It started so well for Jose Mourinho. Nine points from nine. Paul Pogba making a commanding, man of the match debut. Eric Bailly leaving tongues wagging. And Zlatan Ibrahimovic… Well, Zlatan doing what he does best.
‘City or United for the title’ was the phrase uttered by experts and fans alike.
Eight days and three defeats later, and things aren’t as rosy.
First came the Sky Blue beatdown, then an embarrassing, toothless defeat to Dutch outfit Feyenoord, in Jose’s beloved Europa League.
To top it off was defeat at Vicarage Road, the first time a United side has left Watford pointless in 30 years.
It’s been ten years since Mourinho lost three consecutive games. Is ‘The Special One’ losing his touch?
History says no.
Back in 2006, after Mourinho’s Chelsea lost three on the trot, the response was to take 25 of the next 30 points, winning the domestic cup double, while coming second to an Alex Ferguson and Critiano Ronaldo-driven Man United.
Still, gone is the untouchable status Mourinho held during his previous tenures in England and across Europe. The vulnerabilities were astonishingly apparent in a disastrous end to a second spell at his then-beloved Chelsea, and 14 defeats in his last 32 games at United and Chelsea are ugly reading.
The seeds of doubt have already been sown, and Mourinho has few answers.
The constant finger-pointing at referees’ borderline decisions has been a beeline for Jose over his managerial career. Nothing new there. However, criticism of his players is becoming prevalent.
Aboard the sinking Chelsea ship of last season, Mourinho, rightly or wrongly, repeatedly called out senior players, leading to the revolt that cost him his job. Never underestimate player power.
Now, has the ball been set in motion at United? After Juan Zuniga put Watford ahead with seven minutes remaining, Luke Shaw was hauled off, leading to what looked like a heated discussion with his gaffer on the United bench. Mourinho then went on to criticise Shaw in his post-match interview.
Some United players are said to be shocked at the Portuguese’s treatment of the young full-back. On previous evidence, not the best way to keep your players on board. Apparently Mourinho has not learnt from the mistakes of last season.
If Mourinho’s powers are on the wane, then the Spaniard in the blue half of Manchester isn’t helping. After a perfect six games and six wins for Pep Guardiola, his Manchester City team seem to be purring with confidence and style.
With the contrasts in fortune between these ferocious rivals, former United stars are beginning to speak.
Following City’s 4-0 Champions League win against Borrusia Mönchengladbach, Roy Keane said, “Two coaches in Manchester. Mourinho reckons he’s the Special One. To me, this guy [Guardiola] is.”
The majority of United fans will choose to ignore the Irishman’s comments. However, they have been heard.
This could very well be mountains out of molehills. However, upcoming fixtures in the League Cup against Northampton, followed by the visit of Premier League champions Leicester City, on Saturday, will prove to be a whole lot more important than was expected last week.
Defeat in the League Cup or against Leicester could very well allow those awkward questions to niggle, and those seeds of doubt begin to grow into something much more troublesome.
James
Roar Rookie
Yeah, I agree Vas. I remember during his first spell at Chelsea he would deflect ALL of the criticism of the team onto himself. He took so much pressure off the team. That group of players would have run through brick walls for him. I still think the team harmony is there, you're right it's still so early. But these next few weeks are so important. If United string a few wins together, I wouldn't be surprised to see the player/coach bonds strengthen. Knowing that they could come out of the other side of the tunnel would benefit them. I'll be interested to see if Jose speaks more positively now. Surely he's noticed that his excuses give his players an easy way out. First he devalued the Europa League and said United were better than the competion. Europa League result: Loss. And then he said it's difficult for his players to play at a high level in the following PL fixture. Premier League result: Loss. What will he say this evening and before the Leicester game?
James
Roar Rookie
Well in financial terms, of course he wouldn't worry. Nobody in this business needs to worry about their finances. His credibility and reputation would most certainly be tarnished. I think this worries him. And I think the growing number of people who would argue he isn't one of the top 5 coaches of all time, would bother him too!
Bob Brown
Roar Guru
One of the training routines at MANU is Biggest Ego Wins. The world's highest paid players and the world's highest paid manager just aren't getting along. Maybe they should pay their players even more money to like each other and pass the ball to each other. :)
Vas Venkatramani
Roar Guru
It is way too premature to make any predictions - whether it be United's seemingly poor start, or City's seemingly wonderful start, and everything in between. One thing that does concern me though is the relationship Mourinho has with his players. Can't remember where I read it, but there was one piece I remember reading about how Mourinho would take the blame for his team's poor performances, while apportioning the credit for when his team played well to his players. That is why the players at his time at Porto, his first spell at Chelsea, and then at Inter loved playing for his teams, as they had a manager willing to protect them. No question, there are players at Real Madrid, his second spell at Chelsea, and now at United who still hold him in high regard. Yet since his time at Madrid, this approach has changed. He's now more inclined to publicly admonish his players. While there can be legitimate merit in what he says, what does that approach do in creating team harmony, especially when he is so visibly disenchanted with his players, and voices this so abundantly? United have created a problem for themselves, where their manager's conduct is a story equal to anything on the pitch. That is not even mentioning the sizable fees spent on transfers, this all adds up to a potentially rocky time at Carrington. The only way United can get out of this is via a few wins - yet the question will remain what Jose says next the next time things don't go his way?
j binnie
Guest
james sear- Read again James I didn't say he "doesn't care" I said if he got sacked tomorrow would he worry? There is a financial undertone to that statement. Cheers jb
SM
Guest
I never mentioned sacking Mourinho, just that I think it was a mistake to hire him in the first place. Whether he 'worried' about anything or not is irrelevant and frankly a weird thing to bring up. If the club needs to pay him out at some point they'll find a way to do so. Ten million is pocket change to a club of that size. It's interesting that he has signed a four year contract at United when he had only lasted beyond the three year at a club mark once in his entire career. The wheels came off spectacularly in both his Chelsea stints and at Real Madrid. What evidence is there to suggest it won't happen again?
j binnie
Guest
SM- The point???? It was reported that at the time of Moyes sacking he had a 10 year contract that would have to have been paid out. I'll leave that cost to your imagination. Then we had the great saviour, LVH,who,last week it was reported that it cost 10,millions to pay him out and again I'll leave Mourinho's salary arrangements to your imagination' If they decided to sack him tomorrow would he worry???? I doubt it. My point. jb
James Sear
Guest
Thanks for the comments guys. SM, I completely agree with what you say. And the fact that he is heading in the same direction as Wenger amuses me after all of his comments about the Frenchman over the years. There's definitely a problem in the midfield, how Pogba plays will be the key. But it seems to me that Mourinho isn't instructing him enough on his role. It's rubbish that people say Allegri gave him a 'free to roam' role at Juve. When have you ever heard of that in the Serie A. Allegri just masterminded a system that Pogba fit into perfectly. And J Binnie, I disagree in you saying he doesn't care. Footballers yes (sometimes), but management.. I can't see one surviving if they didn't care about the job. He's not stacking the coins like the ex-footballer pundits yet!
TFPJOURNALIST
Roar Pro
'Piling up" is a bit of an overstatement. Three successive losses is never a good thing however Mourinho will come good, he knows what he is doing. Good read nonetheless.
SM
Guest
Not sure what point you're trying to make here.
j binnie
Guest
SM - Deep down do you really think he cares all that much?.With a multi-million pound contract in place,like others before him,.he can do and be whatever he wants,and,if the chopper should fall, he would be laughing all the way back to Portugal ,or wherever,for a holiday while some other football identity decided he was "the man" to cure their particular problem. Don't know if you have noticed but the same story is being repeated everywhere in the world of football. Cheers jb
SM
Guest
I used to quite like Mourinho, but any charm he once had is long gone. This is a manager whose greatest assett, it was said, was his man-management capabilities. He protected his players no matter what and they loved him for it. Something changed at Real Madrid and he has never got it back. He regularly throws his players under the bus when things aren't going well. His criticism of Shaw was a disgrace. He's selected a side that included Rooney, Valencia, Fellaini and Ashley Young, and decided to single out the young lad at left back coming back from a serious injury. Shifting the blame from his inability to set up the midfield. I was astounded when Manchester United sought him out, and certainly don't see him as the panacea to all the ills at that club. Tactically others have caught up with him and he's struggling to cope. Just as was the case with Wenger years ago.