JOSE MAY ROO THE DAY
JOSE MOURINHO is now reaping what he sows, with Manchester United fully embodying their manager’s joyless demeanour.
Mourinho has cut a truculent, surly and downbeat figure this season and has succeeded in bringing United’s players down with him, both in spirit and performance level.
The early-season ebullience and optimism, when the Reds were scoring freely and looked like battling Manchester City in an epic title race, has given way to dejection and pessimism. United head to Everton today at their lowest ebb of the season, on the back
o f three straight draws in the Premier League and with a depleted and dispirited squad that has lost its way.
They have slipped to third in the table and are now embroiled in a battle to secure a top-four spot and a Champions League place, along with Chelsea, Liverpool, Tottenham and Arsenal.
Mourinho has set the tone for United’s decline with his brooding discontent and readiness to blame anyone and anything else, rather than himself, for his side’s predicament.
The boos that rang out at Old
Trafford following Saturday’s 0-0 draw with Southampton revealed the extent of the growing sense of disillusionment among fans.
United may have been outspent by City in the transfer market for the past three seasons, but that alone cannot account for the 15-point chasm separating the local rivals.
Mourinho must shoulder a huge chunk of the blame, with United legend Paul Scholes scathing in his assessment of the self-proclaimed Special One’s lack of leadership.
“The players are definitely underperforming and maybe the manager is too,” said Scholes, in his role as a pundit for BT Sport.
“The underperforming is carrying on, carrying on, carrying on, and the manager has to take responsibility for that.
“They need to liven up, this team, because top four isn’t even guaranteed from this moment.
“You’ve got some good teams in there, including Tottenham, Liverpool and Arsenal – and they will all be challenging.”
United defender Phil Jones admitted Mourinho’s players have lost their way in recent weeks and are now in a battle to secure a top-four place.
“For sure,” said Jones. “It’s obvious if you look at the table. But we have to concentrate on ourselves.
“We need to look after each other, stick together, which is what we will do, keep going and keep battling.
“It’s frustrating for us, for the fans of course, and everyone involved, but there’s no point sitting here and sulking about it.
“It’s tough to take. It’s not as if we’re not creating chances, but at the moment we can’t put them away.
“I don’t like using the word unlucky, because you create your own luck, but there are times in the games where you’re thinking that.
“But we’ve got to do better. We have got to win games.”
United’s task at Goodison Park will be made that much harder because they will be without first-choice striker Romelu Lukaku, who misses a return to his former club.
Lukaku (on a stretcher, above) suffered concussion following a clash of heads with Southampton’s Wesley Hoedt early on in Saturday’s match.
The £75million striker failed to score with a free header before going off and Jones admitted United cannot afford to keep wasting such chances.
“Of course, 100 per cent we have to take the chances,” added Jones. “There’s no two ways about it.” SAM ALLARDYCE is ready to unleash Wayne Rooney to heap more misery on Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho today.
Rooney was allowed to return to Everton by Mourinho last summer after becoming United’s all-time record goal-scorer.
The former England captain has been restricted to playing just 45 minutes of the Toffees’ last three games due to illness. But his boss Allardyce, who called upon Rooney as a halftime substitute in Saturday’s
2-1 defeat at Bournemouth, said: “Wayne will be fit to start. “It is only a virus, not an injury, so going 45 minutes will be good for him.”
United have endured a joyless festive season, being dumped out of the EFL Cup by Bristol City and drawing their last three Premier League games.
Big Sam reckons United will bring the best out of his team, but is not afraid to park the bus.
The former England manager said: “Sometimes when you play a team as big as that it gets the best out of you. The players and fans will be up for the big ones.
“It’s about recovering the players and what team I pick and what tactic we use to try to master a Manchester United side.
“I saw their creativity against Burnley. They had 25, 30 attempts at goal, so we are going to have to be really on song.
“The players are not going to have a lot of the ball and we are going to have to be very disciplined in possession as well.
“We only end up sitting back because the opposition push you back, so I don’t know why people look at you and say why do you do that? You do it because the opposition do it to you.
“If you are going to get any attacks going, you have to use the limited possession that you have extremely well.”