VALENCIA AND KANTE
Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho praised his side's
tactical display in their 2-0 win over Chelsea, insisting they "totally
controlled" the Premier League leaders.
Goals at the start of either half from Marcus Rashford and
Ander Herrera condemned Mourinho's former side to their second defeat in four
games.
Mourinho set his team up in a similar way when United fell
to a 1-0 defeat at Stamford Bridge in the FA Cup last month after being reduced
to 10 men following Herrera's red card.
When asked what made him go with counter-attacking tactics,
Mourinho told Sky Sports: "The same thing that made me go to
Stamford Bridge in the FA Cup with the same tactics. Maybe we didn't rest
[players] we just chose the team that we thought was the best team.
"That game was totally controlled when we played with
11 players, and only the decision that made us play with 10 players gave
Chelsea a chance to be dominant.
"We knew that playing this way would be very difficult
for them."
And Mourinho was adamant that his side, and not Chelsea,
would be playing in an FA Cup semi-final this weekend had they played with 11
men for the full 90 minutes at Stamford Bridge last month.
When asked by Sky Sports reporter Geoff
Shreeves what pleased him the most about his side's performance, he said:
"From a personal point of view, thinking about me, my work, how I think
and how I prepare for matches, it was being convinced that we would be playing
in the FA Cup semi-final this weekend if we'd played at Stamford Bridge with 11
men.
"We were tactically very good and the players did an
amazing job, controlling a team full of fantastic players."
Chelsea's lead over second-placed Tottenham is now down to
four points with six games remaining, while United boosted their own hopes of
reaching the top four by extending their unbeaten league run to 22 games.
The Red Devils are four points behind fourth-placed
Manchester City, with a trip to the Etihad Stadium, which is live on Sky
Sports, on the horizon on April 27.
And Mourinho insists his side will continue to fight in the
Premier League until it's mathematically impossible for them to qualify for the
Champions League.
"I'm really happy with the team and the result because
the results of Man City and Liverpool left us needing to win. The result means
we keep two windows open to play Champions League football.
"I can't give up on the Premier League yet. We have to
try. If one day we are in the Europa league and the distance in the Premier
League is too big, then we have to prioritise and nobody can criticise us if we
do things in a different way for the final few matches.
"But while it is mathematically possible we have to go
with everything we have."
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