It shouldn’t be like this- watching Manchester United play football shouldn’t be drudgery, but here we are.
It shouldn’t be like this- watching a Jose Mourinho news conference shouldn’t be an exercise in observing human misery, but indeed that is where we are.
Mourinho is at his best when he’s playing mind games against his opponents and giving witty, snarky quips to the media. This season, his press conferences have been arguably more defensive and hostile than ever before.
Last night, after yet another uninspiring result, Mourinho had very little to say. That’s a shame because he’s typically very entertaining when he’s in the mood to be loquacious. At this point, there is very little he can say as the results speak for themselves.
United are already nine points off the pace for the Premier League title after just ten matches. Mourinho’s 18-19 United have taken as many points from the first seven matches as David Moyes’ side did in ’13-’14 and he was sacked that April. Winless in their last four, the schedule is about to get harder.
A date with Chelsea in league play looms as does two Champions League group stage clashes with Cristiano Ronaldo and Juventus.
What’s happening at Old Trafford right now isn’t good for anyone, and it’s certainly not enjoyable to watch. However, that doesn’t mean Jose Mourinho is going to get sacked any time soon. According to an ESPN report today, the club ownership (the Glazer family) still back him.
Eight days ago, Executive Vice President Ed Woodward gave him a public vote of confidence during a call with investors. In January, Mourinho signed a contract extension that keeps him at the club until 2020. In other words, he’s not going anywhere until things gets decidedly worse. United is currently tenth in the table, five points off the pace for a top four slot.
That’s when you might see change- if/when United see their chances for a top four finish in serious peril. We’re not there yet, but a few more losses and then it’s an entirely different story. It’s possible that Jose Mourinho could be sacked again in December of his third season at a club, just like last time, with Chelsea in December of 2015.
While it’s obvious that United need a change, badly, it’s just not going to happen next week, or after the next bad loss, or anything in that kind of time frame. That’s really a shame too because this campaign has gone just as poorly as one could have imagined during the nightmarish preseason.
A lot of what Jose Mourinho said and did this summer was an indicator that we could be in for full on third season syndrome, and here we are. Replacing Mourinho won’t magically make everything alright overnight. (In my opinion, I think Gary Neville is right when he articulated what he thinks the real problem at Old Trafford is).
However, changing course now could still save their season. At the very least, it likely can’t get worse. What’s going on right now is certainly not working, at any level, so you got to least try something different.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net and TheBank.News, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, a former writer for NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, is currently a regular contributor to SB Nation, WGN CLTV and Chicago Now.
Follow him on Twitter, Instagram, Sound Cloud and YouTube. The content of his cat’s Instagram account is unquestionably superior to any and all of his.