Jose: It’s never been this tight at the top
JOSE MOURINHO has admitted the margin for error among this season’s Premier League title-chasers is smaller than ever because of the incredible form of all the so-called Big Six.
Ahead of today’s six-pointer against Liverpool, the United boss acknowledged clashes between the top teams have taken on extra significance compared to when he won three titles with Chelsea or when Leicester caught everyone cold last season.
‘It’s amazing,’ he said. ‘Last season Leicester made incredible history but the top clubs underperformed. My team (Chelsea) was underperforming. Man United was underperforming. Man City was underperforming.
‘But this season you have weekends where all the top six are winning. To drop points sometimes you need two of them to play against each other.
‘You need Chelsea v Tottenham for one to lose points, you need Chelsea against Arsenal, us against City for somebody to lose points.’
United currently trail Liverpool by five points in the race for the title and a top-four place that also includes Chelsea, Manchester City, Arsenal and Tottenham.
After struggling to find a settled side last season, Mourinho now has six players who can be considered bankers in his starting XI; David de Gea, Antonio Valencia, Michael Carrick, Ander Herrera, Paul Pogba and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Pogba, with six goals for United, is playing in a more advanced midfield position than he’s ever done before. Mourinho wants him to have the influence on United that Frank Lampard used to at Chelsea. ‘I’ve worked tactically with Pogba, to make a dynamic in the team where he can arrive in certain positions where he has the potential to score,’ said Mourinho.
‘I think he can score goals. I don’t want to set targets for him, I just feel that in every match he can potentially score a goal.’