We often feel as if Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has modelled himself on Sir Alex Ferguson. Not in terms of the style in which his teams play so much, as his way of dealing with and manipulating the media.
If this is the case, he hasn’t completely succeeded. Because while both of these great coaches like (or liked) to generate an ‘us vs the world’ mentality around their club, Fergie tended to be a bit more selective about picking his fights. Conversely, the Chelsea manager can come across like a spoilt child who argues the toss on every single decision.
Paul Scholes recently summed this up concisely when he wrote, in his weekly column for The London Evening Standard, about Fergie’s infamous rants:
People like to think it happened all the time but, believe me, in 19 years playing for him you recognised that he knew how to pick his moment.
Watching Chelsea against Liverpool on Tuesday night, my feeling was not so much that Jose Mourinho was looking for the opportune moments to appeal against a decision or make his presence felt. Rather for most of that 90 minutes, and the 30 minutes of extra-time that followed, Mourinho seemed to be under the impression that it was him who was refereeing the game.
Now the Chelsea boss could be in trouble again. The Daily Star says:
The Premier League are planning to write to Mourinho to ask him why he did not talk to the media before and after Chelsea’s 1-1 draw with Manchester City at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.
Mourinho’s vow of silence came after the FA banned star striker Diego Costa for three matches for stamping on Emre Can during the Blues’ 1-0 Capital Cup semi-final victory over Liverpool eight days ago.
We have to say that Mourinho has surprised us this season by admitting fault for his actions after criticising referee Kevin Friend in the Cup game against Watford at the turn of the year.
But, by and large, he still hints at conspiracies against his club way too often. Perhaps this attitude is required to drive him onto the success that he always has. But it certainly grates on neutral viewers who sometimes wish he would demonstrate a little more humility. Because this almost weekly show of defiance is getting a bit boring now. And the question is, is it really necessary?
What do you think? Is Jose’s moaning a necessary part of his success?