Jose Mourinho has revealed that Mauricio Pochettino calls him every summer to discuss which Manchester United players are available for transfer.
United manager Mourinho made the revelation yesterday (Friday) after Pochettino claimed in a new book that the Portugese had tried to unsettle Spurs midfielder Eric Dier.
In Brave New World: Inside Pochettino’s Spurs, the Argentine explained how angry he was when he saw Mourinho waiting in the tunnel to greet Dier after Tottenham’s 1-0 defeat at Old Trafford last December.
Mourinho spoke to the player in Portuguese and Pochettino claimed that he had put Dier in a compromising position.
The England international was subsequently strongly linked with a move to United before Nemanja Matic signed from Chelsea for £40million.
But yesterday, as United prepared for today’s Premier League clash with Tottenham, Mourinho denied any interest in the player and that he had tried to destabilise the north London club by approaching Dier.
“No, I don’t know if it is Mauricio’s words or it is his ghostwriters, I really don’t know,” Mourinho said, as quoted by the Times. “What I do know, is that every season, during the summer, before every season he calls me and I call Mauricio and we ask about each other’s players to see if they are or not available.
“I don’t know why I should speak to Dier on a football match day in the tunnel, maybe it is to try and sell books. Maybe his ghostwriter wants to make some money.”
OPINION
Mourinho loves having the last word and he has certainly delivered a smart response to Pochettino’s Dier claims. Quite why the Spurs manager has felt the need to write a book at this time of his career is one thing, but it is intriguing that the Argentine is always on the sniff for potential United signings. In reality, such deals are few and far between, but Mourinho’s revelation will only add further grist to the Luke Shaw-to-Tottenham and Danny Rose-to-Manchester United mills.