Opinion: Mourinho bringing the swagger back to United

Manchester United head into Tuesday’s EFL Cup game with Hull City as arguably the form team in the country - and, for the first time in a long time, that is a statement that can be read to include style as well as substance.

Despite the plight of their semi-final rivals, United are unlikely to find this Cup tie as comfortable as the one with Reading at the weekend, though it ought to be said that Jose Mourinho and his team do deserve some credit for that third round victory.

It was, after all, the classic damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-don’t kind of tie, but so often over the last three years, United supporters have usually found themselves on the damned-if-they-don’t side of the coin. Embarrassing cup exits at Old Trafford to Swansea City and Sunderland under David Moyes were followed by lacklustre home defeats in Cup competitions to Arsenal and Middlesbrough under Louis van Gaal - as well as that infamous drubbing at MK Dons.

So, forgive United supporters for not taking anything for granted, and enjoying the immediately clinical way they put the Royals to the sword on Saturday lunchtime. Their full-time frustrations were now about the opportunity for their team to have potentially notched a record result -

‘Every United player could be disappointed not to have scored a hat trick!’ United legend Gordon Hill quipped in his online show - rather than the dour frustrations which surrounded that difficult third round tie with Sheffield United last year.

A game against Reading is unlikely to serve as any justification for a declaration of resurgence as far as Manchester United are concerned, but the six games preceding it probably do. In that run of fixtures we saw just about everything associated with the positive trademarks of the club; professional and just about comfortable victories over Tottenham Hotspur, West Brom, and West Ham, a win with something resembling the old swagger against Sunderland, a late win over Crystal Palace, and a similarly late turnaround against Middlesbrough following a pulsating performance. Despite the lateness of that last-mentioned victory, the overall display bore all the hallmarks of the recent better United sides.

The biggest reason for that is arguably the exact same reason that United were drawing these games earlier in the campaign - Jose Mourinho’s knowledge of his squad, and his in-game management skills. He was receiving hefty criticism following those three September defeats in a week and there was some suggestion that he was losing his mind after that embarrassment at Stamford Bridge but for those looking carefully enough, optimistic signs were there.

The starting line-up against Manchester City in the league was undoubtedly an error but Mourinho changed it at half time and his team should have been rewarded with a draw (or, should we say in the interest of balance, they should have had the opportunity for a draw, at least, following Claudio Bravo’s challenge on Wayne Rooney).

Rooney has undoubtedly been the highest profile player to have his position questioned, in a six month period which has seen the manager challenged over his choice of many others. Did the England captain justify his place anymore? Could he get the partnership at the back right? Why wasn’t Paul Pogba in his best position? Why was Marouane Fellaini playing? Why didn’t he seem to trust one of the players he brought in? Why was Zlatan Ibrahimovic still playing when he wasn’t scoring? Mourinho has coached at Inter Milan, Real Madrid, and of course has years of familiarity with the British press, but he must surely have been shocked by the scale of scrutiny which has accompanied his every move.

Mostly, he seems to have come through unscathed, or justified. His management of Rooney has been almost perfect; these wind-down days have seen the England captain almost stroll towards the goal record he clearly covets, but it is within that stroll that the benefit of the manager’s choices can be seen. The player is no longer carrying the weight of expectation of the entire club, he is no longer having to live up to an unrealistic idea that he should be Cristiano Ronaldo or Leo Messi, and both club and player are better off for it. With just a single objective - that goal record, which will surely come - Rooney’s performance is significantly better. His touch is sharper and his involvement in the team play is usually beneficial.

There is a parallel with Rooney and the player he was originally brought to Old Trafford to partner, Ruud van Nistelrooy. The Dutchman was phased out when his position in the side was deemed too obstructive for a new, more fluid and pacy attack which Rooney was a part of. He understands that evolution and is probably grateful that he wasn’t clinically cut out in the same way when history beckons.

Arguably, though, it is not Rooney, or even that troublesome central defence, but the usage of Michael Carrick, which remains Mourinho’s biggest challenge insofar as keeping United’s form ticking over. Having finally settled on a midfield three that clearly works as United’s engine room, the manager realises that the 35-year-old Carrick cannot play every week.

The boss apparently had the right answer against Middlesbrough, though one would argue the limited skill set of Fellaini is unlikely to include the necessary abilities required to be a long term replacement for the former West Ham and Tottenham midfielder. It is why Mourinho seemingly has identified this as a key area to fix, and why the likes of Monaco’s Tiemoué Bakayoko have emerged as a target. Bakayoko does not possess the range of Carrick but he has impressed as a screen in front of the defence in the same way that Claude Makelele once did for Mourinho’s Chelsea team. Ander Herrera and Paul Pogba have the abilities in their arsenal to compensate.

It was probably in the re-deployment of Carrick at West Ham that Mourinho’s familiarity with his charges finally looked like it was getting somewhere. Noting the host’s resistance, he made an attacking move by bringing Juan Mata on and moving Carrick to centre half. It was a risk and it paid off.

Mourinho made a big noise about bringing in specialists in the summer but it was a point not lost on many at the weekend that the team which comfortably tore apart Reading was made up of players who all won FA Cup medals last year under Louis van Gaal. They appear to have bought in to their manager’s methods. It will be compelling for more reasons than one to see how United’s progression manifests itself in Sunday’s huge game against Liverpool.

Rival supporters have been keen to remark that despite United’s upturn in form, they have moved from sixth in the table to, well, sixth. It is a short-sighted joke which doesn’t take into account the real closing of the gap which has occurred in that period of time and one only needs to gauge the mood of the Old Trafford faithful to appreciate the change.

They are looking forward to watching their team play again and that is a reward which is arguably greater for them than the prize on offer from tonight’s tie.

Follow Wayne Barton on Twitter @WayneSBarton

Wayne Barton is the football columnist for eirSport. He has been described by the Independent as ‘the leading writer on Manchester United’ after numerous books on the club and autobiographies.