José Mourinho has mischievously suggested he could be in line for a fourth Premier League winner’s medal after finishing as runners up with Manchester United in 2018 if Manchester City are stripped of their title.
Mourinho, whose Fenerbahce side host his former club in the Europa League on Thursday, also said he believed United had given Erik ten Hag “trust and stability” not afforded to him at Old Trafford.
Mourinho was sacked by United a week before Christmas in 2018 despite securing the Europa League and League Cup in his first season and finishing second in the league a year later – 19 points behind City – in what Mourinho has described as one of his best achievements. City could be stripped of their title after the hearing into alleged breaches of Premier League financial rules. The club deny wrongdoing.
Mourinho, asked whether United had changed, said: “Honestly, I didn’t lose one minute thinking about it. I wish the best to Man United since the moment I left. I left with a good feeling to the club, with a good feeling to the fans and I want the best for them, so if things are not going amazingly well for them it’s not something that makes me happy.
“But at the same time, I have no time and it doesn’t make sense for me to be thinking about what happened, what didn’t happen.
“What happened, for sure, because it’s very objective, is that they keep faith in the coach [Ten Hag], they support the coach, the coach is staying season after season and that means stability, it means trust. They are giving him conditions to keep developing his job.
“That was different in relation to me because we won Europa League, we finished second in the Premier League. I think we still have a chance to win that league because maybe they punish Man City with points and maybe we win that league and they have to pay me the bonus and give me the medal.”
Mourinho, who revealed he was not approached by the Football Association about becoming the new England manager, said United and Tottenham should be viewed as the favourites for the Europa League even though Ten Hag’s side have started with draws against Porto and Twente.
“This new format will allow the top teams to qualify,” Mourinho said. “No problem for a top team to lose three or four matches out of eight, because then they will win three or four, make 12 points easily and they will qualify. If I have to say now which are the two biggest candidates to win the Europa League, it’s easy: Man United and Tottenham.
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“Premier League is a different level of quality, it’s a different level of intensity, it’s a different level of pace, it’s a different level of tactical culture, it’s a different level of everything. So tomorrow I think we are going to play against one of the two strongest teams.”
Mourinho’s last job in England ended with his sacking by Tottenham days before they were due to face City in the 2021 Carabao Cup final. This summer he signed a two-year deal with Fenerbahce worth a reported £10m a season, but he hinted he would like to return to the Premier League one day.
Asked why he thought United are continuing to struggle under Ten Hag, Mourinho said: “Maybe you English guys think I’m bluffing, playing mind games. I’m not playing anything: they have a better team than results are showing. I studied them the maximum I could. We watched everything in the Premier League, Twente and Porto – there is work there.
“They will succeed sooner or later. Hopefully sooner and before one day I go back to the Premier League and they become my opponents. At this moment they are just my opponents for one match.”
