Back in May 2016, when José was announced as manager of Manchester United, all Utd and football fans alike waited to see how he would approach his new role. He had soon showed glimpses of what was to come, by bringing in Ivorian Centre-Back Eric Bailly, as well as the charismatic Zlatan Ibrahimovic. It seemed as if the José effect had started to show its worth, with his huge status in the footballing world helping persuade players from large clubs, to join a team who were set to play another season in the Europa League. Then there was the signing of Armenian Winger Henrikh Mkhitaryan, a player who scored 11 goals from a wing position at Dortmund in the 2015/2016 season. The next signing, however, was a bombshell in the footballing world. One which had been talked about, but not really believed by most. That was the world record signing of the dynamic Paul Pogba, a man once released by Sir Alex Ferguson during his Utd days. The signing was one which was appreciated by José Mourinho, for his footballing ability, as well as, the club owners, who were satisfied with the brand Pogba brought to the club.
August fast approached, and José’s new look United side started the season brightly, with a dramatic 2-1 Community Shield win over Champions, Leicester. His side then kicked off the Premier League season with a bang, by getting a 3-1 over Bournemouth, with a goal from Ibrahimovic. There were then more wins to follow, with a late Marcus Rashford winner at Hull, and positive 2-0 win over Southampton in Pogba’s debut. The first derby of the season then followed, with City facing Utd at Old Trafford. Henrikh Mkhitaryan stood out as playing very poorly, and a lacklustre Utd fell to a 2-1 defeat, with goals from Kevin De Bruyne and Kelechi Ihenacho. It looked as if José’s 4-2-3-1 was beginning to fall apart. However, he continued using the formation, which didn’t bring much joy. A 1-0 loss to Feyenoord in the Europa League frustrated fans, and more was to follow. With a shock 3-1 loss at Vicarage Road leaving United 7th in the table. Pogba played the game sitting far too deep, with the £89 Million signing failing to influence the game, or Utd’s poor performance. José said after the game that there was 3 factors which affected his sides performance, one of them being the referee, causing the typical flurry of “Moaning José” posts on social media. But, Utd marched on and ended up getting key points in tough games until mid October, including a fantastic 4-1 thrashing over Leicester at Old Trafford. A performance which brought back memories of the Fergie days on Sir Matt Busby Way, one which included a debut goal from the slow starting Paul Pogba.
On October the 10th, José’s side travelled to Stamford Bridge, to face the manager’s former side, Chelsea, who were now lead by Italian Antonio Conte. Mourinho decided to approach the game a lot differently, and opted to debut the 4-5-1 at Utd. Just 30 seconds in, Spanish winger Pedro Rodriguez rounded David De Gea to make it 1-0 at the Bridge. A nightmare start at José’s former club. Just 20 minutes later, Gary Cahill made it 2, and it looked over just 20 minutes into the game. Goals then followed from Eden Hazard and N’Golo Kante, whose goal highlighted serious problems in the defensive partnership of Chris Smalling and Marcos Rojo. Following the disastrous performance, Utd struggled to find their feet in the league again, and a frustrating goalless draw against Burnley at home further proved this. A 0-0 draw in a game which Utd had 20 shots on goal, and 11 on target, as well as 66% possession. Utd fans were beginning to grow more and more angry at the lack of flair and pace in their performances, with some even beginning to post ‘Jose Out’ posts on various forms of social media. Utd then had a solid run in all competitions up until March, with only the blip of a couple of losses in the Europa League, and the frustrating draws which were costing Utd 2 points a game. This run included a dramatic equaliser from Wayne Rooney in January, which saw the skipper break the all time scoring record at United with a fabulous late free-kick saving Utd an important point in the league.
By the end of February, Utd were sat 6th in the table, 12 points off of league leaders Chelsea. Some worries started to arise about United’s chances of Champions League qualification, but there was still hope with 13 games remaining in the league. There was also the EFL Cup win , which was sealed with a 2-1 win over Southampton in the final, which saw Mourinho win his first major trophy at the club. As well as, Utd’s Europa League run, which found its place in the Last 16 by this point, after brushing aside Saint Etienne. Mid way through March, Utd were dumped out of the competition they had won in the previous season, the FA Cup, when Chelsea broke down a defensive Utd, with a 1-0 win. United’s league season stumbled towards the end in a very bland fashion, with the low-scoring draw’s continuing all the way until April. Including 1-1’s with Swansea and Everton, as well as another 0-0 draw, this time with West Brom. United then continued their Europa League campaign with a two legged win over Anderlecht in the Quarter Finals.
Then there was José’s third head-to-head with his former club of the season, on the 16th of April. José lined his team up in a very similar way to Conte’s, with a three at the back. He also gave Ander Herrera the task of marking Belgian winger Eden Hazard, a man who had been in good form leading up to the game. The decisions seemed to be a tactical masterclass from The Special One, as Utd ran out 2-0 winners at Old Trafford. The ,all but confirmed, champions were outplayed and overran, showing a glimpse of what José can do ,tactically, in big games. Utd took the momentum from this game into the week, after overcoming Anderlecht in Extra Time, through Marcus Rashford. Sending the Reds into the Europa League semi-final, a belief started to creep in that Utd might be able to win the trophy, and get automatic Champions League Qualification. It seemed now as if José had put all his eggs in the Europa League basket, as Utd took their foot off the gas and got a pair of 1-1 and 0-0 draws with Manchester City and Swansea. This was further proved with the strong team and stellar performance produced in the first leg of the Semi-Final with Spanish outlet Celta Vigo, where another fantastic goal from Marcus Rashford separated the sides. United approached the next game in the league much like the City and Swansea games, with a weak Utd side being deservedly beaten 2-0 at the Emirates. But there was a positive to take from the game, with José handing Premier League debuts to Axel Tuanzebe and Scott McTominay, who both performed in the minutes they played. United confirmed their spot in the Europa League final with a 1-1 draw at OT, a frustrating game, however, with key defender Eric Bailly being sent off and subsequently being forced miss the final in Stockholm.
All eyes were on the final, now confirmed to be with Dutch side Ajax, and Mourinho approached the games against Spurs and Southampton in a very relaxed way. The results backed this up, with a 2-0 loss and 0-0 draw with the respected sides. José then blooded a lot of youth in the final game of the season against Crystal Palace, with Josh Harrop’s stunner giving Red’s fans an idea of years to come at Old Trafford. Following the game, José rushed down the tunnel, and missed the lap of honour, as well as, providing an extremely abrupt press conference, one of which he answered no questions from the press. This showed that José had his eyes firmly set on Stockholm, with the final just 4 days away. United approached the final a little more offensive than in previous European games, with a 4-3-3 rather than a 4-2-3-1. The formation seemed to work a treat, as Utd broke down a tentative Ajax, and came out with a 2-0 victory. The win saw José clinch his 3rd trophy of the season, as well as the pivotal achievement of Champions League qualification.
José ended the season with 3 trophies and Champions League qualification, something which no other club in the league can boast. He also managed to give multiple debuts to players, which silenced the “José doesn’t play youth” claims from the media. All in all, a fantastic first season for José, who Utd fans will hope can restore the club to its former glory days as soon as possible.
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