Owen Hargreaves heaps the praise on Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho
Even though there is no Premier League action on this weekend, it has not stopped the furore and intrigue of England’s top league remaining at the forefront of almost everyone’s minds. Perhaps the most impressive transformation this season should be credited to Jose Mourinho and Manchester United, as they currently top the table alongside Manchester City following their unbeaten starts to the season. This has prompted former-Manchester United player Owen Hargreaves to heap praise of Mourinho, as he told BT Sport: “Jose Mourinho deserves credit. He is making everyone play better. Ashley Young was effective again. Everyone seems to be performing again. The whole team is functioning”.
Mourinho lauds Marouane Fellaini’s influence
Marouane Fellaini has been a much-maligned player during his time with Manchester United with many questioning his ability. Former-United boss David Moyes saw fit to bring him over from Everton where he was performing at a high level for the Toffees, but this was followed by disappointing displays at Old Trafford. Since then, Mourinho and Fellaini have worked hard to reincorporate the latter back into the team and he is proving what an integral cog he is for the title-chasing side. Mourinho said: “He’s a very important player for me, much more important than what you can imagine. I feel weaker without Fellaini in my squad, it doesn’t matter if he is in team or bench”. This is a very different situation to what many fans expected to happen when Mourinho took over, with Fellaini at the top of many people’s lists to be the first to be axed. In reality, though, he is becoming more important with every game.
Matteo Darmian insists he does not regret move to Old Trafford
Italian defender Matteo Darmian has insisted that he does not regret his move to England and Manchester United. The left-back has struggled to break into the team during his time in England and has fallen some way down the pecking order, with Ashley Young seemingly the first choice left-back. While his struggles have been well documented and he has been linked with a move back to Italy, he has reinforced his claims that he regrets nothing. He told a press conference: “I don’t regret the decision I took. I would make the same decision over and over again. Obviously like every footballer I would like to be playing as much as possible, but I am working hard, putting in the effort and trying to make the manager’s decisions difficult, and I’ll continue to do that”.