The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
They are now 15 points behind City and Mourinho admitted he harbours no hopes of catching Pep Guardiola’s side.
Instead, he will focus on ensuring United survive the fight to qualify for next season’s Champions League via a top four finish.
?️ @ChrisEriksen8: “It was a perfect way to come back into the team – to score with your first touch!”#COYS pic.twitter.com/06jwgts32g
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) January 31, 2018
– ‘Unlucky for me’ –
“I always think when the leader has a certain distance, I have been there a few times, you are calm, you are relaxed and you don’t feel the pressure,” he said.
“You know that your opponent, sooner or later, is going to drop at least a couple of points and you are completely in control.
“We play match after match, yes the Premier League finishes for us at Old Trafford in May against Watford but you knew the distance to the leader was already considerable even before this match.
“Now we have us, Chelsea, Spurs, Liverpool, Arsenal – we will be there fighting for the positions.”
Mourinho also revealed a knee injury forced Marouane Fellaini to be taken off just seven minutes after his second half introduction as a substitute.
“Fellaini came off because he had something in his knee. Unlucky for him and unlucky for me,” he said.
Tottenham’s win puts them just two points behind fourth placed Chelsea and third placed Liverpool, with a crucial trip to Anfield looming on Sunday.
Read Jose Mourinho’s match reaction: https://t.co/gTK92z8XgG#MUFC #TOTMUN pic.twitter.com/S4ZdhjyzMy
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) January 31, 2018
Mauricio Pochettino was enthused by the way his team dominated such formidable opposition, but the boss refused to rate it the best of a season that also includes impressive wins over Real Madrid and Liverpool.
“I don’t know if it was the best, but for sure one of the best. The performance was fantastic,” he said.
“Manchester United are a great team, so to dominate and to keep a clean-sheet, the team deserve a lot of praise of course.”
Pochettino admitted even he was shocked to see Eriksen score so fast and he was quick to salute the Dane’s express impact.
“Christian is such an important player for us. He’s a player that links everyone and of course when he’s not in the team we always miss him,” he said.
