Jose Mourinho, reportedly at least, is ‘experiencing third season syndrome a year early’.
An exclusive report from Matt Lawton in The Daily Mail claims there are now genuine concerns at Manchester United that their Portuguese manager could leave at the end of the season.
The report claims that staff at United regard him as an ‘increasingly detached figure’. Yet to find a permanent residence in the Manchester area since taking the job 18 months ago, it also adds that Mourinho is spending less time in the city than usual – frequently returning to London, which he regards as his home.
Lawton writes that uncertainty about Mourinho’s future at Old Trafford goes deeper than his living arrangements. While there is a ‘willingness to recognise’ his feelings about the need to improve United’s squad, it adds that his criticism of the club’s past spending and comments which appear to have been aimed directly at the club’s board have been noted.
His decision to respond to the recent criticism from club legend, Paul Scholes, is also mentioned. Scholes had questioned Paul Pogba’s recent performances after the 0-0 draw at home to Southampton on New Year’s Eve. Speaking after the win at Everton two days later, Mourinho suggested such criticism was to do with Scholes resenting the French midfielder’s salary.
As Lawton writes, the decision to attack Scholes, when the former United midfielder wasn’t the only pundit to examine the problems with Mourinho’s team, seems a strange one.
