José Mourinho, in his characteristic style, always has a message to deliver whenever he gets the opportunity, whether through the media or directly to players, fans, or rival teams.
After the 4-0 victory over Málaga, the Portuguese manager spoke about how his team achieved the triumph. The fans enjoyed the abundance of goals, but the “Special One” emphasized that attention should also be paid to the way the team defends.
“It is important that people enjoyed themselves, but if they have a vision of what top-level football is, they should also enjoy the second part. There we saw a team working defensively, Vinicius would lose the ball and then come back to defend again. Football is not only about enjoying the beauty of goals, but also about going home thinking that we are one united block.
“You can score 121 goals in a season when you have the best attacking players. We already have 10 goals in three matches, but there will be some games that we win 1-0, and we will leave just as happy,” Mourinho said, as reported by Gazeta Express.
Mourinho then also spoke about centre-back Dean Huijsen.
“I don’t want to compare him with last season. I met him at the beginning of the pre-season, during the friendly matches, and I spoke with him. For me, a centre-back needs to have quality on the ball and the confidence to build play from the back…
“But for me, the most important thing for a centre-back is his strength and his ability to win duels, giving the team the confidence that we have two strong players at the back. He has developed a lot in a very short period of time.
“I have the impression that he lost one pass between the lines, but afterwards he was completely dominant in duels and in his defensive positioning. I like centre-backs who defend well. If they can then also be elegant and good on the ball, perfect. But first, you have to defend,” Mourinho concluded.
