WRONGED MOURINHO IS NOW THE HATED ONE

THERE is one thing Jose Mourinho craves above all else and that is respect. And you have to wonder how on earth the most successful manager in Chelsea’s history has become such a hate figure among a section of their fans. Surely Mourinho, despite his defection to Old Trafford, deserves better from the supporters he led to three Premier League titles, one FA Cup and three League Cups. Instead, the fans chanted “F**k off, Mourinho”, as tempers boiled over on the sidelines.

The Manchester United boss was reduced to holding up three fingers (right) to remind everyone how many titles he has won. That lack of respect was surely the reason behind the touchline bust-up (left) after Chelsea snatched a dramatic last-gasp equaliser. Mourinho thought he was about to have the last laugh, it was cruelly snatched away and, when Blues coach Marco Ianni’s in-your-face celebration taunted him, he could not help but react.

Whatever anyone thinks of Mourinho, he should be given a hero’s welcome whenever he returns to Stamford Bridge.

The self-proclaimed Special One is now seen as the hated one, but surely the home supporters need to show a bit more class.

Blues boss Maurizio Sarri was eager to calm the bitter feud and said: “We need to respect him and to respect everybody who has won a trophy for the club. We made a mistake (with the touchline incident), we were wrong and we have to say sorry to Jose.”

This was a big result for United, even if a memorable away win slipped away with Ross Barkley’s 96th-minute equaliser. The spirit in their fightback after going behind from Antonio Rudiger’s first-half opener will surely please Mourinho the most.

Paul Pogba lost Rudiger at a setpiece for the opener but the United midfielder was as good in the second half as he was poor in the first. Antony Martial scored with two ruthless finishes amid some poor Chelsea defending.

But it does feel as if United have turned a corner. They face Juventus twice in their next five games along with Everton, Bournemouth and Manchester City.

If they can emerge from that run of fixtures with their season intact then you fancy Mourinho might just see it through. What they need most of all is a consistent run, some back-to-back wins, and to reach the Champions League knockout stages.

Mourinho has a track record of getting results at all costs. What a shame some ungrateful Chelsea fans seem to have forgotten.