Serie A : AS Roma fires Jose Mourinho after falling to AC Milan
"We'd like to thank Jose on behalf of everyone at AS Roma for his dedication and efforts since joining the club," said Dan and Ryan Friedkin.
Despite seeing his side outplayed by Real Madrid, Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho put up a defiant face as he declared his satisfaction with the Red Devils’ display in their UEFA Super Cup loss on Tuesday.
"We gave them a good fight," Mourinho said.
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Goals from Casemiro and Isco had given Los Blancos the lead in a tie that was played in sweltering conditions and while summer signing Romelu Lukaku pulled one back for United, a second goal was not forthcoming as Real held on for their second consecutive Super Cup title.
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United were in good form before coming up against Mourinho’s former employers, but the Champions League holders were the better team on the night, something Mourinho himself had alluded to in his pre-match press conference.
The self-styled Special One had sought to deflect the pressure away from his team as he claimed the Champions League holders will always have more quality than the Europa League winners in the build-up to the tie.
“My boys have reasons to be optimistic, let's go for Sunday,” the United manager added.
New boys Nemanja Matic and Romelu Lukaku, formerly under Mourinho at Chelsea, had decent outings, with the former’s fierce drive allowing the latter to tap-in the equaliser but fellow summer signing Victor Lindelof had an outing to forget in Macedonia.
The Swede, reportedly the most expensive defender in United history, was guilty of ball-watching for Real’s opener and while the goal had a hint of offside, Mourinho would have expected better from a player expected to be a mainstay in his defence.
The Red Devils won’t have much time to ponder their loss as their 2017-18 Premier League campaign begins with a home fixture against West Ham on Sunday, a tie Mourinho will demand his side clinch three points from.
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