With constant criticism of his team in the press, is Jose Mourinho beginning to lose the dressing room at Manchester United? DEAN WORKMAN explores.
We have seen it all before: the rants, the criticism and the continual blame game. Only last time, Jose Mourinho was the manager of Chelsea and his fallout with the dressing room, media and league was the beginning of a downward spiral which ultimately led to his sacking.
After a 2-1 defeat to Leicester City in 2015, Mourinho shocked reporters by claiming his players had ‘betrayed’ his work, but the attack did not come as a surprise to the squad. The Portuguese also warned his team against ‘betrayal’ in the tactical meeting ahead of the Leicester game and used the word again during the half-time team talk at the King Power Stadium.
The Portuguese manager did not last much longer at Stamford Bridge as his side’s performances on the pitch and his own performances of it with the media culminated to see him lose his job as the Chelsea manager.
Fast forward three years and similar signs are beginning to rear their heads at Manchester United. Despite their good league position of second and progressing to the FA Cup semi-finals, their style of play and the manner in which they got knocked out of the Champions League have seen Mourinho lay into the club’s history, fans and players all in the space of a couple of weeks.
Just days after United’s Champions League elimination, Mourinho went on a 12-minute tirade in the press conference ahead of his side’s FA Cup quarter-final clash against Brighton and Hove Albion. In that much-publicised public rant, the United manager spelled out how the club had been failing to meet the required standards for many years before his arrival.
‘Do you know what is also heritage? It’s that [Nicolas] Otamendi, Kevin De Bruyne, Fernandinho, [David] Silva, [Raheem] Sterling, [Sergio] Aguero – they are investments from the past, not from the last two years. From the past,’ Mourinho stated, bemoaning United’s failure to bring in the required quality before his arrival.
Mourinho was then at it again a few days later after his side beat Brighton 2-0 in their FA Cup quarter-final clash.
‘I didn’t like the game. I think we deserved to win but I didn’t have the reaction from all of them. I had the reaction from some of them. Some of them were mentally strong enough with the football quality to play – that was the reason we won. But a team of 11, when you have a minimum of six or seven players performing and wanting to play, who want the responsibility to have the ball, who have the desire really to play – it is difficult to have a good performance. So I am not happy with the performance at all. But I am happy with the result,’ said Mourinho.
The former Chelsea boss singled out Luke Shaw for failing to follow his game plan and was, accordingly, substituted at half-time.
‘I wanted more personality in the team because many, many times I felt that Matic was an island of personality, desire and control surrounded by lack of personality, lack of class and lack of desire. I have to say that for example, [Scott] McTominay lost more passes today in all the matches he played put together, but he was a Manchester United player. And for me, a Manchester United player is one who, when he plays badly, still gives to the team. That is a question of personality, that is a Manchester United player for me. And that is what some of the others did not have.
‘My calculation is that without pressure, they don’t perform well,’ argued Mourinho, when questioned about whether his public criticism could backfire, should his players react negatively.
‘What can I lose? And the ones that are always there are the ones that will always be there. And that is an example of personality,’ he added.
As the league is put on pause due to the international break, Mourinho will undoubtedly be looking for a solution to his problems at the club.
Who knows what the future holds, a mass exodus of players or just a clearing out of the manager? One thing is for sure: the last two weeks have put strain on Mourinho’s relationship with his players and the question has to be asked, is he losing the dressing room just like he did at Chelsea?
Photo: Martin Rickett/ Backpagepix
