We’ll hold judgement until we see whether Wayne Rooney and Michael Carrick are paired in a one-pace midfield, but already it seems Jose Mourinho is learning from the mistakes of Louis Van Gaal.
Mourinho’s predecessor as Manchester United manager became engaged in a long-running, ultimately destructive running battle with a phalanx of former United players-turned-pundits, led by the hard-to-please Paul Scholes.
“In spite of the attacks of the media – and not only the media, the legends and other kinds of people – I am here and I am fighting,” said Van Gaal, not long before he was given the old heave-ho.
“It is not my responsibility. It is not my fault” https://t.co/zbys9pHMsR
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) July 5, 2016
At Wednesday’s oddly miserable press conference to mark his official unveiling as United manager, Mourinho hinted at a less confrontational approach to relations with Scholes, Gary Neville, Rio Ferdinand, Owen Hargreaves, Michael Owen, Robbie Savage (at a stretch) and all the other former United players who will be paid handsomely to pass judgment on his Old Trafford career.
“They love the club and some of them are in the pundit industry in this moment, so every opinion will be important for me. Agreeing, not agreeing , their opinions will be important to me. We will look and try to learn from them, see what they can teach me,” said Mourinho, in a change of stance from last October.
Then, with his second coming as Chelsea manager heading towards its inevitable conclusion, he hit out at the rise of the TV pundit.
“I know the culture now, even in England. Before it was not the culture in this country, but, especially the pundits. They have a new job, which has become a very important job, it’s changed the culture a lot,” said Mourinho in the wake of Brendan Rodgers’ sacking by Liverpool.
“Some of the pundits are really brave. To criticise someone with my history, you need to be brave, as there is a risk someone like myself will say, ‘Shut up. You’ve won nothing in your life’. But I won’t do that. I just work and hope that the good results are coming.”
Well, he appears to be turning over a new leaf (again) in Manchester, where is he also looking forward to a closer relationship with Alex Ferguson – the legendary United manager who fought against Mourinho’s appointment.
The Portuguese said Tuesday that he is looking forward to sharing our “typical bottle of wine” once Ferguson returns from France.
“We are going to have many occasions to be together. At this moment Alex is on a bit of holiday, on a bit of the Euros, so I cannot see him this week. When his summer holidays are finished I will be based in Manchester – he is the same and we will have lots of time to meet each other,” he said.
“He will be always welcome to the training ground and we will have time to share a lot of our personal stuff. Friends, family, life. His opinion is an important opinion to me.”
Jose Mourinho ready to be friends with Alex Ferguson, Paul Scholes and all the #MUFC hurlers on the ditch pic.twitter.com/4S6P5Hcfla
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) July 5, 2016
