Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Jose Mourinho says Manchester United are ‘far’ away from playing how he wants

The United manager likened his squad building process to building and furnishing a house

Mark Critchley
Northern Football Correspondent
Friday 14 December 2018 12:43 GMT
Comments
Manchester United: A look back at 2018

Jose Mourinho believes Manchester United are “far” from being a team in his own image as he prepares for a meeting with Jürgen Klopp’s Liverpool on Sunday.

Likening his squad building process to building and furnishing a house, Mourinho claimed that he has more work to do before his United side reflects his philosophy.

Mourinho is in his third season at Old Trafford, having spent approximately £379m since his appointment in 2016.

Klopp has spent £243m in 2018 alone, though the major signings of Virgil van Dijk, Naby Keita and Alisson were offset by Philippe Coutinho’s £145m move to Barcelona.

The league leaders are meeting Klopp’s expectations of counter-attacking football, though Mourinho does not believe the same can be said of his side.

Asked how far away his team are from playing how he wants them to play, Mourinho simply said: “Far.

“It is not just about spending money and reinforcing the squad, a football team is more than that, a football team is not just about spending the money,” he explained.

“A football team is a little bit like a house too, a house is not just about buying new furniture. You have to do work in the house and when the house is ready, then you buy furniture.

“You spend money on the best possible furniture and then you’re ready to live in an amazing house.”

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in