In a case similar to Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s a couple of months ago, some people believed that Luke Shaw will be playing his final season at the Theatre of Dreams.
José Mourinho, on the other hand, and his strong man management techniques, has another view of the problem. The former Chelsea manager, who tried to lure the left-back and have him signed for the London side a couple of seasons ago, thinks that the former Southampton player has what it takes to become Manchester United’s regular left wing-back in the coming few years.
Mourinho thinks Shaw will be United’s best left-back
Speaking to the press, the United boss described that “in practical terms, we have lots of left-backs” and the "reality is that Blind, Shaw, Rojo and [Matteo] Darmian can all play left back – but they are different players”.
Mourinho actually thinks that“in a couple of years, one of them should become the best of all” because he has “all the attributes to be the best – and that’s Luke Shaw”.
The Manchester United boss thinks that “because of his age, his physicality, his intensity, his aggressiveness and his ability going forward” he can be “the best” but he also insisted that in order to be the best “you need to work - you need to work hard and that’s what he’s trying to do”.
Shaw provided an impressive performance against Bournemouth
The England international played his eighth match of this season’s Premier League campaign against the Cherries in the weekend, raising his total minutes in the competition to only 596 minutes.
Despite being away for a while, Shaw produced a fine display, completing 90% of his passes, creating two chances and completing four crosses.
Defensively, he won 60% of his tackles, made two interceptions, three clearances and two blocks.
Manchester United’s busy period in the Premier League, Emirates FA Cup and UEFA Europa League competitions will surely force Mourinho to rotate his squad, and with Shaw’s impressive performance, it would give the Portuguese yet another selection headache.