Jose Mourinho will have been delighted with Manchester United’s performance against Tottenham.
United won at home for the first time in the league since September, Ander Herrera, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, and Zlatan Ibrahimovic all impressing for the Red Devils.
An injury to Mkhitaryan should have been Mourinho’s only concern, but he now has to contend with the negative reception afforded to Marouane Fellaini when he came on.
The home fans were unforgiving towards the clumsy Belgian, who gave away a late penalty which led to dropped points against Everton a week ago.
While the midfielder only came on in the dying seconds, the resounding boos from the crowd won’t have gone unnoticed by either the player himself or his manager.
Mourinho was surprisingly diplomatic, though, when asked how he felt about the Old Trafford faithful’s decision to jeer Fellaini.
“I accept it because from the fans,” he told reporters.
“You have to accept everything and especially fans that are giving so much without getting so much. The only things they are getting are honesty, professionalism dedication but not the results they expect.
“They have in their mind the mistake that Marouane did at Everton and no more than that. He is a player and a person I like and the person is more important. He will always have my protection and trust.”
You’ve almost got to feel sorry for Fellaini, as Mourinho’s aim was obviously to put his recent mistake out of his mind by putting him on right at the end against Spurs.
Now, his confidence is surely going to be dented, and it will be interesting to see whether Mourinho stays true to his word by putting his faith in him in against Crystal Palace on Wednesday.
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