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Manchester United's woes continued on Sunday evening as they fell to a shocking 3-2 defeat at the AMEX Stadium against Brighton & Hove Albion. The Red Devils were once again lethargic with some key players seeming almost uninterested in being on the field.
This has become a common theme under the management of Jose Mourinho. The once great manager who was termed "The Special One" is far from special these days and looks outdated with his style of play and mentality at Old Trafford.
His argumentative press conferences and public outbursts have become alarmingly common with this continuous negativity surely creeping down into the dressing room at Old Trafford.
During his two years at Old Trafford, Mourinho has worked with some exceptional players - Paul Pogba, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Alexis Sanchez, Marcus Rashford, Juan Mata, and Zlatan Ibrahimovic to name but a few.
However, it is extremely difficult to find any player who has markedly improved under the Portuguese manager.
Cast a glance across Manchester and it is easy to find players who have added to their game under Pep Guardiola - Raheem Sterling, Gabriel Jesus, Leroy Sane, Benjamin Mendy - the list goes on and on.
The stark truth of the matter is that world class players and hugely talented youngsters with massive potential have regressed rather than improved under the stewardship of Jose Mourinho.
While there are a number of players who could appear on this list, we have selected three who have most have most noticeably performed at a lower standard when playing for the United manager.
#3 Marcus Rashford
Marcus Rashford burst onto the scene at Old Trafford in February 2016 when he scored a debut brace against Midtjylland in the Europa League round of 32. At just 18 years old, he was a revelation and became the youngest scorer for the Red Devils in a European competition.
He followed his European debut up with another brace in his Premier League debut against Arsenal. He also scored against Manchester City that season, becoming the youngest ever player to score in a Manchester derby.
However, his brief introduction to the United first team came under Louis Van Gaal who was dismissed as manager in the summer of 2016 and replaced by Jose Mourinho. The Portuguese arrived with a reputation of ignoring youth and preferring big name, proven players in his starting lineup.
That summer, Mourinho brought in Zlatan Ibrahimovic and many feared for the playing time that would be given to Rashford. While the young forward played 53 times for United in the 2016/17 season, he completed a full 90 minutes only 15 times.
Another issue that season was where the youngster played when he got some game time. Along with the signing of Ibrahimovic, United had Rooney, Martial, and Depay all fighting for the main striker's position.
Due to this, Rashford was shifted around the front line, playing 24 times on the left wing, five times on the right wing, and 22 times as a center forward. For a young player trying to establish himself in the first team, this continuous changing of positions did not help the youngster's development.
Last season wasn't much better. Rashford played 52 games, but once again only played the full 90 minutes in a fraction of those appearances. He was shunted about throughout the season, playing 20 times as a left winger, five times as a right winger, and 19 times a center forward.
Over the past two seasons, it is clear that Rashford has lost much of the confidence which ensured he began his United career in such style. At just 20 years old, he remains an incredible prospect at the club, however, it is essential that his development is not further hampered by the defensive-mindedness and constant changing of positions implemented by Jose Mourinho.
#2 Alexis Sanchez
Alexis Sanchez arrived at Old Trafford in January of this year as a major coup for the Manchester club. The signing of the Chilean from Arsenal made a statement about United's ambition, ability to attract star players from rival teams, and continuing financial power in spite of a lack of domestic success.
Sanchez moved from London to Manchester as a proven Premier League player and one of the best talents in the league. Over the course of four seasons at the Emirates, the 29-year-old had become the main man at Arsenal, making 122 appearances and scoring 60 goals.
Surely nothing could wrong with a player who could simply slot into the United starting XI and start creating and scoring goals as he did at Arsenal?
Well, yes something could and did go wrong. The Chilean badly struggled to adapt to Mourinho's style of play and tactics.
Going from a creative free role and main goalscoring threat at the Emirates to being locked in a strict wide role at Manchester United hampered the natural talents of Sanchez and his performance levels significantly dropped during the second half of last season.
During the first half of the 2017/18 season at Arsenal, Sanchez operated as an attacking midfielder, just behind the striker for the most part. As soon as he joined Manchester United, his position was inexplicably changed to a left winger as part of a front three behind Lukaku.
It is very obvious that Sanchez plays his best football in the middle of the field just behind the main striker, yet Mourinho refuses to give the Chilean game time there. This has led to the 29-year-old scoring only twice in 13 appearances for United and generally playing far below his expected standards.
Of course, there is an argument that he needed six months to settle in at Old Trafford and will perform at a higher level this season. However, the issue currently lies squarely on the shoulders of Jose Mourinho who must allow Sanchez to play in his best position to get the most out of the Chilean.
As it stands, Alexis Sanchez is a shadow of the player who thrilled in Arsenal colours for four seasons.
#1 Paul Pogba
Without a doubt, the most obvious regression under Jose Mourinho at Manchester United is Paul Pogba. The record signing was meant to be a symbol of United's success under the Portuguese manager when he was signed in 2016, but things have not gone to plan.
Pogba arrived at Old Trafford in the summer of 2016 with huge expectations. The Frenchman had enjoyed four wonderful seasons at Juventus, playing 124 times and scoring 28 goals for the Old Lady, winning four consecutive Serie A titles during his time there.
His role as a midfield general at the Allianz Stadium was exactly what Manchester United had been craving for years. Not since the days of Roy Keane had the Red Devils entered a new season with a strong box-to-box midfielder who could lead his team to victory.
However, all hopes of Pogba dragging United to the Premier League title in the 2016/17 season quickly disappeared. Rather than the commanding presence witnessed at Juventus, Pogba was timid, lacking confidence, and generally very poor for United throughout the season.
Tasked with a primarily defensive role, Pogba's creativity disappeared and the Frenchman genuinely looked uninterested for long periods of matches. Last season was not much better as the 25-year-old again failed to impress on a regular basis although Mourinho did allow him to move slightly further up the field due to the arrival of Matic.
Public rifts between Pogba and Mourinho along with rumours of a move away from Old Trafford has not helped the situation moving into the new season. An attempt to vanquish talk of issues between the pair by handing the 25-year-old the captain's armband for United's opening two games is a ridiculously transparent move by Mourinho.
Pogba's performances in helping France lift the World Cup during the summer underline the player's ability when used correctly. However, it seems the Portuguese manager is unable or unwilling to do so when playing the Frenchman in the United starting XI.
Whatever happens this season, the Old Trafford faithful is yet to enjoy anywhere near the full capabilities of Pogba's talents and Mourinho is to blame.
