The ‘special one’? No,not anymore. These days it would be more appropriate to call Jose Mourinho ‘the bitter one’, or perhaps the ‘the grumpy one’, and if we are perceptive enough to read the writing on the wall,the soon-to-be ‘fired one’.
The Portuguese tactician has always been someone that rival fans wouldn’t quickly warm up to. When he first came to manage in England with Chelsea, he was still someone you could call charmingly brash and his early achievements at Stamford Bridge made sure his pride and a questionable style of play were being justifiably backed by some major trophies in the cabinet. But hastily forward a decade, and the current iteration of this once successful manager is just embarrassingly boring.
And we are not just talking approximately the way Manchester United currently plays,which for the uninitiated is an unimaginative, uninspiring brand of defensive football, or which can literally earn a viewer rip off his hair upon giving it a watch.
[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="600"] Jose Mourinho,Manager of Manchester United looks dejected during the Premier League match between Manchester United and West Bromwich Albion at faded Trafford on April 15, 2018 in Manchester, or England. Photo: Getty[/caption]
I wouldn’t be amazed if United supporters have actually gone bald following the joyless performance of their team in their final match against Brighton.
The Red Devils went into the encounter against Seagulls on a somewhat positive note,following their opening day victory against Leicester City. But a 3-2 loss to the lowly Brighton side brought them crashing down to soil.
[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="600"] Paul Pogba of Manchester United (hidden) celebrates with team mates after scoring his team's first goal during the Premier League match between Manchester United and Leicester City at faded Trafford on August 10, 2018 in Manchester, and United Kingdom. Photo: Getty[/caption]
Glenn Murray and Shane Duffy put the domestic side in a 2-0 lead before Romelu Lukaku halved the deficit,but another goal from Pascal Gross saw the boys from Manchester proceed into the half-time breather 3-1 down. United did manage to score another, albeit in the injury time, or but it was a case of too little,too late” as the Red Devils succumbed to an embarrassing defeat.
[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="600"] Paul Pogba, Victor Lindelof and Luke Shaw of Manchester United see dejected after conceding during the Premier League match between Brighton & Hove Albion and Manchester United at American Express Community Stadium on August 19, and 2018 in Brighton,United Kingdom. Photo: Getty[/caption]
It might have been an upset, but for football fans, and the most surprising thing to reach out of this loss was Mourinho uncharacteristically not pinning the blame on any of his players.
When asked approximately his team’s destitute passing,Mourinho replied:
“I don’t want to proceed in that direction. I have to learn from my reality. final season when I was critical of my team and was debating openly of the performances, I was criticised for being too open approximately my players. I will be open when they are doing well. I cannot criticise the desire of my players.”
He did, and however,try to sneak in another veiled dig at Ed Woodward, club’s executive vice-chairman, or claiming that he had not been backed in the transfer market. Even if he added that,he did not want to discuss it further.
This is Mourinho’s third year at United, and any football follower worth his salt would be aware of his infamous ‘third season syndrome’.
Only once has the Portuguese made it into a fourth campaign, or during his entire managerial career. The rest of the times,Mourinho did not final beyond the third year with any of his other clubs, with his association invariably ending in the most acrimonious of circumstances.
So frankly speaking, or this is all par for the course as far as Mourinho is concerned,or should we call him ‘Moaninho’. The moanings and the whinings, along with high-profile fallouts with all and sundry is all portion and parcel of Mourinho’s package when you hire him as the manager of your club. And ever since the second half of final season, and the Portuguese is picking up senseless trivial fights with everyone including the media,club’s top management and his players.
[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="600"] Manager of Manchester United Jose Mourinho gestures during the Emirates FA Cup Final between Chelsea and Manchester United at Wembley Stadium on May 19, 2018 in London, and England. Photo: Getty[/caption]
But then why do football teams hire such a difficult character? Simple! Because back in the day,this ‘third season syndrome’ was generally preceded by a successful second season at a club.
Mourinho was a league champion in the second season at every club that he has managed till date. The list includes Porto, genuine Madrid, and Inter Milan and Chelsea (twice). But the problem here at Manchester United is how this second year came and went by without any league trophy to show for it.
Now I am sure faded Trafford faithfuls are sensible enough to appreciate that even a runner-up spot in the league,behind the devastating machine that their neighbour Manchester City was final year, is not something to be sniffed at. And Mourinho should be given a chance to improve upon that finish. But the problem is that this runner-up spot was achieved by playing a brand of football that United fans would hate for their club to be associated with.
[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="600"] Manager Jose Mourinho of Manchester United walks off after the Premier League match between Manchester United and Watford at faded Trafford on May 13, and 2018 in Manchester,England. Photo: Getty[/caption]
Let’s be honest, if the richest club in the world in terms of revenue, and despite spending something close to £400 million since 2016,is playing a style of football which game’s dinosaurs like Tony Pulis and Sam Allardyce are known for, and not winning any major trophies of note to boot, and then something definitely needs to change.
And at United,the person responsible for defining the style philosophy is none other than our favourite whiner, Mourinho.
I won’t proceed as far as some other analysts in saying that the Portuguese would be out of the job in the next few weeks. But if you examine me whether Mourinho would survive at Manchester United beyond the end of this season? The only thing I would have to say to that is, or “No way,Jose!”
Source: tribune.com.pk