Reaction to Jose Mourinho's Post-Match Press Conference
If we thought that the result yesterday was bad enough, Jose Mourinho's press conference took things to a whole other level...
After a pathetic performance in both legs, Manchester United were knocked out of the Champions League by a very poor Sevilla team. Mourinho's post-match press conference was the tipping point for a lot of fans who are now turning on the manager.
“I sit in this chair twice in the Champions League and I knock out Man United at home, at Old Trafford. I sit in this chair with Porto, Man United out, I sit in this chair with Real Madrid, Man United out, so I don’t think it’s something new for the club.”
This comment made by Mourinho infuriated all Manchester United fans. Although this statement is completely true, his timing in mentioning this is questionable to say the least. Somebody needs to remind him that his aim is no longer to knock Manchester United out of the Champions League. He is the manager of United, he should be trying to get them as far as possible and even win the competition!
I am not sure what he was trying to achieve by making this comment. When he says that it is not something new for the club, this is also true since the departure of Sir Alex. However, he was appointed to change that and he has got a nerve to make that statement in complete ignorance.
"I don't think the performance was bad, I think the intention and the way we started was really good and positive."
I am actually very worried. In what world was the performance not bad?! It was appalling, both legs! I think it is clear that Mourinho was either watching a completely different game to us fans or he is instructing his players to play badly. Of course he told the players to sit back and soak up pressure and to try and grab a goal on the counter, but that is not what we done. We created a few decent chances, but nothing clear-cut. We allowed Sevilla to control the game.
Our players were sloppy on the ball, shaky defensively and always on the back foot and letting Sevilla dominate. In what world that can be seen as 'not a bad performance'?
"I have no regrets"
Another statement which shows Mourinho's complete arrogance and ignorance. Instead of being honest and accepting some responsibility for the poor performance and set-up of the team, Mourinho keeps lying to himself in an attempt not to hurt his ego.
If this was a game where we played well and deserved to win then this statement might be acceptable. But in a game where we were dominated in our own back yard, it shows his complete lack of ability to accept some responsibility.
The team selection was wrong - Fellaini and Sanchez should not have started. First of all we started with two holding midfielders, which showed that we were going to sit back. We should have put out a more attacking team. Juan Mata should have started without a doubt. He is a player which will create chances. To be honest, even with the team that went out there, we should still have been attacking and scoring goals. His instructions to the players is what cost us.
However, we can't blame this loss entirely on Mourinho. As Paul Scholes said "There was no desire, no energy, no speed about the team. I can't explain it. There are players in the squad to play good, attacking football.". The fact of the matter was that the players did not want it enough. Firstly, there was no leadership. Nobody was psyching the players up and boosting morale. It hurts to see us play with so little passion and desire.
"Everything must change"
When asked about what needs to change and what the problem was today, Mourinho said it 'everything'. In his last two seasons at Manchester United, Mourinho has spent £300 million. He then stated that he needs to spend more money to buy better players.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan - the season we signed him, he was voted as the best player in the German league. He was a magician on the ball, creating and scoring goals left, right and centre. He had a tough start to his Manchester United career and it ended with him being sent to Arsenal in a swap deal for Alexis Sanchez, where he is currently prospering and getting goals and assists.
Paul Pogba - he re-signed for Manchester United for a (at the time) world record fee and was regarded as the best central midfielder in the world by many. He has been good so far for Manchester United, but he hasn't been at the level he was expected. Recently, along with lots of media speculation about his future and relationship with Mourinho, he has been very poor when he's played. He has been left out of a lot of games and has been a shadow of his usual self when on the pitch.
Alexis Sanchez - there is no doubt that he is world class and could walk into almost any team in the world. Unfortunately, he has been a ghost since he arrived at Manchester United. After signing arguably the best player in the league in January, we were expecting him to jump straight into the team and make an impact. Although he has only had a few months at the club, his contributions have been non existent if I'm honest.
Marcus Rashford - he has been the go-to man for Mourinho. Since Mourinho's arrival at Old Trafford, Rashford has made the most appearances for the club. There is no doubt that he is one of the most promising talents in world football, but his performances have been very inconsistent lately and he has been finding it hard to get into the starting XI since the arrival of Sanchez and the competition from Martial, Lingard and Mata.
Anthony Martial - another one of the best young talents in football. He was outstanding when he first signed and was described to be the next Henry. He has been much better under Mourinho this season, getting goals and assists.
Jesse Lingard - Messi Lingard has been outstanding this season. He is having the best season of his career so far and has been coming up with goals when we need them the most.
Juan Mata - he is a wizard on the ball. He can create chances out of thin air and provide a big threat going forwards. Mata is a vital player at Manchester United and deserves much more game time than he is currently getting.
Romelu Lukaku - pure passion. He has had a few tough matches this season but recently he has proved that he is one of the best strikers in the league. He has been world class, contributing with goals and assists.
All of these attacking options available at Mourinho's disposal, yet he is complaining that he needs to make more signings. We should be one of the best attacking teams in the world with the players we have. Mourinho recently slated De Boer as the worst manager the Premier League has seen after his comments that Mourinho was halting Rashford's development as a player. However, it is something that we need to consider. All of these attacking players are outstanding and have massive potential. Surely we should be able to score against teams like Sevilla and there is no need to sign more attacking players.
Overall, I would like to say that I am not Mourinho-Out, but I am appalled by the comments he made in the press conference yesterday. His arrogance was disgustingly obvious and this was not what Manchester United fans were hoping to hear after the disappointing loss.
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