Mourinho backed to avoid ban over 'unacceptable' Chelsea drama
Jose Mourinho has been backed to avoid sanction over the chaotic aftermath to the Chelsea draw as the United manager sweats over findings from the referee’s match report.
According to former Premier League manager Alan Pardew, the United boss was not at fault for his aggressive reaction to taunts from a member of the Chelsea coaching staff, following the Blues’ dramatic late equaliser.
The Blues secured a 2-2 draw with a late equaliser at Stamford Bridge – a moment Chelsea coach Marco Ianni celebrated directly in front of the opposition dugout.
That prompted a vociferous reaction from Mourinho, who had to be held back from confronting the Italian, but Pardew said it was Ianni who was in the wrong and defended the Reds’ boss.
“This guy – the second coach or whoever he is – his first action is unacceptable and the second action is also doubly unacceptable,” Pardew told Goals on Sunday.
“The man of the match is that steward stopping Jose. If you’re going to be a top manager of any sort, you’ve got to have fire in your belly and if you haven’t, then don’t do the job.
“In a situation like that, they’ve conceded in the last second, he’s back at his old football club and you have an assistant manager go up into his face like that – it’s totally ridiculous.
“I’m glad he apologised and I’m glad Jose accepted his apology. In Jose’s situation with the pressure he is under, that is the last thing he wanted. He’ll be worried this morning about who people will blame and you can go in that kind of circle. It’s not nice.”
The Football Association (FA) will analyse the referee’s report from Mike Dean before deciding whether the United manager faces any repercussions over the unsavoury incident.
It’s understood Dean would only file an “extraordinary incident report” if he believes something important was missed at the time of the incident.
Former United defender Gary Neville also defended Mourinho following the match, saying the Portuguese was entitled to be angry at the provocative celebration.
“For me, over-enthusiastic celebrations are a part of the game, but I also think that if you’re on the end of it, you should be able to react,” Neville told Sky Sports.
“We can sit here and say it’s ridiculous that these managers react, but what you saw at the end was raw emotion.”
Mourinho sought to dispel any notion that the ugly scenes at Chelsea were his fault, saying he had been the victim of rudeness on the part of Chelsea technical assistant Marco Ianni and fans.
“I did not get respect back from Chelsea but that is not my responsibility. What I did here today I will do in Madrid, in Milan, in Porto, the reaction from the fans is not up to me,” Mourinho told reporters, as his side slipped nine points behind Manchester City and Liverpool.
“But I also made mistakes in football matches and I will make more. So when he came after the game to make his apologies I accepted his apologies.”
Chelsea coach Maurizio Sarri backed Mourinho, saying he had already reprimanded his staff member for his role in the incident.
“We made a mistake,” he said.
“I have spoken to a member of my staff and have dealt with this immediately.”
Two Anthony Martial strikes brought United back from a goal down to lead the game
However, Ross Barkley’s dramatic stoppage time equaliser salvaged a point for the hosts – prompting the chaotic scenes to unfold on the sidelines.
With agencies