Mourinho looking like yesterday's man

Jose Mourinho is looking increasingly out of touch with the modern game after the Manchester United manager's latest damning assessment of his players, according to the Sunday Supplement panel.

A lacklustre United were fortunate to draw 0-0 with Crystal Palace at Old Trafford on Saturday as they fell 14 points behind leaders Manchester City.

The result and nature of the performance came after Mourinho had claimed United lacked "character", with modern players acting like "spoilt kids".

The Portuguese was also damning in his post-match analysis after dropping another two points against Palace, questioning the "heart" of his players.

United's struggles were discussed on the Sunday Supplement, and the Daily Star's chief sports writer Jeremy Cross believes Mourinho has become a "tired, old guy".

"That dressing room is in a bit of a state," he said. "It all seems very torn, and the one person to blame for that is the manager. He creates an atmosphere that is reflective of the way he behaves.

"He makes the point in midweek that young players nowadays are mollycoddled, which is a fair point but then he names four of his own players, which seemed a bizarre and dangerous thing to do.

"One of the players he named was Anthony Martial, who has basically kept him in a job the last four or five weeks.

"Another player he mentioned was Luke Shaw, who revealed not long ago he nearly lost his leg and has done really well to get back in the England squad."

United dropped to seventh in the Premier League after failing to score in a top-flight home meeting with Crystal Palace for the first time since October 1970.

A first home clean sheet of the season wasn't enough to lift the mood, with the players booed off at the full-time whistle by a section of supporters.

With the club now faced with an uphill task to qualify for next season's Champions League, Mourinho called out his players saying they had not attached enough importance on the game, and said there was not enough desire shown.

"If they're cosseted, over-protected, over-sensitive players, him saying there's no heart and no desire, what's that going to do to them? That's not going to help them," argued the Mail On Sunday's chief sports writer Oliver Holt.

"If they're not robust individuals, then he's just making the situation worse. I found it a damning analysis of the modern player, and of players within his own squad.

"He comes across as somebody who distrusts young players. One of the many great things about Ferguson was his ability to adapt from generation to generation, to get the best out of younger players.

"He loved bringing youth through, but Mourinho speaks like someone who distrusts these players. He's at a club with a magnificent record of bringing through young players.

"He talks of young players with disdain, and it is a really interesting window into the problems that there are at Manchester United.

"In style on the pitch and attitude off it, Mourinho looks more and more like yesterday's man."

Credit: Skysports.com