MANCHESTER UNITED’S stuttering start to the new season is a result of Jose Mourinho having to unpick the work done by Louis van Gaal.
Mourinho believes some players who worked under predecessor LVG are confused as he tries to tell them one thing while they remain stuck in the Dutchman’s philosophy.
He believes Van Gaal wanted to think too much for his players and Mourinho is trying to get them to act instinctively.
But this is leading to the players falling between two stools at the moment.
He is trying to get the team to play an entirely different style to LVG’s sideways and backwards passes.
Mourinho, for example, wants the full-backs to push on and look forward.
Van Gaal told them that the first thing they should do is pass the ball inside.
This is leading to frustration for the manager and the players, as was witnessed at Watford at the weekend.
Van Gaal infamously said early during his United reign that he coached the players in the mind — even in pre-season his stars would go to bed exhausted with the overload of information they had to take in.
Mourinho is trying to change all this by encouraging the players to simply enjoy their training, putting the emphasis all on ball work — but that is taking time.
United visit Northampton in the EFL Cup third round tonight, when Mourinho will continue to work on getting LVGs ideas out of his players. Things appeared to be working, with four straight wins — including the Community Shield — from the start of the season.
But Mourinho knew there was still plenty of work to do to get the team playing how he wants and three defeats have followed.
The Special One has never lost four games in a row as a manager.
While there is alarm among many fans — coming on the back of last season’s disappointing league and European campaigns — it remains calm in the Old Trafford boardroom.
Not only are the power brokers convinced they have the right man going forward, they also believe he is the closest thing they could get to Sir Alex Ferguson himself.
While it was rumoured Sir Bobby Charlton was opposed to Mourinho’s appointment, he was the one who welcomed him to the training ground.
The two had a long chat there about what it means to be the United boss.
Players might be alarmed at being criticised but the board are behind Mourinho’s methods, which they believe will shake United out of this three-year slumber.
It is likely to be a much-changed United team tonight from Sunday with the visit of champions Leicester on Saturday lunchtime.
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Marcus Rashford could start in any of the three positions off the striker in a 4-2-3-1 formation, and spend some of the night leading the line.
In the 3-1 defeat at Watford, he had to operate in a wide role and scored — with Zlatan Ibrahimovic up front and Wayne Rooney taking the No 10 role.
But 18-year-old Rashford says he could also operate in that position in behind the lone front man, having done so at Under-16 level.
Rashford said: “I don’t regret playing in that position because it means now I can still play there if I need to — No 10, on both wings and up front as well.
“It means I have more in my armoury when it comes to the matches.”
Michael Carrick is tonight set for his first start since August’s 2-1 Community Shield win over Leicester.
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