The manager of Tottenham Hotspur, Jose Mourinho has disagreed with the coach of Manchester United, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer over the importance of winning trophies. Solskjaer downplayed the importance of winning trophies during a press conference ahead of a Premier League game between Tottenham and Manchester United scheduled to take place on Sunday, April 11 at 16:30.
In reaction to Solskjaer’s assertion against prioritizing the winning of trophies at football clubs, Jose Mourinho insisted that Solskjaer’s opinion contradicted the winning mentality of the former coach of Manchester United, Sir Alex Ferguson.
Sir Alex Ferguson coached Manchester United between 1986 and 2013. During that period, the club enjoyed unprecedented success both domestically and on the continent. The 79-year-old Scottish tactician has won more trophies than any coach in the history of the game and he is regarded as one of the greatest coaches in the history of the game.
Hence, Jose Mourinho who is regarded as one of the few coaches in the world that always wins at least a major title in every club that he goes to, believes that Sir Ferguson would not agree with Solskjaer’s assertion.
Unlike Jose Mourinho who has won virtually everything in club football as a coach, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer who started coaching in 2008 is yet to win any major title as a football manager. The biggest club title the 48-year-old Norwegian tactician has won as a coach was the Norwegian Football Cup in 2013 for Molde.
Since he was appointed the manager of Manchester United in 2018, Solskjaer has not been able to win any title for the club despite leading the club to at least three semi-finals.
Despite how most fans of Manchester United want the club to return to the culture of winning titles, Solskjaer whose team is on the verge of qualifying for the Europa League semi-final stage claimed that winning trophies is an “ego thing”.
While accepting that Solskjaer is entitled to his opinion, Jose Mourinho said he thinks differently from the Norwegian coach, noting that Solskjaer’s assertion was not an insult to anyone.
“It’s his (Solskjaer’s) opinion,” Mourinho said. “I’m pretty sure his big boss Sir Alex had a different opinion about it. But I respect what Solskjaer thinks. I think different.
“Freedom of thinking, freedom of ideas, and if that is what he thinks that is fine by me. It’s not a problem for me, he’s not being disrespectful to anyone.
“But I repeat I believe his big boss, and the biggest in Premier League history, has a different view about that.”
Jose Mourinho will face Ole Gunnar Solskjaer for the second time in the Premier League this season on Sunday. The last time they met in the league, Tottenham Hotspur trashed Manchester United 6-1.
At that point, Tottenham were ahead of Manchester United on the league table, and Spurs were seen as title contenders. But now, the reverse is the case. Jose Mourinho and his boys are 6th on the league table, struggling to get into the top four, while Manchester United are second on the league table battling to unseat first-placed Manchester City.
“The three points are there to fight for.”
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) April 9, 2021
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