Robson: Mourinho Dismissal Was Ridiculous

Former Manchester United captain Bryan Robson would be "amazed" if further sanctions follow for Jose Mourinho, after the Reds boss was sent to the stands in the dying moments of Saturday’s match.

The manager was punished by referee Craig Pawson for encroaching onto the pitch at Southampton in injury time, when his team were resolutely defending a slender 1-0 lead. Robson, like other observers, was aghast when he saw the official direct Mourinho away from the dugout, especially when he later discovered the reason why.

"When I saw it on TV, I thought it was an absolute joke," Robson told ManUtd.com. "I'll be amazed if he gets a ban or a fine for that. I think the officials went way overboard by sending him to the stand.

"I don't know what the officials are thinking about. Throughout the last year or so, I've seen managers like [Jurgen] Klopp and [Antonio] Conte run about like lunatics, out of their box, down the side of the pitch and not a thing has been made of it - it's called passion for the team.

"But because Mourinho stepped just over the touchline, they sent him to the stands. It'll be a disgrace if he gets fined or banned and made to watch games from the stands over the coming weeks."

Speaking from his experience of managing Middlesbrough and West Bromwich Albion in the Premier League, Robson feels that the context needs to be taken into consideration when referees enforce that particular rule about where a boss happens to be standing.

"The regulation is there and as a manager you know that," he accepted. "You basically stick to that and it does play on all the managers' minds that you can't step out of your box.

"In the heat of the game, you can stray outside your technical area - everybody does. But as long as it's not over the top where you're actually going onto the pitch, then you can't be sending managers off, banning them and fining them for the sort of incident we saw with Mourinho at St Mary's. That would be ridiculous.

"In that situation, when you’re 1-0 up in injury time, who's going to be looking at the white line? As a manager, you’re looking at the game and trying to get information to your players. If Mourinho had actually gone on to the pitch fully, then yes, ok - the guidelines are there and we all know the rules. But he didn't do that.

"I know that if we went back through videos of every single game of this season, every single manager would be sent to the stands for going out of their technical area and in a way that was much worse than what Mourinho did yesterday."

Although he’s clearly aggrieved about the incident, Robson believes the United boss will still be focused on the task in hand – maintaining the strong opening to the campaign, which continues with the midweek trip to CSKA Moscow in the UEFA Champions League.

"The manager will be annoyed by the situation at Southampton - it’s something he could have done without - but it will not distract him from preparing the team and getting on with the next game.

"It's been a great, solid start to the season. The group of players are working really hard for each other. Even when he's rotated the squad in certain games, the boys have all done their jobs. They look as if they're all enjoying their football. Hopefully they'll just keep concentrating, keep working and keep the run going."