Chelsea host Manchester United live on Sky Sports Premier League from 11.30am on Saturday
Thursday 18 October 2018 16:15, UK
Has Jose Mourinho's managerial style evolved since his early Chelsea days? We check the stats ahead of his return to Stamford Bridge on Saturday...
Mourinho managed Chelsea for 321 competitive games in all competitions across two spells between 2004 and 2015 - winning three league titles and another four major trophies - before taking the helm at Manchester United in May, 2016.
Last season, the Portuguese achieved United's highest league position since Sir Alex Ferguson retired. But his points-per-game ratio during this campaign currently ranks as the club's lowest during the Premier League era.
Reports alleged United's hierarchy would axe the self-proclaimed Special One earlier this month after four games without a win, but a heroic three-goal comeback in a 3-2 over Newcastle eased pressure going into the international break.
But is the current dip a blip? Does Jose achieve greater success over longer periods of time and has he evolved tactically? We check the stats...
Mourinho's results at Manchester United follow a similar pattern to both his spells at Chelsea: achieving a strong first season, typically improving in the second before a dip in the third.
Having won the Premier League with Chelsea in 2014/15, the Blues suffered a capitulation in form which saw Jose axed in mid-December with the club languishing in 16th spot.
Likewise, having secured runners-up spot in his second term at Old Trafford, United now sit in eighth with negative goal difference - seven points shy of league-leaders Manchester City.
The graphic below shows how results panned out during his 10 seasons in English football, revealing a trend of declining form towards the tail-end of a campaign, before leaving the club after a terrible start in his third or fourth campaign.
United's success last season primarily derived from a defensive resolve with just 28 goals shipped - only rivals Manchester City conceded fewer.
However, United struggled at the other end with just 68 goals scored - only Chelsea netted fewer among the top six clubs.
United's defensive style under Mourinho has been widely criticised for being negative and boring - but last season did not start that way.
Jose recorded his peak for goals scored in England by the end of September last year with an unshackled, attacking start to the campaign - averaging 3.4 goals per game, before the goals dried up.
That run ground to a halt almost one year ago to the day after a 0-0 draw at Liverpool - having scored a staggering 33 goals in their opening 11 games. The following 11 fixtures would reap fewer than half of that total.
But the defensive bedrock of United's success last term has faltered this time around, conceding 1.6 goals per game on average over the past five fixtures.
That ratio is Mourinho's joint-worst in the Premier League, with the exception of his final season at Chelsea in September, 2015.
Jose primarily used a 4-3-3 formation during his first stint at Chelsea, but favoured a 4-2-3-1 system upon his return to Stamford Bridge.
After a three-year hiatus of the 4-3-3, he reintroduced the system in equal measure to the 4-2-3-1 during his first season at United.
Club-record signing Paul Pogba consistently produced improved performances on the left of a three-man midfield, instead of playing alongside Nemanja Matic in a defensive pairing.
However, Jose appears to have made a clean break from the 4-2-3-1 this season and reverted to a 4-3-3 in six out of eight games - while also experimenting with a 3-5-1-1 for the first time and a 5-3-2.
Defensively, Mourinho's first stint at Chelsea remains his most successful - conceding fewer goals and facing fewer shots on target per game in the Premier League.
Contrary to popular belief, Mourinho has probed more in opposition territory during his time in Manchester, averaging 318 passes in the opposition half per game - considerably higher than the 244 during his first tenure at Stamford Bridge.
However, a raft of stats in the final third are on the decline, with his reign at United currently producing fewer chances, shots on goal and goals than in either spell at Chelsea.
So, Mourinho's main problem at United has been creating and converting chances in front of goal - a problem that has been evident again this season.
United currently rank fourth in the Premier League for chances created with 80 to date, but only rank eighth for goals scored with 13. The other 'big six' have been more clinical - as have Bournemouth and Leicester.
But he will be even more concerned by his defence this term, with his side shipping 14 league goals - nearly five times more than Liverpool and Manchester City.
Mourinho will be inspired by his side's comeback against Newcastle two weeks ago, which produced glimpses of his team's attacking potency that shone back in September last year.
Out-of-favour Alexis Sanchez and Juan Mata could be recalled to the starting XI after their match-winning performances at Old Trafford to boost attacking threat, which would also help relieve the dependence on Romelu Lukaku's goals.
Meanwhile, Mourinho will be eager to secure funds for the January transfer window and resume his hunt for a centre-back - but can he break the third-season curse?
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