José Mourinho has claimed Manchester United are unfairly deprived of the praise they deserve, while his rivals are lauded for producing similar displays with comparable tactics.
The Portuguese believes his side's performances are seen in an unflattering light, amid accusations of defensiveness and cautiousness. Mourinho was criticised for his approach in a 0-0 draw with Liverpool when United recorded one shot on target, but pointed out that his side defeated Tottenham, whereas others have been eviscerated by Mauricio Pochettino's team.
“It is a different way of analysing things for this reason or that reason,” he said. “Similar performances for some clubs are magic, are examples of brilliant tactics and amazing attitude, but from other players and other teams the same kind of performance becomes conservative, becomes negative, becomes so many adjectives.
"Just as an example, Tottenham beat Liverpool 4-1, Tottenham beat Real Madrid 3-1, and Tottenham didn't score against Manchester United, so my players deserve at least a little bit of credit."
Pochettino has been lauded for Tottenham’s improvement, but Mourinho suggested he and United are judged differently. He has won 25 trophies, whereas the Argentinian is yet to secure a first piece of silverware as a manager, but the sense is that Mourinho is irritated by the compliments a peer receives.
League titles
The United manager won three of his eight league titles at Chelsea, and returns to Stamford Bridge on Sunday. He remains the most successful coach in Chelsea's history, but predicted that he will soon be forgotten at his old club.
“I played there with Inter and twice with Manchester United,” he said. “I have to admit it is a little bit different, but in the end I want to win like I did with Inter. They want to win like they did last season.
“It is just one more day, and in a couple of years it will be even more natural, and in four or five years probably no one will remember I was Chelsea manager, and it will become absolutely normal. It is a big match but not because of that, but because they are champions and we are Manchester United.”
Guardian Service
