.jpg "Jose Mourinho")
Having largely dominated their game against West Brom on Sunday, Manchester United were left clinging on to see out a 2-1 win against the 19th best team in the league.
With two goals in the first 35 minutes courtesy of Romelu Lukaku and Jesse Lingard, it looked as though it was going to be an easy afternoon for Jose Mourinho’s team. Yet United sleepwalked their way through much of the second half and had plenty of pressure to deal with in the final 15 minutes after Gareth Barry pulled a goal back for the home team.
Social media was awash with frustrated United supporters at the final whistle, with the fans still waiting for a reaction to the poor display against Manchester City the weekend before.
Instead, they’ve seen a 1-0 win over Bournemouth and an unconvincing victory over West Brom. Yet these are the sort of results they would have loved to have seen in the four previous seasons, when United couldn’t buy a win in games against weaker opposition all too often, regardless of how much they dominated.
Mourinho won two trophies for the club last season, has guided them into the knockout phase of the Champions League, and has them second in the Premier League. Having finished seventh, fourth, fifth and sixth in the seasons since Sir Alex Ferguson retired, this is clear progress.
United could certainly attack more than they do, especially in the big games, but for all the fuss made about Mourinho parking the bus, only Manchester City have scored more goals than them. Chelsea, the team three points below United, are seven short of the Red Devils' tally.
We’re not even halfway through the Premier League season yet, but United are already only 15 goals away from matching their total from last season. They didn’t have a great league campaign in Mourinho’s debut season, so they don’t deserve praise for bettering it, but it’s only fair to acknowledge the progress they are making under Mourinho.
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Comparing points across different seasons doesn’t give you any definitive answers regarding the quality of teams. But just for fun, it’s encouraging to note that after 18 games Arsenal were on 42 when they went unbeaten in 2003/04 and Chelsea were on 43 during their record season in 2004/05. United are currently on 41.
United are doing all right and just need to keep plugging away and picking up results. The realistic aim for this season is to finish as close to City at the top as possible and win another trophy. Following the defeat by their crosstown rivals, Mourinho has likely turned his attention to continental competition, just as he did last season.
United were two points away from second in the league heading into the EFL Cup final in February, but as the team progressed further in the Europa League, Mourinho decided to prioritise what he saw as the easier route back into the Champions League. He wanted to win a trophy and that’s what he did.
Being crowned champions of Europe isn’t a realistic hope for United this season. They’re nowhere close to being the best team in England, let alone the continent. Yet Mourinho has won the competition twice and both times it was with a team that no one would have said was the best: first Porto, which United fans have painful memories of, then Inter. He beat the champions of Spain, Barcelona, and champions of Germany, Bayern Munich, to win the competition with the Italian side in 2010.
But the fact that United can even talk about the Champions League again, however unlikely it is that they will win it, evinced progress. Fans in Old Trafford longed to hear the theme tune again and now they’re competing in the biggest tournament around.
Ferguson set the bar high and Mourinho is still falling well short. But he’s closer to getting things right this season than he was last. Lots of money has been spent and plenty of it has been wasted. When you consider that just four of the starting XI on Sunday were players bought since Ferguson's retirement, it asks big questions of the recruitment that has taken place.
Still, United are finally heading in the right direction. Liverpool, in fourth place, are seven points behind, while fifth-placed Arsenal are eight points adrift. If someone had offered United fans this position during the dark years of David Moyes or Louis van Gaal, they would have bitten your arm off.
Mourinho isn’t matching Guardiola this season, but he’s making steps to take the club back to where they should be. United supporters shouldn’t be content with second place, but they can be pleased that the team is improving.
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