
Football
Share
Published 11:17 14 Dec 2016 GMT
Explore more on these topics:
It was always going to be interesting to see who made the grade at Mourinho's Manchester United. Many would have tipped Morgan Schneiderlin and Chris Smalling as two players to benefit from the Portguese' arrival. He could even revive the flagging Wayne Rooney, many argued.
Juan Mata and Memphis Depay... good luck.
Six months into his stint at United boss and the stand-out players have been Ander Herrera, Mata, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and David De Gea [always De Gea!].
Henrikh Mkhitaryan tried to ease his way into it during the Manchester City defeat and wasn't seen for weeks since. The Armenian had to battle his way back into the reckoning is is finally starting to deliver.
https://twitter.com/UnitedStandMUFC/status/807176593647009792
Mourinho has also been credited for the recent, no-nonsense form of Phil Jones and Marcos Rojo [we'll say nothing about that lunge against Everton].
https://twitter.com/TheSmartArts/status/807983122109399040
The defenders' return to the United starting XI arrived not long after Mourinho called out Smalling and Luke Shaw for not playing through the pain barrier.
Again, his tough stance earned praise.
https://twitter.com/dgnHERO_/status/795535669808472064
And now, with the January transfer window looming, there is speculation that Schneiderlin and Memphis are on their way out.
Mourinho was asked about both men being linked to Everton transfers. He told reporters:
"I am always open to listen to offers for every player. More than listen to offers, I am always ready to listen to the players themselves. So, any player who knocks on my door and is not happy and wants to move, when the offers are correct, I will never stop from leaving, even if it is to a rival."Mourinho was playing this one smart. Players can stay and fight or they can leave, but only if they ask. https://twitter.com/MufcinNews/status/808813344673202176 It is the sensible way to play it but Mourinho has been getting a lot of online praise for his stance. Players like Memphis and Schneiderlin may complain that they are not getting a fair shake of it but, as Mourinho intimated, what have they done during their time on the pitch to make a convincing argument they should be starting? If Jones and Rojo can plug away, get a chance and grasp that chance, why not them?
Quiz: How well do you know these losing Champions League finalists
Another tricky one! We constantly hear about the great Champions League sides – the dynasties that will go down in the history books. But what about the teams they beat in the showpiece game of Europe’s greatest sporting competition. See how well you remember the teams that went home empty ended on those great nights. […]
Football
2h
Damien Duff hits back at those who stuck the knife into Keith Andrews
Interesting! Damien Duff made a welcome appearance on Premier Sport’s coverage of the Champions League semi-final between Arsenal and Atletico Madrid, alongside Kenny Cunningham and Shay Given. The former Shelbourne manager spoke about a recent visit to Brentford’s training facilities, where he met up with his old friend and ex-Ireland teammate Keith Andrews. The Bees […]
Football
3h
Football
How the Premier League table would look if every ‘VAR error’ was removed
Football