By John O’Leary
Jose Mourinho looks likely to hunt high and low for any way to fend off the critics after yet another goalless performance away from home against one of the Premier League’s Big Six. Although Paul Pogba’s injury absence was notable, it was certainly not the only reason Manchester United suffered a 1-0 defeat on Sunday. Mourinho’s deflection tactics drew attention towards talk of problems with injuries rather than his fit team’s problems on the pitch.
Another Failure to Score Can’t be Overlooked
Were he pressed, Mourinho may argue that Man United did actually look to attack at Chelsea FC more than they did at Liverpool last month. That game was the one which led to a wave of criticism being directed at the Portuguese coach for a distressing lack of ambition exhibited by his players on the field. The fact that his team has once more not managed to score in an away game against a league title rival cannot be ignored.
The Ninth Time Mourinho’s Team Didn’t Score
This last example, as any online sports betting guide will be happy to tell you, is the ninth out of ten games Man United has played away against the other big six teams and not managed to even score. The only goal his side managed to net in these matches was the one Wayne Rooney got in at Tottenham towards the end of last season, when Man United were already down with 2-0. The game finished at 2-1, with victory going to Tottenham.
He Seems to be Aiming Solely to Frustrate
Mourinho’s aim seems to be using smart sports psychology to frustrate Man United opponents, and hope to make it to halftime, after which they possibly try to squeeze a late win in, or, more often, simply look to shut the game down with a draw of 0-0.
This tactic worked when he was with Chelsea, and no more so than in the 1-0 win the team enjoyed against Man City in February of 2014, but more recently, it seems that Mourinho is really struggling to wrestle control in the bigger road games.
Comparatively speaking, before these past ten games at City, Liverpool, Tottenham, United, and Arsenal, in which his side struggled so terribly, the previous 25 saw just five losses.
His team only failed to score a goal in five of those games, averaging 1.3 goals per. In the ten games since, Mourinho’s Chelsea and Man United have averaged a pathetic 0.1 goals per game against the big six. While he may argue that you draw with your rivals and beat everyone else, this is not always the case with the teams that have the best overall records. The eventual champions are those who achieve wins in the big contests.