Published 19:06 IST, December 16th 2020
Jose Mourinho says he needed more time at Man United to succeed despite poor results
Jose Mourinho, who now manages Tottenham Hotspur, went back in time to revisit his stint at Man United and mentioned how he needed more time to succeed there.
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Jose Mourinho has been at the helm of various top clubs in England. The Portuguese was previously appointed the head coach of Chelsea and Manchester United with Tottenham Hotspur being his latest stint at the top flight of English football. Mourinho was able to lead Manchester United to a second-place finish in 2018. It still remains as Man United’s highest-ever finish in the Premier League since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement.
Despite a second-place finish, Manchester United trailed arch-rivals Manchester City by a massive 19 points. Jose Mourinho's Man United were never in contention for a title challenge as Pep Guardiola's City ran away with the Premier League title.
Mourinho at Man United
Despite a second-place finish, Mourinho at Man United was considered a failure by many. The Manchester United board did not approve of the manager’s transfer wishlist as he was given only 2 new players in spite of achieving a high ranking on the Premier league board last season. Jose was awarded the signings of Fred and Diogo Dalot which unfortunately did not pan out the way he wanted. All hell broke loose as things turned sideways for the Portuguese manager in that season. Subsequently, Jose was sacked and relieved of his duties before Christmas.
Mourinho, who now manages Tottenham Hotspur had a look back at the situation during his stint at Man United and commented on the same. Goal has quoted Mourinho saying how at a certain period of his career, with a profile of the club he was getting in hands, didn’t need as much time to reach success. Mourinho adds how he did it at Porto, Inter, Real Madrid, 2 times at Chelsea, and without that need of longevity. He goes on to speak about how he wished to try different things, go to many countries, and try to win.
Mourinho also mentions how he wanted to get different experiences in many different countries, which was perfect because it was all about winning, saying goodbye, and then moving on to try another thing. The Tottenham Hotspur manager continued by saying how Manchester United was the first club where he felt he needed time, and time was not given to him.
Mourinho reasons it out by saying that he feels Man United were in the middle of a process when he left. The Portuguese manager goes on to mention that he learned something quite early and that was to respect decisions, which is what he feels he did at United.
Mourinho also explained how he does not have any hard feelings with the ones at Old Trafford. He adds how he is currently happy and has a great relationship with them. He mentions how it is something he is very proud of. The Portuguese ends by saying that when he leaves clubs, he tries to keep a very good relationship with everybody, and clarifies that United is one more example of that.
19:06 IST, December 16th 2020