Mourinho Retains the Backing of United Board

Jose Mourinho | by Ronnie Macdonald 

Mourinho Retains Board’s Backing Despite Brighton Defeat

The manager of Manchester United, Jose Mourinho, reportedly still retains the full backing of the Manchester United board despite the team’s shocking 3-2 Premier League defeat by Brighton on Sunday.

The team’s performance during the match, as well as the final result, has attracted widespread criticism.

Mourinho is at this time the next Premier League boss expected to be leaving his post, with rumours that former Real Madrid coach, Zinedine Zidane, is ready to take the position.

However, a source close to the team has been quoted as saying: “Why would we discuss Zidane when there is no job?” Mourinho was disappointed during the summer transfer window by the failure to make more outfield signings apart from midfielder Fred and fullback Diogo Dalot.

Large Scale Disappointment Following Defeat

With much apparent discord behind the scenes, former Arsenal and England striker Ian Wright was quoted as saying during a recent radio interview that there is “blood in the water” at Old Trafford.

Meanwhile Mourinho was quoted as saying that United made “incredible mistakes” which resulted in their defeat by Brighton and Wright stated that “Ed Woodward's unhappy, the manager's unhappy, the players are unhappy and the fans are”.

However, this isn’t totally unexpected.

Mourinho had previously warned that United faced a challenging season if they did not strengthen before the transfer window closed and had highlighted the team’s defence as an area that need improvement. Statements such as these likely had punters turning to Cox Plate betting instead.

Miscommunication Between Mourinho and Players Blamed

Even though Mourinho has signed a contract extension until January 2020, Wright stated that “if it carries on like this for Manchester United, I don't care how much money they are making, they are going to slip way out of it. I cannot see any other outcome than unfortunately Jose Mourinho will probably lose his job.”

During the same interview, former Chelsea forward Chris Sutton stated that the United players were not playing for their manager during their match against Brighton and that they do not seem to be committed to Mourinho or the cause.

Suggesting that the team is United in name only, Sutton stated that the defeat by Brighton didn’t seem like a once off and that it could happen continuously if changes are not made.

No Support for Mourinho During Transfer Window

Manchester United were rumoured to be picking up several defenders during the close season, including Leicester’s Harry Maguire, Tottenham’s Toby Alderweireld, and Bayern Munich’s Jerome Boateng.

However, Mourinho did not receive the support necessary from the board to pick up these players and many believe that the team has suffered as a result.

Speaking of the recent 2020 contract extension, Gary Neville stated that Mourinho should have received the necessary support during the transfer window. “My view would be that he's got to stay until the very end of that contract and be backed until the end of that contract if you're going to give a contract extension as the CEO of the club.”