Flere interessante pointer fra Mourinho på dagens pressemøde:
Om Luke Shaw:
"Luke is not about changing my mind, it’s just the evolution or no evolution of his potential."
"I know Shaw since Southampton. Know his potential and quality. Can he be the way I want my players to be during games and training week? He made a big effort. He is free of minor injuries. The natural consequence is he will have his contract and will be a United player for years."
Stemmer meget godt overens med, hvad The Mirror skrev den anden dag. At han står foran en ny kontrakt.
Om Paul Pogba og hans position:
"I was laughing over the past week because I heard and watched, read a few things, and I’m not English but I think I understand English enough when you want to say box to box. But with some comments from some important people in football I got a little confused. For me box to box means box to box. You have to be good in this box and have to be good in that box. It means you have to defend well in this box, the physical condition and desire and stamina to go until the other box. In the other box you have to be good at scoring, creating, heading and so on. And when your team loses the ball you have to go to the other box. Now I’m confused when some people say box to box has to play free of defensive duties. That’s not a box to box. That’s a box in the box and stay in that box. Don’t move from that box! I think this country produced a lot of box to box players. I had the pleasure to coach some of them, but nowadays with some pundits, some agents, some family members, the concept of box to box is changing a little bit. It looks like we are going to a different concept. Box to box are not my words. I heard it for the first time in 2004 when I arrived. For me, with my Portuguese and trying to translate to the English I just think midfield players. For me Paul is a midfield player. He’s not a left back, he’s not a striker. When people ask his best position: he’s a midfield player. It depends on the tactical system but he will always be a midfielder. Then with so many opinions, and we are in a world of opinions, people can get confused. There is no confusion between me and Paul. It’s difficult to play a midfielder with more potential than Paul."
Jeg nægter at tro på, at Mourinho ikke arbejder med flere forskellige begreber inden for kategorien midtbanespillere, så jeg tror bare det er en gang BS for at undgå at skulle ud og sige noget ubehageligt. Men det er lidt håbløst, hvis han fortsat mener, at Pogba kan udfylde både en offensiv og defensiv nøglerolle på en 2-mands midtbane - især mod de store hold. Det er simpelthen for stor en mundfuld for både ham og Matic. Jeg håber virkelig, han kommer på andre tanker inden Liverpool og Chelsea kampene.