Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho says some of his Premier
League rivals are "afraid" to say that they are title challengers.
After
being appointed as United manager, Mourinho said in his opening news
conference that his team wanted to win everything and reiterated again
on Friday they feel they are candidates to be champions.
In his
news conference ahead of Sunday's game away against Bournemouth,
Mourinho said: "Many more teams have the same ambition as us but they
are afraid to say it. They prefer not to say. They prefer to hide or
play defensively with the words. That's not our way.
"I think Man
United has to say we want to win the title, with all the respect for the
others. And maybe we don't win. Maybe we arrive at the end of the
season and we are happy that we've finished top four. Maybe. It depends
on how the season goes.
"But, in this moment -- and, when I speak
to you, I speak to my players too as they will get the feedback from our
conversation -- I cannot speak differently."
In February 2014,
when Mourinho was Chelsea manager, he had responded witheringly to
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger's claim that some teams were afraid to
talk about being title challengers because of a fear of failure.
Mourinho
said, in response, that Wenger is "a specialist in failure." This time,
though, it was Mourinho who was accusing rivals of fear.
Discussing
United's chances this season, the Portuguese manager said: "We feel
that we are a candidate to win the title. We know that there are more
than three that have the same ambitions as us.
"If, at the end of
the season, somebody who is champion has been better than us, then great
-- that is football. In this moment, as Manchester United Football
Club, we cannot speak differently. We are going to fight for the title.
"We
are not here to have fun. We are not here to enjoy the sunny weather.
We are here to work. We are here to give everything for the club and
that's the way. That we promise."
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