- Jose Mourinho was manager of Manchester United for two and a half seasons
- Sir Alex Ferguson suggested he sign one English midfielder
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Jose Mourinho has not followed through on the one transfer suggested to him by Sir Alex Ferguson when he was in charge of Man United.
Mourinho became manager of the Red Devils in the summer of 2016 and would stay at Old Trafford for two and a half years.
Legendary United boss Ferguson didn’t offer too much advice, but he did strongly believe the team should target England midfielder Dele Alli.
Mourinho did not agree, but would coach the player at Tottenham.
In an excerpt from Amazon’s ‘All or Nothing’ series, the current AS Roma manager complains to Spurs chairman Daniel Levy about Alli.
Jose Mourinho has not followed through on the one transfer proposed to him by Sir Alex Ferguson
Ferguson told Mourinho to look for England midfielder Dele Alli
“I told Dele very directly that he is not training well, he is not a good trainer,” he said.
‘I’m not saying disaster, but I’m not saying Harry Kane either. Harry Kane is a very good trainer.’
Mourinho added: ‘Sir Alex Ferguson has only given me one piece of advice in two and a half years: buy Dele Alli. ‘That man, with that mentality, the way he plays, the aggression he has in mind. This man is the Manchester United player. Buy Dele Alli’.
“And he (Ferguson) has an eye for a player. But he (Alli) is not a good trainer, we have to find motivation for him.’
Alli falls to the ground during a Tottenham training session in 2020 as Mourinho looks on
Alli has not had an easy time in the years since these comments and has returned to Everton after a difficult loan spell at Turkish club Besiktas.
Due to a long-term groin injury, he has not been able to play a minute of football so far.
The 27-year-old returned to training last month but revealed in a New Year’s post on Instagram that he had suffered a new setback.
Alli returned to training with Everton but recently suffered another injury setback
Alli wrote on social media: ‘As the year draws to a close, I wanted to thank you for the incredible support I have received over the past twelve months.
‘This year has been a little different for me, I have learned and experienced a lot, had ups and downs, but through it all you have always shown me so much love.
‘Unfortunately the year does not end as I had hoped. I was close to returning to full training, but frustratingly I suffered another setback due to my injury.
The midfielder revealed in a New Year’s message on Instagram that he had a new problem
‘I will be out again (for a) short time, but my outlook and mentality are only positive.
‘I’m going to attack my physiotherapy and do everything I can to get back on the field as soon as possible.
“I hope you had the year you wanted and wish you all nothing but the best for 2024.”
In July, Alli opened up to Gary Neville on The Overlap about his childhood trauma and how he checked into rehab to battle his sleeping pill addiction.
Alli revealed that he had recently been in rehab and shared details from his traumatic childhood, including revealing that he was abused as a child by a friend of his mother.
Alli shared harrowing details of his traumatic childhood, including an incident where he was abused by a friend of his birth mother.