Mood in the dressing-room is crucial to Mourinho’s future
JOSE MOURINHO seems to have grasped the reality of his situation as he takes his team to his old club this afternoon.
Despite his proclamation ahead of the season that Manchester United are title contenders – and the veiled criticism of rival bosses because they were more circumspect in their ambitions – he now appears to have realised that it will be easier said than done.
He’s even talking about the possibility of not winning the Premier League during his three-year contract.
It’s a nod to the competiveness of a league which this season looks to have at least six possible Champions. It could easily be United who win it. But it could just as easily be neighbours City, Tottenham, Arsenal, Liverpool or Chelsea. It could even be Everton.
The general acknowledgement of the strength of the contenders means that Mourinho won’t be judged on whether he collects the title this season.
However, he will be judged on whether or not he finishes in the top four.
If his employers operate on a level playing field, he won’t get to his second season, let alone his third, if he can’t secure a Champions League spot.
That’s become the measure for Old Trafford bosses.
The last two – David Moyes and Louis van Gaal – have been shown the door within days of that failure.
The Dutchman only missed out on goal difference and also won the FA Cup, yet it wasn’t enough for executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward and owners, the Glazer family.
In order for Mourinho to guarantee he’ll still be at United next season, he will need to finish ahead of three of Pep Guardiola, Arsene Wenger, Jurgen Klopp, Mauricio Pochettino, Antonio Conte and Ronald Koeman.
Wenger apart, the careers of all those rivals are on an upward curve.
Mourinho’s isn’t. At best it’s flatlined after last season’s severe downturn when his second spell at Chelsea fell apart in spectacular fashion.
For the first half of his career,
Mourinho was the antiestablishment man, the upstart ex-translator who put the big beasts to the sword.
Now he’s a big beast himself, at the most “establishment” club of them all, and other younger, more modern coaches are out to knock him off his perch.
He needs to show he’s not become yesterday’s man. But does he still have what it takes?
What happened at Chelsea cast doubts over his carefullyconstructed persona as a serial winner.
His tried and trusted methods failed dramatically.
When his newly-signed contract was terminated three-and-a-half years early, his team were sitting 16th in the table.
There had been his ill-advised blow-up with the club doctor, a sending-off and subsequent stadium ban.
But the most damaging accusation was that he’d lost the dressing-room.
Chelsea Technical Director Michael Emenalo spoke of “palpable discord” between the manager and his team.
The common thread running through all Mourinho’s successful teams had always been his closeness to his players.
If he’s to restore his reputation, his relationship with United’s players will be the key.
In his 12 completed seasons as a manager, Mourinho has never finished lower than third.
It’s a record that suggests last season was a one-off.
We’ll soon see.