Mourinho is mischievous and envious of Conte – Neville

Gary Neville has claimed that Manchester United manager, Jose Mourinho, may be “envious” of Chelsea counterpart Antonio Conte, after he slammed his former side as “defensive”.


Mourinho is not happy that the Blues are being praised, despite adopting what he feels is a counter-attacking style.

Former United defender Neville feels Mourinho is up to his usual mind games, but also says the Portuguese may be secretly hoping to achieve the same balance Conte has found at Stamford Bridge.

“He’s probably envious, probably saying it as a compliment, because when I watch Chelsea they look balanced to me, the right mix of what you would like,” Neville told Sky Sports.

“I’ve never watched Chelsea this season and thought they were really boring, I’ve seen them go away to City and be absolutely outstanding, I’ve seen them be resilient when they needed to be, I’ve seen them play great football.

“When I’ve watched them this season, they have a look of a team that’s got the right balance, and if Jose Mourinho is saying that, maybe he is being a little bit mischievous, but he’ll be thinking that is the balance of a champion team.

“Jose will be searching for that balance, understanding that at United you need to be a little bit more expansive in the way in which he plays.”

Conte has already said he is “too experienced” for Mourinho’s mind games.