When Jose Mourinho managed Manchester United he threw his own left back, Luke Shaw, under the bus on several occasions. Shaw was criticized quite a bit under Mourinho’s predecessor, Louis van Gaal as well, but the Portugese kicked it up a notch.
The 58-year-old would call out Shaw for his form, fitness, dedication and professionalism, among other topics. The Special One’s criticism hasn’t stopped while he’s been working as a Euro2020 pundit for radio station talkSPORT. Mourinho picked apart Shaw’s set-piece delivery during England’s 1-0 group stage win over the Czech Republic, labeling it “very poor.”
Now Luke Shaw has returned fire, saying that he has taken up residence inside Mourinho’s head, and that his former boss cannot move on.
“There is no hiding that we didn’t get on,” Shaw said ahead of tomorrow night’s knockout round match against Germany.
“Clearly I am in his head a lot and he thinks about me a lot. I don’t know why he is still going on and wanting to point at me. I don’t feel like the set-pieces … were as ‘dramatically bad’ as he says.
“I think he was a brilliant manager but, you know, the past is the past. It is time to move on. I am trying to move on but, obviously, he can’t.”
Luke Shaw said he isn’t the only one who has noticed this. His Three Lions teammates also think Mourinho’s fixation is quite strange.
“He continuously talks about me, which I find quite strange,” Luke Shaw continued on. “Even some of the lads have said ‘what’s his problem’ and ‘why does he keep talking?’ He just needs to move on.”
Mourinho will assume managerial duties at AS Roma this upcoming season. Shaw and United open the season against Everton on August 7.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank, partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune.