It’s difficult to think of a manager that stirs up more controversy than Jose Mourinho. The Manchester United boss frequently uses psychological tactics in order to give his team some kind of advantage. Mourinho enjoys this aspect of the game. He indulges in the so-called dark arts of football. Don’t be surprised to see Mourinho play mind games with Chelsea’s Maurizio Sarri and Arsenal’s Unai Emery if necessary.
Will Jose Mourinho Play Mind Games?
Maurizio Sarri
Maurizio Sarri is a known admirer of Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola. Specifically, Sarri appreciates Guardiola’s dynamic style of play. In the modern game, managers with attacking mentalities seem to earn more praise than those with a more defensive mindset. As a result, if Sarri develops a Chelsea side with a beautiful attack, Mourinho’s style will look outdated in comparison. If Mourinho feels that he’s not receiving enough praise, he will lash out at his fellow Premier League managers. Mourinho believes that in doing so, he will create the perception that the football community is against Manchester United. That is, he will try to extract performances out of his players with a ‘backs against the wall’ mentality.
Unai Emery
While Maurizio Sarri represents one new opponent for Jose Mourinho, Unai Emery manifests as another. Emery has won numerous trophies. However, Mourinho could reference how Emery’s Paris Saint Germain side failed to beat Monaco to the French title in 2016-2017. Perhaps Mourinho will remind Emery of his side’s collapse to Barcelona in the Champions League.
More broadly, Jose Mourinho holds a phenomenal record against Arsenal. The Manchester United boss will hope to extend this record into the Unai Emery era. From Emery’s point of view, defeating Mourinho once or twice could represent a fantastic entry into the Premier League. After all, Emery made a brave and admirable decision to manage in such a competitive league. Still, don’t expect the Portuguese to let his record just slip away. This is the man that branded former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger a “specialist in failure.” Emery will need to prepare himself for a war of words or use a “sticks and stones” approach.
Premier League Managers
It’s an exciting time to keep up with Premier League managers. Will Jose Mourinho play mind games, and will they be effective in producing a title challenge? Can Maurizio Sarri recreate the optimism during Antonio Conte’s first season at Chelsea? Will Unai Emery tell his own story at Arsenal after Arsene Wenger’s lengthy tenure? Of course, Mauricio Pochettino, Pep Guardiola, Jurgen Klopp and others will want to leave their mark as well. After all, from a manager’s point of view, finding success in such a brutal league must feel intensely satisfying. For the fans, hopefully, talented managers continue to choose the Premier League as it makes for terrific entertainment.
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