Football
Arindam Rej, Man United Correspondent 7y

Jose Mourinho: Aitor Karanka a better coach than when at Madrid with me

Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho has said that his former Real Madrid assistant and current Middlesbrough boss Aitor Karanka is a different coach to the one he knew.

Mourinho's United face Karanka's Middlesbrough at Old Trafford on Saturday in the first meeting between the pair as managers.

Former Madrid defender Karanka was Mourinho's assistant at Los Blancos from 2010 to 2013.

"Karanka is now very likely a different coach to the one I met during my spell at Real Madrid," Mourinho told Futbol Tactico. "He now boasts two-and-a-half years of experience as a manager in the Championship [with Middlesbrough], which is one of the toughest and most demanding leagues in Europe, despite it being the second tier of English football. I

"t's a tremendously difficult league and his time at that level will have seen him acquire different skills.

"I'm certain that taking the club up into the Premier League -- which I believe to be the toughest competition in the world -- this year will have really improved him as a professional. We're talking about two and a half years in the Championship and half a year in the Premier League, during which time he'll have acquired major experience."

Karanka showed his respect for Mourinho last month when he said that the Portuguese was a better manager than Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola.

Karanka and Mourinho's relationship grew as they tried to overcome Guardiola's Barcelona during their period together in La Liga.

Discussing the qualities he saw in Karanka, the United manager said: "He has studied and has built up experience as a player, assistant coach and now as a manager. That makes him very well qualified for the role. I'm not in the slightest surprised by what he has achieved to date. Karanka is a man who displays great emotional stability, he's very calm, quiet and has a fine personality. I only hope that he goes on to achieve bigger things.

"He always proved to me that he possessed one very important trait and that was honesty. He's a loyal man with great moral principles. When an individual has those traits, it doesn't matter what line of work they're in, they'll always be at an advantage.

"Aitor has shown me that and our friendship will last a lifetime. I believe that this is the basis for everything."

^ Back to Top ^