Despite reaching the FA Cup final, the general consensus is that current boss Louis van Gaal is on borrowed time at Old Trafford. The style of football under the Dutchman has been largely uninspiring, and the majority of fans are calling for his head.
The speculation surrounding José Mourinho moving to Manchester United continues to persist, but many fans are unhappy with this prospect as well. Many believe that he doesn’t blood youngsters, and that he is nothing more than a chequebook manager.
Many also state that he never stays at a club for more than three years and that his style of football is not much different to what they are watching at the moment. These are the three most common criticisms levelled at the Portuguese manager, not counting his controversial personality. An in-depth look at the clubs he has managed so far might offer an insight as to how much truth is in these allegations.
Porto (2002 – 04)
The club where Mourinho made his name, but it would probably be a bit unfair to judge him on the style of play here, as he won the Champions League using tactical know-how to outwit supposedly technically superior opponents. It wasn’t pretty to watch, and there were several accusations of diving and attempting to intimidate officials, but the fact is that it worked. A team who were rank outsiders ended up as European champions, and this was while Mourinho was still learning his trade.
Porto didn’t have an open chequebook to buy whomever they wanted, certainly not when compared with Spanish and English clubs’ budgets. They did, however, have a team of players who went on to achieve great things after leaving the club. Some of their squad, such as Deco, Carlos Secretário and Benni McCarthy had been brought in from other clubs at moderate expense. A number of their players such as Ricardo Carvalho, Vítor Baía and Jorge Costa had been through the Porto youth system many years previously, and were established in the side by the time Mourinho took over.
There were young players to whom Mourinho gave debuts during his time in charge, such as Carlos Alberto, Hugo Almeida, Bruno Moraes and Ricardo Costa, all of whom left after him. The name most people may remember is Helder Postiga, who had played a handful of times when the “Special One” arrived. Following his appointment, he made Postiga the focal point of his team’s attack, despite the fact that he was only 19 at the time. He did so well that Tottenham bought him in the summer of 2003, meaning that he missed their Champions League triumph a year later. Postiga failed at White Hart Lane, but even early in his career, Mourinho showed that he was prepared to give youth a chance – if they are good enough.
Porto was only ever going to be a stepping stone for a man as ambitious as Mourinho, and after winning the Champions League he could have gone to any league in Europe. He chose to come to England’s top league.
Chelsea (2004 – 07)
Despite the unprecedented spending that was taking place in the first few years of Roman Abramovich’s rule, Mourinho gave debuts to a number of players who had come through the Chelsea academy in his first spell. These players were Sam Hutchinson, Lenny Pidgeley Steven Watt, Anthony Grant and Jimmy Smith. Given that only Hutchinson has played a Premier League game since Mourinho left in 2007, the chances are that unless you follow a Football League club, you won’t have heard of any of them.
You could point to the fact that he let Robert Huth leave the club, but despite being an integral part of Leicester City’s amazing season, most of his career has been played at mid-table clubs. There isn’t a manager on earth who would have picked him ahead of John Terry, Ricardo Carvalho or William Gallas at that time.
The players to whom he didn’t give a chance haven’t exactly set the world alight either, with most of them either plying their trade at lower league clubs or retired. Danny Hollands, Craig Rocastle, Danny Woodwards, Sebastian Kneißl and Joe Tillen are not exactly names that roll off the tongue. Jack Cork is one exception, having played in the Premier League for Southampton, and now Swansea, for whom he scored a brilliant goal against Liverpool recently. When the people ahead of you are Frank Lampard, Claude Makélélé and Michael Ballack, it’s not hard to see why he never got a chance.
The argument about Mourinho being a chequebook manager has some merit; hhe has bought some very expensive players in his time. It’s also fair to say, however, that he invested in a fair bit of youth during his time at Stamford Bridge. Players such as Arjen Robben, John Obi Mikel, Lassana Diarra and Saloman Kalou have had long careers at the top level, even those that didn’t get much playing time under him. He brought in a few others like Scott Sinclair, Michael Mancienne and Jeffrey Bruma who never quite fulfilled the potential he saw in them, but still went on to play at a high level.
Even after Mourinho left, the managers who followed him didn’t have much of a habit of integrating youth players. During this period, Chelsea could outbid any club in world football if they wanted a player, and Abramovich made it clear he wanted instant results. This meant buying, rather than developing talent. This is probably why the last Chelsea player to come out of their academy that went on to become a club legend is still John Terry.
Mourinho showed that if they are good enough, regardless of their age, he will give them a chance. Most of the youth players who were available to him during this time, as shown by the paths their later careers took, clearly weren’t good enough.
What Mourinho did with Chelsea was play to their strengths, as they already had a very solid defensive unit. He added to this, with players like Carvalho and Ashley Cole strengthening a squad that had already finished second in the league before he even took over as manager.
It has also been alleged that he doesn’t play attacking football, and only favours a defensive set-up. Have a look at some of the results in Mourinho’s first two seasons, where they scored four or more goals on several occasions, and two of those teams were Barcelona and Bayern Munich. It’s an improvement on United’s current plight, given that they have only managed it twice this season, both against second-rate European teams.
To suggest Mourinho doesn’t know how to play attractive attacking football is a myth. The reality is that when he needs a team to defend, this part of the job is his speciality; he knows how to protect a lead if necessary. Given how United defended at West Ham recently, it looks like they could probably use his help.
Despite Chelsea having a less than impressive start to the season, it was still something of a shock when his departure was announced in September 2007. It would not have been as much of a surprise, however, if we had known what we know now about Roman Abramovich’s hiring and firing policy. With a different owner in charge, he probably would have had a job for life.
Inter (2008 – 10)
After a nine month break from football, Mourinho took over the reins at Inter, who were the dominant force in Serie A back then. He kept them ticking over nicely in the league, and ended their 45-year wait to be crowned Champions of Europe. The squad itself didn’t need much surgery, but he added a few pieces to the jigsaw such as Samuel Eto’o, Goran Pandev, Diego Milito and Wesley Sneijder.
During Mourinho’s two seasons in charge, Inter hit 187 goals in all competitions, regularly hitting opponents for three and four goals at a time. For a so-called defensive minded coach managing in a league seen as equally defensive, this is quite an achievement.
Much like at Chelsea, even though the youth system at Inter didn’t have a lot of prospects, he gave debuts to a few players who have gone on to have varying degrees of success. Rene Khrin and Giulio Donati are now playing at Granada and FC Mainz, whereas Alen Stevanović now plays for Partizan Belgrade, following a five year spell with Torino.
During Mourinho’s tenure, there were two players who will be familiar to followers of the Premier League. Marko Arnautović has had an impressive season at Stoke City, and was on loan at the San Siro from Dutch side FC Twente dring the 2009 – 10 season. Even though he only made a few appearances (no surprise given the attackers Inter had back then), he impressed enough for German side Werder Bremen to buy him later that year. Arnautović was, however, the only young player Mourinho brought to the club during his time there.
Newcastle United fans will remember Davide Santon, the Italian left-back who impressed during his time at St James’ Park, and he is now back at Inter. Mourinho gave the 18-year-old Santon his full debut in a Champions League game, and quickly made him a part of the first team squad. During his two years as manager, the full-back made 35 appearances and it would have probably been more had it not been for a knee injury that caused him to miss almost half a season.
Mario Balotelli had already made a number of appearances for Inter before Mourinho arrived, but his career really took off under the Portuguese manager. Despite only being 18, and competing for a place with several top class internationals, Balotelli made more than 70 appearances under the “Special One”. Not bad for someone who apparently doesn’t give youth a chance, especially as the striker is hardly setting the world on fire at the moment.
There was one youth prospect Mourinho let go who has now gone on to greater things. In 2009, 22-year-old centre-back Leonardo Bonucci was allowed to join Bari. He did so well that Juventus bought him the following summer, and he has been a vital part of a side that has just won their fifth consecutive league title. He is also a regular for the Italian national team, and has since captained both club and country.
It’s easy to say that this was a mistake, but some players don’t develop until they are playing regularly. With players such as Lúcio, Walter Samuel, Iván Córdoba and Marco Materazzi ahead of him, he wasn’t likely to break through in the near future.
Overall, his time at Inter reflects the same pattern as at Chelsea. He gave a number of players their chance, and the ones who were good enough went to play at the top level. There were others who were not given their chance such as Gabriele Puccio, Aiman Napoli, Sebastian Carlsén, Lorenzo Crisetig, Vid Belec, Juri Toppan and Kerlon. Puccio and Toppan are currently free agents. Apart from Crisetig, who has had a steady career in Serie A, none of these players have done anything to suggest they were worth a gamble in the first place.
Having won every trophy available to him, Mourinho left the San Siro to take charge at one of the most demanding clubs in world football. During the last 25 years only Roberto Mancini has spent longer in charge of the club, and if Real Madrid hadn’t come calling, even that might not be the case.
It seems unfair, however, to say that Mourinho doesn’t blood youngsters or that he has no faith at all in youth.
