“I can split these defeats into three factors – one, the referee’s crucial mistakes are not in my control, there is nothing I can do about that”.
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Watford’s other goals from Juan Zuniga in the 83rd minute and a late Troy Deeney penalty owed more to poor defending after Marcus Rashford had equalised just past the hour mark.
“This is a tactical but also a mental attitude”.
Mourinho was also critical of his side’s first half performance, admitting that he expected a better response after back to back defeats by Manchester City and Feyenoord in the Europa League last Thursday.
After a small grumble about refereeing, Mourinho did accept responsibility for the worrying downturn in United’s form, adding: “We have to improve, no doubt, individually and collectively”.
‘I knew I had a task, ‘ said Mourinho, who has not suffered three successive competitive defeats since his days as Porto manager in 2002, ‘But the first Man City goal and this second goal, you can find incredible similarity.
The result moved Watford to within two points and two positions of seventh-placed United, who appear to lack the solidity normally associated with Mourinho’s teams.
Since then the Special One has become the Beaten One, defeated in 11 of his past 21 Premier League games with Chelsea and Manchester United.
Liverpool fans were partaking in their own bit of schadenfreude on Sunday afternoon, after witnessing rivals Manchester United go down 3-1 away to Watford.
“We can not control the referee, we can not control the lucky moments”.
“I think no debate”.
“I was completely aware that we were not the ideal team, that we had lots of players who are not end products and can make their own mistakes”. But against Man City you know what happened in minute 55 (when Mourinho felt United should have had a penalty for a challenge by Manchester City goalkeeper Claudio Bravo on Rooney), today you know that happened for the first goal, against Feyenoord there was the offside goal. Nobody saw me running around the pitch when we won a couple of matches and nobody sees me now really depressed.
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“He’s very good technically and he came in and I’m very happy for him”. We got the equaliser and, after that, we were the team [pushing for a winner].
