Jose Mourinho claimed he has had to cope with wrong refereeing decisions as well, after Manchester United beat West Ham United 2-0 on Monday.
Manchester United continued their recent run of good results, as goals from Juan Mata and Zlatan Ibrahimovic ensured that they beat 10-man West Ham United 2-0 at the London Stadium to make it six Premier League wins in a row and keep pace with their rivals for a place in the top four.
The match started on a controversial note, as referee Mike Dean harshly sent Sofiane Feghouli off for a foul on Phil Jones in the 14th minute, in what can best be described as a 50-50 challenge on the English defender.
Thereafter, despite being a man down West Ham were the brighter of the two sides, as United struggled to create the chances despite having the advantage in numbers. Clear goal-scoring opportunities were few and far between as West Ham carved out the better chances.
However, the momentum shifted United’s way in the second half, as substitutes Juan Mata and Marcus Rashford combined to give Mourinho’s side the lead in the 62nd minute, right after their hosts were brilliantly denied by David De Gea.
Manchester United’s second goal was another moment of controversy as Zlatan Ibrahimovic latched on to Ander Herrera’s deflected shot to score past Randolph, despite being offside.
Post match, Mourinho was asked about the contentious decisions that went United’s way, in particular the red card handed to Feghouli to which he replied that he had to cope with wrong decisions himself.
“I don’t make anything because I’m really far away and because I didn’t watch on television,” said the Portuguese manager.
“But I have had to educate myself during the first half of this season because we’ve had so many controversial decisions.
“I’ve had to cope with frustrations. I had to cope with Zlatan’s goal being disallowed. I have to cope with a clear penalty against Crystal Palace in the last part of the game. I have to cope with many wrong decisions.”
Mourinho was also quick to hail the impact created by his second half substitutes Juan Mata and Marcus Rashford, as they were successful in finally breaking the deadlock. He talked about his bench “ammunition”.
“It was a difficult match but I had ammunition on the bench,” he said.
“I had Mata and Rashford, who were crucial in both matches when coming off the bench. In these fixtures it is very important to have people on the bench, capable of winning the game.I thought it’s better for them to come off the bench when everybody is dying and the decision was proven right.”
United are now unbeaten in 13 games in all competitions now, and while they remain sixth on the table, a win against Liverpool next week could see them further close the gap on the Reds and their rivals as Mourinho’s men seek to get back into the Top 4.
