JOSE MOURINHO
Jose Mourinho landed in Istanbul on Wednesday to discover
that he had been hit with a one-match touchline ban and fines totalling £58,000
over two FA misconduct charges.
Mourinho will have to sit in the
directors' box when United play at Swansea City on Sunday after admitting using
abusive language towards referee Mark Clattenburg in the tunnel during the
half-time interval of United's goalless draw with Burnley last weekend. The
offence carried an £8,000 fine.
He was also fined £50,000 for saying
it would be difficult for referee Anthony Taylor 'to have a very good
performance' before United played at Liverpool last month.
The FA revealed that Mourinho
accepted the comments amounted to improper conduct, but he denied bringing the
game into disrepute.
However, he was found guilty of
disrepute and received a warning about his future conduct.
Mourinho, who was
sent to the stands by Clattenburg, will be allowed to give his players a
pre-match and half-time team talk at Swansea despite the ban.
He can also stay in contact with his
coaching staff during the game by passing on messages and phoning them from his
seat. But that did little to lighten his mood after United arrived in Turkey
for the Europa League clash against Fenerbahce tonight.
Asked about the charge for abusing Clattenburg, Mourinho
replied tersely: 'No, no reaction.'
When his behaviour towards match
officials was raised again, he said: 'Next question.'
It has capped a difficult few weeks
for Mourinho after a run of one win in seven Premier League games. Questions
have also been asked about his commitment to United in light of the decision to
keep his family in London and live in a hotel in Manchester.
Although his demeanour yesterday suggested otherwise,
Mourinho claimed: 'I am in a club where I want to be, and so happy to be. As a
minimum I want to stay here to the end of my (four-year) contract.
'After that who knows? I'm a
football man. I'm very young still. Sometimes you think I'm 75 but I'm 53.
'Of course, I'm excited. Of course,
I'm not happy with the results, that's obvious.'
United's form in Europe has been a
little better since an opening Group A defeat by Feyenoord. A third successive
victory tonight would put them well on the way to qualifying for the knockout
stage.
Injuries to Antonio Valencia, Eric
Bailly and Chris Smalling meant that Phil Jones was included in the travelling
party yesterday. The England defender only resumed training last week after
ankle and knee injuries, having not featured for United since January 2.
'We're in a difficult situation,'
said Mourinho. 'We have to select him and maybe he has to play.'
Henrikh Mkhitaryan was also on
United's flight, even though he has failed to make the matchday squad in the
four games since Mourinho declared him fit before the 4-1 win over Fenerbahce
at Old Trafford last month.
However, it was two of the players
left at home who attracted most interest. Bastian Schweinsteiger is ineligible
to play tonight because he is not part of the Europa League squad, but his
return to first-team training on Monday suggested that he may have a future at
United after all.
Mourinho's explanation that he primarily needs
Schweinsteiger to make up the numbers in training, as well as get himself fit
for a possible move, means that is unlikely.
He said: 'Looking at Bastian and the
way he is working professionally every day with a fitness coach, we think it's
a human decision, a professional decision to bring him back to the team. He
will be much better prepared and in case his future decision is to leave the
club he will be prepared to go to competition.'
Another absentee was Memphis Depay,
who remained in Manchester even though he is fit.
The Holland winger fell out with
Louis van Gaal last season following a £25million move from PSV Eindhoven, and
faces an increasingly uncertain future after making just one start under
Mourinho — the EFL Cup tie at Northampton, when he was replaced 10 minutes
after half-time.
Fenerbahce coach Dick Advocaat, who
gave Depay his full debut for PSV in December 2012, believes the 22-year-old
may have to move to resurrect his flagging career.
'It is important to start playing
regularly at his age,' said Advocaat. 'He has to find a solution because he is
too good to sit on the bench.'
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