Mon 09 Sep 2007Mourinho is good but never specialOn The Premier League:As a consummate performer,
Jose Mourinho was never likely to forget the first rule of
showbusiness: always leave the audience wanting more. The
travelling Chelsea contingent at Old Trafford yesterday certainly
left Roman Abramovich in no doubt as to where their loyalties still
lie, giving their erstwhile leader a rousing send-off, and Mourinho
would have allowed himself a wry smile at the sight of the Russian
squirming in the Manchester United directors' box.The Special One might now be the Special Gone, but gargantuan
personalities such as Mourinho's are not easily exorcised,
especially when his replacement, Avram Grant, appears to be little
more than Abramovich's yes-man. And, besides, the Portuguese's
spirit lives on in the form of John Terry, Frank Lampard and Didier
Drogba - a hallowed trio who are fiercely loyal to their former
manager and must now be considering their futures at the club.