Manchester United legend Eric Cantona believes Pep Guardiola would have been a better fit for Red Devils than Jose Mourinho.
The legendary Eric Cantona has recently expressed his belief regarding the suitability, or lack of it, of Jose Mourinho as Manchester United manager and has controversially stated that Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola would have perhaps been a better fit at Old Trafford.
United hired Jose Mourinho at the start of last season around the same time when Manchester City appointed Pep Guardiola as their boss and now more than a year on since the two appointments, both the clubs are currently vying for the Premier League title.
Among the two Manchester clubs though, it is City who are enjoying the better results during the current campaign as the Citizens are leading the Premier League table at the moment with a sizeable eight point margin and this has been mainly due to Guardiola’s influence at the Etihad Stadium.
Mourinho has enjoyed a fruitful time with United as well but it pales in comparison to what City are currently achieving under Guardiola.
This level of success for City has led many to revisit Manchester United’s decision to hire Mourinho at the start of last season and even the legendary Eric Cantona has argued that the Red Devils perhaps made a mistake in hiring the ex- Real Madrid manager.
“He is playing in this defensive way, which is not the identity of Manchester United,” Cantona told BBC Radio Four.
“Both Guardiola and Mourinho are great, but I prefer attacking football, when it’s more creative. It’s the way I tried to play all my career. I cannot understand why United would take a manager who plays in a defensive way. I love Mourinho, but I prefer to watch Barcelona play.
“I prefer the way Guardiola plays, and I would prefer him as manager of Manchester United, it’s more logical. I don’t watch Man City because it’s Man City but I would love to watch the team managed by Guardiola.”
While Cantona’s argument may be valid, City had already moved to sign Guardiola six months before United appointed Mourinho and it has to be said that the Red Devils did not have any other better options than the serial winning Portuguese manager.
Be the first to comment