Alex Ferguson has praised the impact of Jose Mourinho at Manchester United.
Ferguson reportedly overlooked Mourinho to be his successor when he retired in 2013, choosing David Moyes instead.
That would prove disastrous, and Moyes was gone within a year. Louis van Gaal, his successor, fared better in his two years. He qualified the team for the Champions League and won the FA Cup.
However, three years after Ferguson retired, United eventually appointed Mourinho, and just over six-months into his tenure, the club’s former manager can already see his impact.
An achievement the likes of which we may never see again https://t.co/Pgciwl1nio
— FootballJOE (@FootballJOE) January 24, 2017
Mourinho experienced a very difficult spell between October and November. The team lost heavily to Chelsea and drew a series of games they dominated, while their manager lost his cool a number of times.
Mourinho was sent to the stands after kicking a water bottle in the 1-1 draw against Burnley and received a touchline ban.
However, United are currently unbeaten in 17-games, and Ferguson reckons Mourinho’s calmer demeanour has aided the team.
“I think Jose is finding solutions now,” the 75-year-old told BBC Sport.
“There was a period earlier in the season when he wasn’t getting the decisions and his emotions boiled over.
“You see him now – he is calm and in control. That is the obvious observation I am making of the team now. The team is mirroring its manager.
“On Saturday at Stoke, they played to the last kick of the ball. They never gave in and got their rewards to take something from the game with that great Wayne Rooney goal.
This feels a bit harsh https://t.co/IiP4eYUnK0
— FootballJOE (@FootballJOE) January 21, 2017
“And did you see what he did? Ran to the halfway line. No celebration. Pointed to the ball as if to say ‘get it, we are going to win this’. That is exactly the spirit Jose has created.
“You can see he has got to grips with the club. The team is playing really well and he has been very unlucky. He has had six 1-1 draws and in every game he has battered the opposition.
“If they hadn’t had all these draws, they would be there challenging Chelsea. That is the unfortunate part but he is going to have to live with that.”
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