Will Power

Saturday, February 24, 2018

Jose's Press Conference Round-up


Jose Mourinho addressed the media on Friday afternoon ahead of Manchester United's Premier League clash with Chelsea at Old Trafford on Sunday.

The boss discussed a range of topics from facing his former club to the professionalism of Paul Pogba and his faith in Scott McTominay.

Read the main points from his press conference below...

ALWAYS A BIG GAME
"For the past 10-15 years, Manchester United versus Chelsea are big matches. This is one more - different circumstances because many times these were matches for the title and this time I think us and them would agree that's not the case. But we both play for the top four and it's a big game regardless of what's at stake. Last season, they were fighting to be champions and we were not even fighting to be in the top four but it was still a big game."

JUST ANOTHER GAME FOR JOSE
"To play against Chelsea means less and less and less over the years, so of course I left already a couple of years ago and next season three years ago and the year later four years ago. So, I hope step by step that feeling of 'I was the Chelsea manager' or 'I was their manager' for them disappears. The real meaning of it is that it's two of the best teams in England and two of the biggest clubs playing one more match."

INJURY UPDATE
"Ander [Herrera] is out, I don't know the final diagnosis but I know he'll be out for a few weeks. I don't know how many is few - two, three, four, five, six weeks - I don't know, but a few weeks for sure. Coming back from injury - nobody else."

POSITIVE GAME FOR PAUL
"You saw the game against Sevilla - I think it's always more difficult to come from the bench than to start. A player when he's starting the game has a different kind of preparation for it and it's easier to be on the bench and to come on even without warming up minute 15, minute 20, and to get into the pace of the game is not easy. I think he [Paul Pogba] had a very positive game for us and sometimes details are details but sometimes players on the bench take five minutes to be ready to play. They don't have shinpads, they don't have the strapping, they don't have a shirt, they don't have this, they don't have that. He took 10 seconds to be ready to come to the pitch, which showed the professionalism that in spite of being on the pitch that he was ready to play and help the team which he did."

PLEASED WITH ROM'S GOALS RETURN
"Twenty-one goals is not bad at all and I don't analyse the players' performances the same way you [journalists] do. I have other points of analysis and I'm happy with Romelu's performances, even when he doesn't score goals."

TRUSTING IN McTOMINAY
"I think I don't give trust for free. I think it's the other way around. I don't think it's about the manager trusting the player. I think it's the player making the manager trust him. It's as simple as that. Sometimes it looks like we have to give everything to the players and the players have to give nothing back to us. I don't think that way. I think the confidence and the trust that I show towards Scott, he's earned it since day one since he came to the first team training sessions step by step. Of course with a lot to learn, of course with a long way to go, even now after - I would say - eight starts, something like that. He is a lot to learn, but since the first moment, he was earning that with his way to perform and of course he will have bad matches and make mistakes, of course he will be on the bench, of course he will not be selected. But I know that when I want him to play, I know the kind of mentality, I know the player that I am developing, I know the qualities that are going to make him a really good player. I know what he's really good at, I know where he has to improve and I think he's going to be a really good player."

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