MOURINHO UNDER FIRE
TACTICS: MAN UNITED’S ATTACKING SUPERSTARS NOT COMING TO PARTY
Red Devils boss condemned after suffering first home European loss in five years.
Jose Mourinho was condemned for his negative tactics after Manchester United crashed out of the Champions League to Sevilla, with Alexis Sanchez anonymous and Paul Pogba’s confidence apparently in tatters.
United, riding high in the Premier League, started the second leg of their last-16 tie on Tuesday as strong favourites to progress to the quarterfinals after a goalless draw in Spain, but mustered just four shots on target across both legs.
Two late goals from substitute Wissam Ben Yedder gave the home side a mountain to climb and a consolation goal from Romelu Lukaku was far too little, too late, with United exiting the competition 2-1 on aggregate.
Mourinho fielded four forwards – Sanchez, Lukaku, Marcus Rashford and Jesse Lingard – in an attacking-looking line-up at Old Trafford, but United only broke free of the shackles in the desperate closing minutes.
A stubborn Mourinho, who has won the competition with Porto and Inter Milan, said his side had not put in a “bad performance” but that contrasted with the sour mood in Manchester after a first home European defeat since 2013 to a Sevilla side fifth in La Liga.
“If you are a team at home, the onus is on you to go out and attack and make sure you take the game away from the opposing team,” said former United defender Rio Ferdinand, who won the Champions League under Alex Ferguson in 2008.
The question for fans is why Mourinho is seemingly unable, or unwilling, to set his attacking superstars free.
Pogba, who cost a then world-record £89 million in 2016 as Mourinho’s first big signing, was again dropped, this time in favour of the more robust Marouane Fellaini, a decision that drew stinging criticism from The
Times, who called United’s display “embarrassingly inept”.
Only once the situation was dire did Mourinho throw on another £70 million of attacking talent in Anthony Martial and Juan Mata to ride to the rescue. But to no avail.
A major investment was also made to bring Sanchez to the club in January on reportedly the most lucrative contract in Premier League history but he has been a huge disappointment so far.
Despite the uncomfortable marriage between United’s much-vaunted attacking history and Mourinho’s cagey tactics, the club have backed their manager, rewarding him with a new contract until 2020 and he hinted that even more cash may be thrown at fixing United’s problems.
“Everything together (needs to improve), everybody spends money, not just us,” said Mourinho.