Moaninho

According to reports, the odious little Portuguese interpreter has been at it again, labouring his favourite, though puerile, strategy of identifying those he fears most and launching futile verbal attacks in the vain hope of destabilising them.

This time, evidently, it is the turn of Manchester United and by implication Sir Alex Ferguson. United, apparently, have been ‘lucky’. It seems that the number of their players who have been injured is insufficient to please the Special One. They were, he feels, fortunate in their Champions League game against Lille. And they did not ‘deserve’ to beat Fulham.

It must be galling for Mourinho to see United nine points clear at the top of the Premiership, just as it was deeply wounding to witness the Chelsea team assembled by Abramovic’s riches humiliated in the Carling Cup final by the breathtaking football of the immensely talented young side that Arsene built.

The truth is that while Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger may have been bitter rivals, what sets them apart from the Interpreter is that they have both created teams which play irresistible entertaining attacking football that is light years ahead of the dour mind numbing efficiency that has ground out silverware, but little else, at Stamford Bridge.

Make no mistake, for the remainder of this season the red half of North London will be at one with the red half of Manchester in praying that United will win the Premiership, and Chelsea will be denied.

And on the subject of luck, no-one is surprised that Mourinho conveniently neglects to mention how lucky Chelsea were in the Carling Cup final, where their hollow victory against a vastly superior side was dependent upon the blunders of an extraordinarily sympathetic referee and his incompetent linesman.