Mourinho admits that United are unlikely to get a Champions League slot but, fear not Reds fans, he’s adamant they’ll overhaul Everton
JOSE MOURINHO admits he cannot guarantee that Manchester United will secure a top-four place this season – but is adamant they will finish above Everton.
It is a measure of how far struggling United have fallen this season that Mourinho now sees merit in finishing above the Toffees, who are seventh, a place above United on goal difference.
Everton may have spent more than £250million over the past two years to push their claim for a top-four place, but few United fans will be happy to see Mourinho judge finishing above them as something to be celebrated.
United, who host fourthplaced Arsenal tonight, are already eight points adrift of the Champions League spots and could see that gap widen to 11 if Unai Emery’s resurgent side win at Old Trafford.
Asked if it was acceptable for a club of United’s stature and financial power to be vying for seventh, Mourinho said: “I think Manchester United, in seventh place, I can agree (it’s not acceptable).
“That’s in spite of the investment Everton made, which was phenomenal, and obviously there was a great improvement in that team from last season, but I don’t think Everton will be in front of Manchester United at the end of the season.
‘There are six teams that should stay in the first six positions, but season after season two of these teams will finish outside the top four. For example, last season it was Arsenal and Chelsea, and this season two of the six are going to stay outside.
“The distance of 16 or eight points is something I couldn’t predict. You always think in a positive way and you always think the distance is not going to be so big.
“But all of the teams have got better. Spurs didn’t make direct investment, but the best investment is to keep the top players you have, like they did. Everything got better but we didn’t.
“So I was expecting difficulties for this season, but my target is still the top four and we have to fight until the end to try finish there.”
Mourinho predicted in preseason that it would be a “difficult” campaign. But he has been forced to revise his plan of a top-four place by the end of 2018 after dropping points against Crystal Palace and Southampton in recent games. Arsenal, who travel to to United tonight, are the only Premier League club in the last decade to recover from a worse position than United’s current one to finish in the Champions League slots. That was in 2012-13. Mourinho (left) acknowledges the tough task he faces after falling so far off the pace in United’s worst start to a campaign for 28 years. “Last week, before the Crystal Palace game, I said my hopes and targets were, at the end of December, to be in the top four,” he said. “The target has changed, but it has changed in the sense of, ‘Let’s try to close the distance and try to be, by the end of December, very close to these positions’.
“We just need to not be so unlucky, we need some players to perform better than they are, we need to perform better as a team than we are, but far from a miracle. Not at all.”
Mourinho could be without six defenders tonight. Ashley Young is suspended, Victor Lindelof and Antonio Valencia are out, while there are doubts over Luke Shaw, Chris Smalling and Eric Bailly.
“Against Southampton, three hours before the game, I didn’t know the team I was going to play,” said Mourinho. “And we’re going to be in a similar situation. If you asked me if the game was at 11 o’clock today, I would say Chris Smalling is not playing, Eric Bailly is not playing, Phil Jones is not playing.
“Lindelof is out of the question. But we have to wait. Valencia is not playing, Shaw is a doubt. Maybe we will decide a couple of hours before the game.”