Jose Mourinho's suggestion that there was something going on behind the scenes at Manchester United still rings true to this day.
The Portuguese manager's time at Old Trafford was widely viewed as a failure despite him winning the Europa League as he didn't deliver a Premier League title, something United are still waiting for. And it seems they're actually further away from reaching that level as their glaring discrepancies were highlighted on Tuesday night with the Red Devils crashing out of the Champions League.
In the wake of the defeat by Atletico Madrid, the discussion around Mourinho's tenure at the club has been reopened and whether the job he did was as bad as it was made out given how United have fared since. The writing was on the wall for the former Chelsea boss when he started openly criticising the players and the club, which soured what he actually achieved on the pitch.
Mourinho was aware that it "made him sound crazy" but he was adamant that finishing runners-up in the Premier League with United was one of his best achievements as manager given the turmoil that existed within the club. Mourinho had reportedly signed an agreement with United to prevent him from speaking about the terms of his dismissal.
"If I tell you, for example, that I consider one of the best jobs of my career was to finish second with Man United in the Premier League, you will say, 'this guy is crazy,'" Mourinho said in 2019. "'He won 25 titles and he is saying that a second position was one of his best achievements?'
"I keep saying this because people don't know what is going on behind the scenes. And sometimes we, in this side of the cameras, analyse things with a different perspective."
"Crazy" seemed an appropriate word looking at Mourinho's trophy cabinet, one of the best managers of the last 20 years who has achieved everything in the game. But perhaps the 59-year-old's claim has some legs to it looking at the state of the club in 2022.
How should Jose Mourinho's time at Manchester United be remembered? Comment below
United's season has been a disaster right from the get-go with constant claims of disharmony in the dressing room. Ralf Rangnick has been unable to steady the ship following Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's sacking and it's clear United needs to be gutted out before the club can return to where it was under Sir Alex Ferguson.
Mourinho's style of football was put under intense scrutiny at Man United but the Roma boss always stood by the fact that it produced results. "It is very easy to play well and not win," The Portuguese said. "It is very easy to be behind a certain idea of certain football without results.
"The people that win and the people who win consistently - you can win isolated and then disappear - the people who win consistently have a different idea about that. Where are the young ones with a real impact on results? Where are they?
"My wish is that the ones who are starting, like I, Pep, Ancelotti was, I hope they transform their image and reputation in results. Because that is what stays forever and what makes you belong to a certain level."
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