A possible turning point for United – but only if the
Even amid the euphoria of this most unexpected of comebacks, Jose Mourinho could not just be happy to celebrate. He fired shots, took swipes, poked, prodded and pushed. He still sounded like a man at war with everyone. That is the problem.
This was a chaotic sort of triumph, a victory achieved despite the confusion. Nobody seemed to know what formation Manchester United were playing in the second half. It was an every-man-for-himself bayonet charge with a two-man defence, two holding midfielders and everyone else looking to attack.
Was it a direction-shifting moment or part of a cycle? Have United turned a corner or are they heading back in the same direction, to encounter all the same obstacles they have struggled to overcome before?
Mourinho lashed out at claims in the media that he was on the brink of losing his job. No manager is going to ignore the fact there was a story published on Friday night – which was debated by broadcasters all day – that he was going to be sacked, regardless of the result.
According to eye witnesses, Mourinho was warmly embraced by Richard Arnold, the club’s managing director, in the tunnel after the game. That is not the behaviour of someone on a board which is about to sack the manager.
There were a few sparks of humour in Mourinho’s post-match interviews, a line about claiming he was getting the blame if it rained, as well as for Brexit, but also darker, teeth-grinding moments.
Mourinho’s management style has always been abrasive, but was there really any need to talk about young players such as Marcus Rashford and Scott Mctominay lacking the courage to play under pressure? Did Eric Bailly deserve to be hauled off after 19 minutes? Punished for two mistakes by his captain, Ashley Young, who was turned and twisted by Kenedy for Newcastle’s first goal and sent to the shops by Yoshinori Muto, before he smashed in the second.
What happened in the second half was exhilarating and thrilling. From the moment Juan Mata curled in a free-kick with 20 minutes remaining, United looked like they would score every time they attacked.
The noise in Old Trafford was so loud you could feel it in your chest. The singing of Mourinho’s name was prolonged. Tellingly, even when the team were losing, the only hostility was aimed at the board, not the manager.
Anthony Martial’s equaliser, six minutes later, was a brilliant goal and then came the winner, scored by a player who has been one of the biggest failures of the Mourinho era. Alexis Sanchez has justified neither his wages nor his reputation at United, which means the man who signed him takes the blame. But there he was, jumping at the back post, heading the winner.