Mourinho: I’ve ‘never had’ fans like Man United’s

Daniel Storey

Jose Mourinho claims he was stung into action by Manchester United’s 4-0 humbling by Chelsea at the weekend.

United bounced back from that heavy loss by edging a tight derby against Manchester City to claim a place in the EFL Cup quarter-finals.

Manager Mourinho felt it was time to show his fighting qualities and thanked fans and players for helping deliver an important result.

“It was a big defeat with numbers that the history of this club does not deserve,” he said. “I felt deeply for the fans because they were still supporting. It is easy to be a Man Utd fan when you are winning the treble or five titles in seven years, not so much when you are losing 4-0.

“That’s why I am proud today, the spirit of the supporters is phenomenal here, I never had people like these ones. The love the people have for the club is bigger than bad results and bigger than three bad seasons.

“We had to give something back and the players gave everything against City. Step by step we became more confident in the second half, we started pressing higher, the tempo improved and we had a greater intensity. This is not the Champions League final, it is only the EFL Cup, but to win against City gives everyone a better feeling.”