Jose Mourinho facing an early crisis at Old Trafford

It fell to Marouane Fellaini to break the news. Put up in front of the media following his team's defeat by Watford, the midfielder told French TV: "We can say it's a little crisis because a club like Manchester United cannot lose three games." And there it was, the c-word.

The Belgian might be overstating matters. As far as the league is concerned, the crisis-hit United are only a point behind Liverpool, who everybody agrees have started the season like a train. What’s more, a club very much like United lost four games in a row in December last year and three in a row in January 2013. So maybe Fellaini’s remarks ought to be paraphrased: a club like Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United should not lose three games when the team are managed by José Mourinho.

This is the first time Mourinho has lost three consecutive games in a season since he was fresh in the door at Porto in 2002. And two of those defeats came in the Champions League at the hands of Real Madrid. It is also the worst league start in the Portuguese’s all-conquering career since he first made his bow as manager, at União de Leiria in 2001, and even then his first five matches served up only a solitary defeat.

Special One

The Special One has earned a reputation in this country, among many other things, as being a manager who hits the ground running, inspiring immediate faith and fire in his teams. This legend was forged in his first stint at Chelsea, where he won four of his first five games in the 2004-05 season, starting with a 1-0 win against Ferguson’s United. It set a tone that took Chelsea to their first title in 50 years.

Looking back on Mourinho’s past achievements and the almost endless commentary he provided on them is interesting because the tropes that define his success have always been clearly articulated. After defeating United in August 2004 he happily admitted that his side had played with a defensive mentality, even though they were at home. “If you have to play a little bit different to win a game then you have to do it,” he said. In further remarks he stressed the team’s unity and concentration, comparing it favourably with his rivals with “great teams [who] have worked with their managers for a long time”.

Just as visible in the rearview mirror are Mourinho’s flaws, however, particularly his penchant for personal attacks. It was Luke Shaw’s turn to feel the wrath of his manager at the weekend; the full-back, only recently returned from long-term injury, was accused of lacking the necessary “tactical and mental” strength to compete. In August 2004 Mikaël Silvestre got it in the neck. The United defender had suggested Chelsea might struggle to gel immediately under their new manager. Mourinho made sure to issue a response. “When Silvestre said we haven’t got the time to create a big team spirit he was wrong,” he said.

On arrival in Italy as manager of Internazionale in 2008, Mourinho won three of his first five matches. He lost the fifth, the derby against Milan. This time it was the opponents who had played defensively, but Mourinho was less understanding. “It’s better to lose a game than to be afraid of playing football,” he said. “Milan have a lot of experience and they know how to control the tempo, commit a tactical foul or pretend to have an injury to slow down the pace.” Kaká was singled out, having in Mourinho’s eyes feigned being fouled. The Brazilian rejected the accusation: “Mourinho makes me laugh. He’s funny.” Mourinho had the last laugh, though, as Inter won the league.

Real Madrid calamity

After winning the Champions League with Inter, Mourinho made his move to Real where he had the best start of his career. Madrid went unbeaten in all competitions until the end of November, but that defeat was a calamity, the 5-0 manita whitewash by Barcelona that remains the worst defeat in his career. The performance was so bad, he could not even single anyone out. “I leave disappointed both in my team and my players, individually,” he said.

When Mourinho returned to Chelsea as “the Happy One” in 2013, he seemed content to pursue Roman Abramovich’s ambitions of expansive, attacking football. That changed with his first defeat, in his fourth match, 1-0 at Everton. Mourinho’s verdict: “Artistic football is no use without goals.” He went on to blame André Schürrle for missing “three big chances”, before adding: “I don’t like to be critical of players who missed some chances.”

Chelsea went on to win the league the following year, but the abiding memory of Mourinho’s second stint at the club will be the awful defence of their title and his graceless part in it. Now, before the leaves have even begun to turn, he is under pressure again at Old Trafford.

Mourinho has taken jobs at big clubs that have fallen from grace, those that have needed an overhaul and those with the very highest expectations. It might be the first time, however, that he has taken a job combining all three. The scrutiny is hardly about to diminish.

– Guardian service