FANS WOULD PUT UP WITH JOSE IF TEAM ENTERTAINED

WHILE JOSE Mourinho was busy taking questions in his press conference on Monday afternoon, Manchester United were taking care of business. As Mourinho talked, the club’s social media accounts revealed the launch of a special edition whisky to mark their European Cup triumph of 1968.

In case you had missed the announcement back in August, United signed a three-year deal with the Chivas whisky company and now the club’s ‘official spirits partner’ has released a 50-year-old Scotch in memory of the 4-2 win over Benfica. Only one of the four bottles will be sold and that will happen soon at the Sotheby’s auction house.

So it wasn’t exactly an announcement to soothe the fraying tempers of the Stretford End during these testing times. Many see United’s relentless commercialism and moneymaking as a necessary off-shoot of the business.

But others see it all as a bit crass. Even though the proceeds of the Sotheby’s sale will go to bolster the work of United’s foundation, such glossy images of United’s modern-day largesse don’t sit comfortably when compared with the poverty of what is often seen on the field.

About the same time as Monday’s announcement, United made another, informing supporters that tickets were still available for this important European game.

That is not completely unheard of at United for early stage Champions League matches but still it jars a bit at the home of what is so often called the world’s biggest football club.

This issue sits at the heart of what is wrong at United these days. How can a club that continues to shine so brightly off the field look so modest on it?

The team that began this game cost £370million to assemble. Conveniently, that is just about exactly the value of the 11 players who started Manchester City’s match in Germany yesterday afternoon. Worth noting, the next time Mourinho starts to grumble about his club’s willingness or otherwise to invest in players he wants.

United’s Sir Bobby Charlton scored one of the four goals commemorated this week by those fancy whisky bottles and he was in the directors’ box as usual for this game.

As we know, the Old Trafford icon held deep reservations about Mourinho prior to his appointment two-and-a-half summers ago, but they were largely bound to his behaviour rather than his football. Here, as United sought to bring clarity to their season, it was their manager’s ability to produce results, style and entertainment that was once again on the line and one can only guess what Sir Bobby has made of it all.

How important is it to play with flair and gusto at Manchester United? Well, the general rule of thumb is to at least try and this is an area where Mourinho currently fails.

United and their support would stomach the nonsense that so often swirls around their Portuguese coach — most of it caused by him, of course — if they won some games and played some decent football. Given the money invested in this squad, it should be attainable.

But it is United’s poor football — and recent poor results — that allowed ex-player Paul Scholes to label Mourinho’s behaviour ‘embarrassing’ on TV last night.

Mourinho has always lit fires with what he says but when the football starts to slide into the gutter his behaviour becomes particularly relevant.

Here, United’s first-half performance largely epitomised the mood. Mourinho’s players were not without industry but they were devoid of imagination and cohesion.

In the first half the home team did not create a chance of note.

Valencia were marginally more progressive and had the game’s best player in Goncalo Guedes. With most of the tickets eventually sold, United’s support admirably stayed with the team.

But how long does this go on? How much longer does a forward-thinking club like this one tolerate this numbing, cloying sense of stasis? All of a sudden, United have become desperately boring — and that is the greatest indictment of all.