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Mourinho is in his ‘zone’ at United – Is that a good thing?

When Mourinho joined Manchester United as a wounded individual, his pride hurting after the sack, a reaction was expected. A reaction and response that would entail both on and off the pitch shenanigans, backed up by good results. He did not disappoint, looking at the larger picture. Mourinho won two trophies and a shield in his first season – continuing the now growing winning mentality at the football club. The club finished sixth in the league, but the signs of progress were unmistakable. The foundation was laid.

This season, the progress in terms of results in the Premier League is crystal clear. United, besides the hiccup at Huddersfield, have looked like serious contenders for the league title. 2018 will mark their fifth year without a league title but given their ultra-efficient defending and potential going forward, it is unlikely that they would go down, should they do, without a fight.

So, it is natural for Mourinho to feel at home in the middle of a campaign when they are doing things one would expect of a Mourinho side – defensively rock-solid and scoring enough goals to win games – often executing game plans tailored to counter the opposition.

Last season, the Portuguese was uncharacteristically mellow in most of the press conferences, interviews – praising the supporters at every opportunity he got to buy himself the time he thought he needed.

One could look at the apologetic gestures he motioned towards the Stretford End crowd after his side beat Man City in the league cup – for the 4-0 hammering they had suffered at the hands of his former employers. The long interview he gave to the famous United We Stand fanzine (not the official programme) mentioning how he would like to travel on the ‘monkey bus’ back to Manchester with the fervent away supporters on the day they win the league, did not go unnoticed either. Mourinho had clearly anticipated the impact of what he was doing at the time.

It is important to remember that United were on a bad run at the time – drawing a string of games at home, simply unable to get out of a rut in the Premier League that stifled them until the very end. He had the fans on his side that allowed him to get away with what was a sub-par season, league-wise.

This season, however, Jose Mourinho is totally being himself, probably for the first time at United – completely in his element. The Portuguese manager is throwing tantrums left, right and centre weaving narrative after narrative, primarily in a bid to create a false sense of ‘us versus them’. He is better at conflict than any other manager in the league and if there is not one big enough to cause a stir around his club and not within, then he would create one. And he has.

His most recent allegations concerning the lack of support for United’s main striker Romelu Lukaku cannot be further from the truth but he has almost made us and the media question as to whether that was indeed the case. Mourinho may have made the comment to simply divert attention from the Belgian’s bulging goal-drought but he need not, as Lukaku, despite not scoring himself, has been contributing to the side as well as he was, in the early weeks of the season, if not more.

Creating narratives to keep the press away from the actual football is Jose’s bread and butter. If not the referees, then it would be opposition managers – who are down. If not the injuries and bad luck, then it would be a minor section of fans.

Jose Mourinho is well aware that the Manchester United fans, in general, have admired his cocksure attitude sitting well with the results. And throughout his career, the brash management has rubbed players and staff the right way for most of the time – leading to good results and successful and trophy-laden seasons. And the patience towards his often random (yet well concocted in his mind) accusations of fans not supporting the team the way they should be, will not wear down as long as United do well on the pitch.

This is not a deviation from the norm. He has done it at Chelsea, at Real Madrid and now is doing at Manchester United. It is a good thing that he is finally in his zone which only suggests he is comfortable about the direction his side is heading.

There are already reports of influential Manchester United fan groups inviting the manager over for concrete discussions to resolve the lack of atmosphere at Old Trafford. Like, every big ground across the country, the 75,000 capacity stadium comes alive only in the real important games where more than 3 points are at stake.

The issue is widespread and needs to be analysed to arrive at immediate and long-term solutions and if the manager himself is initiating the conversation that will most certainly include the fans, then it could only get better from here on.

Aashish Murali
Aashish Murali
I can bore you to tears.
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