Manchester United went in at halftime during the Manchester Derby trailing 2-0 to their bitter rivals and the Red Half of Manchester were looking at the prospect of their neighbours clinching the Premier League title by defeating them.
But when Jose Mourinho’s side took the pitch in the second half, they were a team rejuvenated. United scored three goals to ultimately win the match 3-2 and pause City’s progress towards lifting the title.
When Man United were turning the tables on Manchester City everyone thought the team must have received a huge battering from their Portuguese manager. But now Ander Herrera has revealed that it was not their manager who went on a rant inside the dressing room.
Jose Mourinho had only told his players not to end the match as ‘clowns’ but it was the senior pros of the team, Ashley Young and Michael Carrick who spoke out.
Ander Herrera said: “Everyone [spoke out],
“Of course the oldest guys with the most experience – Ash, Mike was in the dressing room – they have the power in their words but everyone was talking.
“We didn’t talk too much about tactics, just about our pride and about the club – this club you can never underestimate it.
“Our pride on the pitch and that our fans were going to have a difficult night if we got beaten.
“We did it for them and of course for us and our position but overall for them. I was thinking at half-time that it was going to be difficult for them if we got beaten so I’m happy for them.”
According to a report in the Times, Ashley Young said: “The City fans are shouting ‘Ole’ and they’re embarrassing us. Are we going to stand for that?”
“Remember your responsibilities to the fans and the badge. Show some pride and fight for each other.”
Michael Carrick and Ashley Young are amongst the handful of players left in the squad who have played under Sir Alex Ferguson so it is not a big surprise to see them speak out and galvanize their team.
Carrick is no longer an active player and has joined Jose Mourinho’s technical staff.
