What happened to the four Man Utd stars Jose Mourinho named and shamed in 2018

From 2016 to 2018, Jose Mourinho was at the reins of Manchester United.

It was a period of erratic ups and downs where the Red Devils won a very first Europa League under the Portuguese coach but spent a staggering amount of money in the wrong areas and flopped in the Champions League.

It was also a period in which Mourinho would regularly ‘throw players under the bus’ in the press, naming and shaming individuals as he launched rants following poor performances. In the mind of the now-Roma boss, his harsh words were designed to spark a positive reaction from the individual embarrassed – but things didn’t always go to plan in that respect.

In 2018, Mourinho launched one of his most infamous tirades in which he took aim at no fewer than FOUR United stars.

He said of his Red Devils team on Univision: “They’re lacking maturity. For example, Luke Shaw. When I got here two years ago, the boy didn’t even know how to compete. Great potential, yes, but he doesn’t know how to compete.

“And when we talk about Luke Shaw, about [Anthony] Martial, about [Jesse] Lingard, about Marcus Rashford, we’re talking about boys with great potential but who still are lacking – a word I can’t say but you like to say a lot – having that [courage]. They’re lacking a bit of this.”

Mourinho added: “In English, in the United States, people might say ‘spoiled’ or ‘spoiled kids’.

“Our children are more spoiled than we were by our own parents. We were more mature, we were better prepared. I think today’s kids have a different social life than ours and today’s players also have their surroundings, a word that was used a lot in Barcelona, the interior environment.

“In Barcelona, when they talk about the environment, they’re talking about a more global sense in relation to the club.

“When I use this word ‘environment’ I’m using it more in relation to the personal environment, to the people that come around the players, that protect them too much, who give them too much affection, too many excuses.

“Always making excuses makes you mature more slowly. [I mean] character, personality, like you [Stoichkov] said in Spanish – ‘mala hostia’ – that natural aggressiveness that you had.”

Five years on and a lot has changed at Old Trafford.

United are on their third manager since sacking Mourinho, with Erik ten Hag now at the helm and so far doing a great job in leading the Red Devils in the right direction.

And three of the four players berated by Mourinho are still at the club, with only Jesse Lingard leaving last summer for a new challenge with Nottingham Forest after his contract expired.

Martial has played his part for Manchester United this season, but hasn’t set the world alight under Ten Hag and appears to be falling out of favour once again after returning to the first team.

But Shaw, and particularly, Rashford are mainstays in Ten Hag’s current Man United team and couldn’t be doing more to prove former boss Mourinho wrong.

Unlike Mourinho, Ten Hag has much confidence in Shaw and has even successfully used him as a centre-back this campaign in addition to his favoured left-back position.

Shaw is showing signs of further development under Ten Hag, claiming a position in defence as his own and putting to bed suggestions United could look to snap up another left-back any time soon.

Rashford, meanwhile, has become absolutely unplayable at United.

The England international is in the form of his life and has netted 18 goals in all competitions this season – 10 in his last 10 fixtures.

Ten Hag has had nothing but positive things to say about the forward, recently referring to him as “unstoppable”.

“There are more players who are playing really well but I am happy with Marcus’ performance and his development,” said Ten Hag. “From the start of the season he is growing and he keeps doing that and what we have to aim for with him, and he is responsible for that, is to keep this process going.

“If he is in this mood, this spirit, he is unstoppable and it’s about the team to get him in the right positions. Also, possession, we have a plan but finally is also the intuition, the creativity of an individual like Rashy is to create chances.”