Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho has aimed another dig at Arsenal and Liverpool after the club made the record-breaking signing of Paul Pogba.
As noted by Sky Sports, the Red Devils completed the £89m signing of the French international this week, shattering the previous world record transfer fee.
Both Arsene Wenger and Jurgen Klopp have been critical of the fee to an extent in recent weeks, which has led to a tense clash between them and Mourinho through the media.
With the new Premier League campaign set to get underway this weekend, it adds another thrilling sub-plot to the season, with Mourinho showing no sign that he’s ready to back down from any of his rivals after suggesting that they aren’t big enough to make the kind of signings United have.
“I know the discussion, I understand that, sometimes in football, things happen and the club breaks the record, but this is only possible at clubs like Man United,” he said, as reported by The Sun.
“When I heard some of the comments and heard some of the managers criticising that, I don’t think they ever have this problem because, to have this problem, you need to be at one of the top clubs in the world. So at Man United it can happen.”
There have been strong arguments on both sides over Pogba’s substantial fee, with many arguing that it’s simply ridiculous that United have splashed out so much on him.
While the 23-year-old has shown his class in his four years with Juventus, he still has to grow and mature into a leader to meet expectations after his return to Old Trafford as much more will now be expected of him.
Others will insist that the French international has his best years ahead of him, can be a pivotal part of the club’s future success and United will cushion the huge fee with the commercial and sponsorship deals that they have in place which dwarf those that their rivals have.
In turn, perhaps there is a valid point in Mourinho’s argument in that the Red Devils are on a different playing field when it comes to making the biggest signings out of the English clubs, but ultimately it also adds fuel to the fire with his respective rivalries.