Monday morning quarterback: Did Mourinho take the wind out of Man United's sails at Anfield?

Mourinho must accept his role in Manchester United’s passiveness

Jose Mourinho was keen to bemoan the passion and attitude of his Manchester United players after their shock defeat to Huddersfield Town, and the manager’s diagnosis was spot-on. United have better players than Huddersfield in every area of the pitch, but were out-fought and far too comfortably kept at bay during the second half. United managed two shots on target in the 62 minutes after conceding the first goal.

Yet Mourinho might be less prepared to accept his own culpability for that downturn in form. Saturday may have been United’s first defeat of the season in all competitions, but it was their third passive attacking performance in succession. That began under Mourinho’s instruction to play for a 0-0 draw at Anfield. Are we expected to believe that this is a coincidence?