Jose Mourinho has gone in hard on his Manchester United players, explaining the differences between the current batch of young pro footballers and players such as Frank Lampard, labeling them “boys” and “brats”.
Mourinho managed Lampard during his two spells at Chelsea, with the Portuguese coach unfavourably comparing the young players in his Man U squad with the retired former captain and England international. In an interview with France Football, as translated by Get French Football, Mourinho was asked how his philosophy as a manager had adapted over the course of the past 20 years. Never one to mince his words, Mourinho used the opportunity to tear down the attitudes of the young players in his squad.
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“I had to understand the difference between working with a boy like Frank Lampard, who, at the age of 23 was already a man, who thought football, work, professionalism, and the new boys who at the age of 23 are kids”, he said. “Today I call them “boys” not “men”. Because I think that they are brats and that everything that surrounds them does not help them in their life nor in my work. I had to adjust to all that.”
He continued: “If you stop a player from doing something, even something a little stupid, on social media, you are going against nature.”
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The current Man U squad consists of young players such as 24-year-old Paul Pogba, 21-year-old Anthony Martial and 19-year-old Marcus Rashford, and though Mourinho didn’t mention any names, it’s unlikely that they will take kindly to being tore down by their manager in such a public setting.
While Mourinho did note that having a son and daughter had helped him to understand “the way they function and what the world is today”, it still doesn’t sound like he’s best pleased with the way the football landscape has changed over the course of his career. Still, considering the frequent social media controversies that surround professional football, it’s understandable that he wouldn’t be best pleased with his players refusing to abstain from the likes of Twitter and Facebook.
