and Arsenal’s wantaway Chilean mixed up, with many fans now speculating that it was a Freudian slip hinting at genuine interest.
When Mourinho was asked by a Spanish journalist if United were attempting to sign Morata, he replied in Spanish: ‘It is a question for Florentino [Perez, the Real president]. I don’t know the first thing about Sanchez.’
The exchange got pulses racing, with United fans debating whether it was an accidental slip of the tongue or something more substantial…
Of course, it is possible that the Special One innocently misspoke, or he would even have been referring to a different player – midfielder Renato Sanches, perhaps.
But even his choice of language – saying ‘I don’t know’ rather than categorically ruling out a transfer… has got United fans hot under the collar.
One day on from that total balls, the Metro reads the clicks, senses that it’s on to something and produces the follow-up piece:
Why Jose Mourinho – not Pep Guardiola – is the perfect manager for Alexis Sanchez
Ewan Roberts didn’t bother to check the source of his opinion piece. He just thunders:
Jose Mourinho doesn’t do innocent slips of the tongue. Depending on how cynical you are, his name-dropping of Alexis Sanchez over the weekend ranks somewhere between a Freudian slip or the planting of a seed. Whether he intended to or not, the Portuguese has inserted Manchester United onto the list of potential suitors for the Chilean – and they may even top it, with Old Trafford arguably a better fit than their sky blue rivals down the road.
The article based on poor research and what looks like a cynical disregard for readers trawls on and on, pausing a while to produce a graphic of what Sanchez would look like in the United side:
It’s “random” stuff says one writer at the clickbait-driven Telegraph:
More great journalism when we spot it.
Posted: 20th, July 2017 | In: Arsenal, Back pages, Key Posts, manchester united, News, Sports | Comment
Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho laments sacking of Claudio Ranieri – the man he called old and useless
How did Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho respond to news that Leicester City have sacked Claudio Ranieri, the man who just nine months ago led the Foxes to the Premier League title? Mourinho was keen to show his support for the defenestrated manager.
Not so very long ago Mourinho was deriding Ranieri as a thick, useless coffin dodger:
Transcript:
I am very demanding of myself and I have to win to be sure of things,” he said. “This is why I have won so many trophies in my career. Ranieri on the other hand has the mentality of someone who doesn’t need to win.
“He is almost 70 years old. He has won a Super Cup and another small trophy and he is too old to change his mentality. He’s old and he hasn’t won anything. I studied Italian five hours a day for many months to ensure I could communicate with the players, media and fans. Ranieri had been in England for five years and still struggled to say ‘good morning’ and ‘good afternoon’.”
At least Jose Mourinho’s consistent in one thing: it’s always all about him.
Manchester United balls: Mourinho’s run brings back Ferguson’s glory days
The Sun continues to work as an extension of Jose Mourinho Inc., telling readers: ‘Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho is bringing back the glory days after matching a record last achieved by Sir Alex Ferguson.’
Still in his first season at Man United, Jose’s yet to win anything. United are sixth in the Premier League. Given the vast sums lashed out on ‘the brand’ which now values stars over continuity, you wonder what the Sun are driving at. And then it comes: the glory days amount to Manchester United going more than ten league games unbeaten, something David Moyes and Louis van Gaal failed to achieve in the post-Ferguson era.
Under the peerless Ferguson, Manchester United twice managed to go 29 league games without defeat. That was a record. Mourinho’s recent run isn’t.
The Sun then adds a dig at Van Gaal:
…the Dutch legend could do nothing to stem the tide, with United consistently churning out a display or dreary performances across his two terms, finishing well adrift of the leading pack in both.
Van Gaal was no great success, but in two seasons at the club his Manchester sides qualified for the Champions League once and missed out on goal difference once. Under Van Gaal, United finished 17 points and 15 points behind the PL champions, respectively. Under Mourinho, United are 14 points behind the current leaders.
The glory days are back, indeed.
Posted: 9th, February 2017 | In: Back pages, manchester united, Sports, Tabloids | Comment
Manchester United balls: good guy Mourinho blows his top
Last night Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho was ‘furious’, says the Daily Mail. His side had drawn 0-0 with Hull City. Mourinho ‘blows his top on TV’, says the paper. The ‘irate’ Manchester United boss ‘stormed out of a TV interview’.
How does the Sun cover the Manchester United boss’s latest hissy fit? It doesn’t. Nowhere in its reports on the match does the Sun mention Mourinho’s moodiness and ‘his hasty exit at the first opportunity just 90 seconds into his post-match interview’ (BBC).
Is the Sun a tad biased in Jose’s favour? After all, on January 26, the paper was sure Jose was on the up. His hair spoke volumes:
NEIL ASHTON – Jose Mourinho is back: Back to his old self. Back in the hunt for trophies. Back to his devilish, mischievous best
And on it went:
Jose Mourinho, what with his latest grade-one haircut from the Lowry Hotel barber, is looking razor sharp again. The good behaviour bond is almost into a third month, trouble-free after serving a one-match ban for booting a water bottle when he had a wobbly against West Ham.
Focused, and firmly in control again, Mourinho is on to something good.
Such are the facts.
Posted: 2nd, February 2017 | In: Back pages, manchester united, Sports, Tabloids | Comment
Manchester United balls: Mourinho stays for 10 years (win, lose or bore)
The Mirror says Manchester United want Jose Mourinho to remain at Old Trafford for ‘TEN MOUR YEARS”. United want Jose to “stay for the next decade”. Given that Mourinho has never remained at any club for longer than three years, you might suppose the United headhunters are hopeful, ignorant of what happened with Jose at Chelsea, desperate or a combination of all three.
It’s “Jose’s Big Deal”, agrees the Star. “United want boss to stay for eight more seasons”. They “want him til 2025”. A decade is nine years? Journalists never were much cop at maths.
Nor are they much cop at predictions. On November 9 the Star told readers, “Jose Mourinho is facing the sack from Man United.”
Reading on, the Star says:
“But despite struggling to make a huge impact since replacing Louis van Gaal, club bosses have been so impressed with him that handing him another long-term contract is already on their minds.”
And as the Mirror puts it:
“But United officials have been so impressed with the elf-styled Special One…there is talk of him staying beyond his current deal:
The Star:
Mourinho’s erratic behaviour on the touchline and in press conferences has been a concern to United bosses, as exclusively revealed in Starsport… United also accept the ranting and raving comes with him being one of the world’s ‘box office’ managers.
And the Mirror:
“The hierarchy accept he will often find himself in hot water with the authorities because of his demonstrative nature”
The two stories are remarkably similar. And you won’t be surprised to know that neither story names it source. Wonder if the insider who loves Jose is someone at United or a mole in the office at Jose’s agent?
Posted: 21st, December 2016 | In: Back pages, manchester united, Sports | Comment
Manchester United balls: Jose orders team to toughen up by stripping in the cold
Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho says it’s thanks to him that a few Manchester United fans who made the trip to West Bromwich Albion’s The Hawthorns ground went home wearing an extra layer of clothing. Jose says of the shirts his players tossed into the stands,”I told them to do that. It is Christmas time”.
Indeed, it’s wintry December when watching football can be at its most testing, not least of all in Ukraine, where Mourinho complained about the “near-freezing temperatures” for United’s Europa League match. Accused of being soft, Mourinho might have used the Midlands to harden his players. First The Hawthorns in December, then Hull in January before United launch a full assault on the Arctic tundra in March dressed in shorts and Alice bands.
So Wayne Rooney, Paul Pogba and Marcus Rashford all took their shirts off and threw them into the happy throng after the game had ended in United’s favour.
Mourinho kept his shirt on, moreover his thick coat, sensible shoes, socks and vest. “A shirt for a fan coming directly from the game with sweat means a lot,” added Mourinho. “It is a pity that not everyone can get one but for the ones that can get it, it is a great feeling.”
It feels clammy to wet, mostly, although in Rooney’s case, given the man’s recent athleticism, box fresh.
Posted: 18th, December 2016 | In: manchester united, Sports | Comment
One Jose Mourinho: every variation of ‘The Special One’
On June 2 2004, Jose Mourinho arrived at Cheslea FC. “Please don’t call me arrogant,” he told the Press, “but I’m European champion and I think I’m a special one.”
And so he became The Specual One. And where that led other ‘Ones’ followed. Jose Mourinho has been:
Posted: 5th, December 2016 | In: Back pages, Sports | Comment
Manchester United balls: Why everything’s ‘wrong’ at Old Trafford (it’s not Mourinho)
“What wrong at Old Trafford,” asks the Sun’s Neil Curtis? Nothing. Manchester United are in great shape. This we know because on 6th September 2016 Neil Curtis told us about the “RED-OLUTION” at Old Trafford. “Jose Mourinho has turned Manchester United around to become the force of old in just three months,” said Curtis. Mourinho has “lifted the clouds” at United. “Mourinho is trusting the players abilities, letting them breathe.”
Today Curtis tells us that Manchester United have had their “worst start to a season in 27 years”. Why? Well, it’s not because Jose Mourinho is failing. It’s about him “unpicking Louis Van Gaal’s philosophy”. That would be Van Gaal who unpicked David Moyes’ philosophy. (You can read more about Jose’s philosophy here.)
Curtis adds that United have “NO TOP-CLASS STRIKER”. Really. Because Curtis wrote:
In his £250m splurge, LVG made two that excited but could not get the best out of either in Angel Di Maria and Memphis Depay. Mourinho has made four and so far Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Paul Pogba and Eric Bailly have been immediate hits.
And:
Zlatan Ibrahimovic has got his Manchester United career off to a blistering start
Another reasons: “NEW SIGNINGS STRUGGLING.” So much for Mourinho’s “immediate hits”.
And finally, lest you think Curtis will blame Mourinho, he asks himself: “Have they got the right manager?” “In my opinion,” says Curtis, “most definitely they have.”
Next question is one of ours: Would Manchester United fans prefer to have signed Jurgen Klopp or Pep Guardiola instead of the chippy Mourinho?
Over in the Mail, you can read: “Inside the troubled World of Mourinho – An obsessive man at odds with himself and his players.” So much for the RED-VOLUTION.
Posted: 29th, November 2016 | In: Back pages, manchester united, Sports, Tabloids | Comment
Media Balls: Mourinho does a Wenger, Pogba does a Van Gaal and Manchester United wait for Fergie
Media Balls: Was it right that Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho was red carded as his side fought back to secure a 1-1 draw with West Ham United? Can we know what’s what from reading the experts?
The BBC: “Off to the stands! He aims an almighty kick at a drinks bottle down on the touchline in anger at a booking for Paul Pogba – who looked to be jumping to avoiding getting clattered – and is directed from the touchline by Jonathan Moss.”
Pogba was avoiding a clattering and jumped. It was self-preservation. The referee got it wrong. Jose just reacted to the poor decision.
Manchester United assistant manager Rui Faria: “I think there was frustration from Jose after the yellow card for Pogba. It should be a foul for us but the referee understood it in another way.”
United were robbed.
Saj Choudry (BBC): “The Portuguese boss kicked a water bottle in reaction to referee Jon Moss showing Paul Pogba a yellow card for diving. Replays showed West Ham’s Mark Noble did not make contact with the France midfielder.”
Pogba dived. The referee was correct – he did fool for the player’s cheating. Jose Mourinho did make contact with the water bottle.
The West Ham website: “The Frenchman, falling after going past Mark Noble, was correctly booked for diving, prompting the explosive bottle-kicking moment from his boss.
Dive!
The Manchester United website: “Mourinho was then sent to the stands after he reacted furiously to referee Jonathon Moss’ decision to book Pogba for an apparent dive.”
An apparent dive?
Manchester Evening News: “He [Pogba] appeared to dive over Mark Noble’s challenge and was booked by Jonathan Moss. Mourinho… kicked a water bottle in frustration and was sent to the stands.”
He appeared to dive. Jose was not poorly behaved and wrong. He was frustrated.
The paper does find lots of room for the thoughts of journalist Duncan Castles:
Picking that apart. The slight on Louis Van Gaal is odd given that the hammer-headed Dutchman was pretty animated:
And as for any other manager not being sent off for kicking a water bottle, well, the Arsenal manager was:
For Jose Mourinho, well, it wouldn’t be so bad were it not for the fact that his old club Chelsea – the one he left spent and in mid-table – are top of the league under their new manager.
PS: Manchester United have failed to win four league games in a row at Old Trafford for the first time since February 1990. And they have drawn four consecutive league games at their place for the first time since December 1980. Yeah. it’s time for Fergie all over again. Oh for a manager who intimidates referees, fails to talk to the BBC and fosters a siege mentality. On second thoughts, as you were Jose…
Posted: 27th, November 2016 | In: Back pages, Key Posts, manchester united, Sports | Comment
Manchester United: Jose Mourinho chips away at Martial, Chelsea and Van Gaal
Who more than Manchester United’s Jose Mourinho sets the news agenda? The Times leads with Mourinho’s words on Anthony Martial. “You have one opportunity, you have two, you have three,” said the Portuguese to media. “If you don’t bite then somebody comes and takes the bait.”
The Times says, “how Martial reacts to the coded message from Mourinho will define the next stage of his career.”
Of course, this is Mourinho who no sooner comments in pubic on one of his team’s players than he moves to ensure the dialogue is all about him. His then issues a dig at Louis Van Gaal, his predecessor:
“First of all the teams are very different. The way the team played last season — I’m not saying better or worse, just different – was probably more adaptive to Anthony. He was probably more comfortable playing that way, at that intensity, at that rate of ball possession and ball circulation.”
He’s not saying it’s better or course to be less intense – which of course he is. “Anthony Martial struggling with Manchester United pace, says Mourinho,” declares the Guardian’s headline.
He then picks up his trumpet and blows hard:
“When I won the last title [with Chelsea] 18 years ago – sorry, 18 months ago – I had ten points advantage and then, in one month, I had the same points as Man City. We lost 10 points in one month. I think it was the end of December or the beginning of January and we’d lost 10 points. Then we recovered and won that title 18 years ago – sorry, 18 months ago. You can recover points. Others can lose points.”
When you lose, it’s you. When you win, it’s him.
In the Indy, we get an angle that maybe Martial’s dip in form is down to Mourinho’s love for Zlatan:
Martial’s form is believed to be down to a number of circumstances, including problems in his personal life and having a lack of a summer break after his efforts with France at Euro 2016.
He is also believed to be disappointed with United moving him from the No 9 shirt to the No 11 shirt in the wake of Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s arrival just as he launched the trademark ‘Martial9’.
At United, it’s so much about the marketing. Brand Jose always wins. It says so on the label:
Posted: 26th, November 2016 | In: manchester united, Sports | Comment
Manchester United balls: Jose Mourinho adapts the Chelsea philosophy to be more and less like Van Gaal
How are things going for Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho? “From the moment he arrived, the message has been positive, about winning the title. Nothing on philosophies or things taking time,” said the Sun’s Neil Curtis on 6th September 2016. Philosophy is for losers, like Louis Van Gaal, Jose’s predecessor at United, whose “attempts to reprogramme everyone with his much-vaunted ‘philosophy’ succeeded only in inhibiting all their natural instincts”.
Philosophy is balls.
Unless it isn’t. On November 15 the Sun thought philosophy and football were a good blend. “Johan Cruyff’s debut 52 years ago today: Inventor of Total Football whose philosophy influenced Arsene Wenger and Pep Guardiola,” chimed the headline.
On November 22, the Manchester Evening News agreed, reporting: “Daley Blind’s view on Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho’s philosophy.” Said Blind of Mourinho: “He is pretty similar to Van Gaal when it comes to their commitment to the team. They used to work together so I reckon that is no coincidence.” He adds: “…his philosophy is slightly different to that of Van Gaal. He is very direct, it is all about winning.”
And as Jose Mourinho put it in 2013: “You need stability in methods, in philosophy within the club. With FFP [Financial Fair Play], and Chelsea wants to go in that direction, you also need stability. You cannot change manager and philosophy every few years.”
So much for much-vaunted philosophy.
Posted: 25th, November 2016 | In: Back pages, Chelsea, manchester united, Sports | Comment
Manchester United balls: Jose Mourinho never criticises players for missing chances (except when he does)
It’s tempting to think that there are two sides to Jose Mourinho: the bitchy, pouting manager who delivers barbs and criticism to the media and the man who rouses a side to give their all for him and charms owners of big clubs.
After Manchester United drew 1-1 with Stoke, Mourinho was stood in front of the Press pack. Would be once more be pointing fingers?
“I never criticise my players for missing chances,” he said. “Their goalkeeper is the Man of the Match and deservedly so. We had some open chances where we could do better but I am never critical of my players for this. I can be critical of the attitude, with the quality of performance and for naive mistakes sometimes, but not in front of goal.”
Really? On 14 Sep 2013, after Chelsea had lost 1-0 to Everton, Mourinho told media: “We were the best team because we played the best football, because we dominated the whole game, because we had 21 shots. But by the other way, a team who has 21 shots – some easy, in easy situations – and made a mistake at the end of the first half, maybe I should say we deserved to lose.”
Also in 2013, he said: “Missing goals. It’s always the same words. It’s unbelievable. Even on the bench, I feel every time we miss a chance and the score is 0-0, 1-0, 2-1, 1-1, I feel the pressure. I feel that missing the chances, maybe later you are punished. We have this problem.”
And in December 2015: “The only time we had a contact with the ball (in the box) was the Matic one but it was difficult for him with his mask. It was also difficult because the cross was really fast, which made it difficult for him to react and to give direction to the ball. I know the goal was empty but that one was difficult. The other ones, short and low crosses, if you are in the box you tap the ball in.”
Such are the facts.
Posted: 3rd, October 2016 | In: Back pages, manchester united, Sports | Comment
Manchester United: Mourinho publicly slams injured Luke Shaw as fear factor returns to Old Trafford
Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho continues to win hearts and minds. The Times says United defender Luke Shaw, 21, was suffering from a groin injury during his side’s defeat at Watford. He was playing through the pain.
Shaw made an error that allowed Watford to score their second goal in a 3-1 victory. Mourinho, as ever, points the finger:
“I knew I had a task. But the first Man City goal [during the 2-1 defeat last weekend] and this second goal, you can find incredible similarity. [Aleksandar] Kolarov has the ball in a difficult situation in the corner and my player instead of going up and pressing decides to give him space. Today for the second goal, [Nordin] Amrabat on the right side, our left back is 25 metres distance from him, instead of five metres.
“But even at 25 metres, then you have to jump and go press. But no, we wait. This is a tactical but also a mental attitude. In a couple of weeks, everything like this becomes perfect. That’s my job.”
The defeat was not Mourinho’s fault. Blame Shaw. But when it is “perfect”, it will be Mourinho’s doing. Got it? When United win a match, Shaw should write his manager a letter of thanks.
Of course, Shaw has history with Mourinho. In 2014, Mourinho, the then Chelsea manager, said Shaw’s excessive wage demands put him off signing the 19-year-old from Southampton. The Star added:
The Special One didn’t make a good impression with Shaw’s family and the player felt intimidated, according to The Sun.
The Sun claimed:
LUKE SHAW felt intimidated by Louis van Gaal and he will be entitled to feel apprehensive about Jose Mourinho’s arrival. The Special One did not leave a favourable impression on Shaw’s family when they met for talks during his second spell at Stamford Bridge.
Shaw, 20, a Chelsea fan as a kid, had his heart set on a move from Southampton. But he changed his mind and opted to join United after meeting with Mourinho.
Two minutes after Watford’s second went in, Shaw was substituted two minutes later by Mourinho. Did the chippy Portuguese manager know Shaw was carrying an injury when he criticised the player to the Press?
The Times recalls that Shaw has already suffered many hamstring and groin-related injuries and suffered an horrific broken leg at the start of last season. Readers learn that he has had “regular sessions with a sports psychologist after admitting to struggling with the pressure of playing for United.”
Cue Mourinho.
Former Manchester City manager Stuart Pearce is unimpressed. “He blamed Luke Shaw for the second goal [against Watford],” Pearce told Sky Sports. “You think he’s probably better off not having a pop at the youngsters. What he needs to do is probably pull [Shaw] aside, get him in front of a video and educate him on how to play the game. It’s difficult for me to tell Mourinho how to coach and educate – he’s the best in the world at it.”
He is? If he is, then expect lots of film nights at Old Trafford. United have lost their last three matches.
Movie Night with referee Michael Oliver (Defeat 3): “The referee’s and the linesman’s mistake is not under my control.”
Movie Night with referee Jesus Gil Manzano (Defeat 2): “Feyenoord you know that goal was in an offside position, we are punished by these mistakes.’
Movie Night with Jesse Lingard and Henrikh Mhkhitaryan (Manchester City): Mourinho was talking about “some really poor individual performances” after their 2-1 derby defeat.
But with the right money spent and lots of hard work, United will give Mourinho reason to rejoice in his own abilities. The fear factor is back at Old Trafford – the fear of being singled out for blame.
Posted: 19th, September 2016 | In: Back pages, manchester united, Sports | Comment
One Watch: Manchester United’s Mourinho gets another one
One Watch: a look at mentions of Manchester United’s Jose Mourinho being a ‘One’.
The Sun tells readers:
Jose Mourinho confessed he became the ‘Nervous One’ before winning his first Premier League game in charge of Manchester United
Add it to the list.
Posted: 16th, August 2016 | In: Back pages, manchester united, Sports | Comment
Transfer balls: Manchester United want Arsenal’s Aaron Ramsey
Transfer news: Manchester United are after Arsenal’s Aaron Ramsey. In an “esclusive” The Sun says United think the Welshman is worth £35m. The Mirror reads the Sun, thinks the story sound, and declares, “Manchester United plot £50m Aaron Ramsey swoop”.
United wanted Ramsey in 2008 when Alex Ferguson was at the helm. Arsenal won his signature because they wanted him more. As Ramsey said in 2010:
“I felt more wanted here [at Arsenal]. By that I mean they did more things to try to get me. They had a plan set out for me and knew exactly what they wanted to develop me. The sort of thing they said was ‘You can improve on this’ and ‘This is what you are good at, so we will do this’.
“I think that the boss here has brought through a lot more youngsters and given them opportunities on a more regular basis. And that is what he believes in, picking out talented young players and turning them into great players so hopefully I can be in that category.”
As Ferguson dallied, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger arranged for Ramsay and his family to be flown to meet him in Switzerland. Wenger was working as a French television pundit at the European Championships. Ferguson talked with Ramsey on the phone. Wenger met him in person. Ramsey added:
“As for the plane trip I was just really looking forward to meeting the boss and hearing what he had to say. It was a great experience. That was a factor in making up my mind.”
Would Ramsey, a hit at Arsenal, leave to join Mourinho’s Manchester United? The Sun floats the idea, saying the “if he [Mourinho] fails to lure Borussia Dortmund star Henrikh Mkhitaryan” he’ll move for Ramsey. “The Special One is ready to wind up bitter rival Arsene Wenger by targeting the £50million-rated Arsenal star.”
Would Ramsey leave Arsenal to become Mourinho’s second choice, to antagonise the man who has helped his career? It seems highly unlikely.
Posted: 23rd, June 2016 | In: Arsenal, Back pages, Sports, Tabloids | Comment
Chelsea: Dr Carneiro is ‘disgruntled’ but Mourinho is just ‘Jose’
Dr Eva Carneiro turned to the courts when Chelsea failed to take a stand against her co-worker Jose Mourinho, who publicly humiliated her. Having rejected the club’s offer of £1.2 million to shut up and go away, Dr Carneiro continued to sue for justice.
Yesterday she settled her dismissal claim against Chelsea on confidential terms. She had claimed constructive dismissal against Chelsea. In addition she reached a discrimination settlement against Jose Mourinho.
Chelsea said it apologised “unreservedly”for its treatment of its former first-team doctor.
“The club regrets the circumstances which led to Dr Carneiro leaving the club and apologises unreservedly to her and her family for the distress caused. We wish to place on record that in running onto the pitch Dr Carneiro was following both the rules of the game and fulfilling her responsibility to the players as a doctor, putting their safety first.”
Mourinho, who denied calling the medic “daughter of a whore” (she alleged that he did) never issued a public apology. The Chelsea statement merely noted:
“Jose Mourinho also thanked Dr Carneiro for the excellent and dedicated support she provided as first team doctor and he wishes her a successful career.”
But why should Jose says sorry? The Manchester United manager (£15m a year) remains good ol’ Jose in the Mail, whereas the victim is a moody woman who got lucky:
Revolting.
Posted: 8th, June 2016 | In: Back pages, Chelsea, Reviews, Sports, Tabloids | Comment
