Manchester United news: Jose Mourinho promises title tilt as Red Devils turn tide
Confident Old Trafford manager wants the Premier League rivals to feel the full force of his rapidly improving Reds
JOSE MOURINHO has warned that Manchester United are bang up for a title challenge.
Their results have not reflected the performances of late but the 4-0 Europa League mauling of Feyenoord on Thursday was coming.
Now the Old Trafford boss wants Premier League teams to start feeling the full force of his rapidly improving Reds, starting with West Ham.
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Many might think the title race is already run for the Red Devils, who are down in sixth and nine points behind leaders Chelsea.
But according to Mourinho it has only just begun. He said: “We know that the game is not over.”
And the Special One recounted his own experience at Stamford Bridge when he last won the title there just two seasons ago, remembering his side let slip a ten-point lead over Manchester City.
Oh, and he had a little sideways dig at Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger in the process.
Mourinho said: “When I won the last title 18 years ago — sorry, 18 months ago — I had ten points advantage and then in one month I had the same points as Man City. We lost ten points in one month.
“I think it was the end of December or the beginning of January and we’d lost ten points. Then we recovered and won that title 18 years ago — sorry, 18 months ago.
“You can recover points. Others can lose points. What we need to do is go on a run of winning five games in a row.
“During the season there are moments when everything goes against you and moments where everything goes in your favour.
“We know the game is not over but the reality is, there is a distance. And many quality teams.
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“We play another difficult game on Sunday and let’s see if we can get the three points.”
United are certainly on the up, even if two wins in nine league games suggests otherwise.
In truth, that 4-0 defeat at Chelsea aside, they have played well since that 3-1 away defeat at Watford in September.
Mourinho is a much more upbeat figure now because he can see his plans coming together.
He said: “If you play badly and win, people might be happy in the short term but it gives you no guarantee of a good future.
“If, as we have found recently, you are playing well but not winning, it might not feel good in the short term. And it might leave you in a bad position in the table but it gives you a future.
“If you’re playing well then you are close to victories and all the time you are building something.
“The most important thing is we keep reaching a high performance level then the results will start to follow on a regular basis.”
Talking of futures, United’s £57.6million French striker Anthony Martial may find his of the short-term variety — as Mourinho concedes he is running out of chances to prove himself.
Last season’s 17-goal top scorer is a shadow of his former self. He is in and out the team and on Thursday was not even in the squad.
United have plenty of options in the three behind a lone striker and under-performers like Martial are not going to be picked.
Mourinho said: “In our squad, especially in these positions, we have Mkhitaryan, Lingard, Depay, Mata, Rashford.
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“These are probably the positions where we have more options.
“You have one opportunity, you have two, you have three. If you don’t bite then somebody comes and takes the bait.
“The way the team played last season was probably more adaptive to Anthony. He was probably more comfortable playing that way, at that intensity.”