Jose Mourinho says it is unfair for Hull boss Marco Silva to be branded the new ‘Special One’.
Manchester United host Hull in the first leg of their EFL Cup semi-final, with the Old Trafford tie seeing the two Portuguese colleagues go head-to head.
Newly-appointed Silva has been likened to Mourinho, having enjoyed a successful start to his managerial career in his native Portugal.
But self-appointed Special One Mourinho, who speaks regularly with Silva, fears his compatriot could be burdened by the flattering likeness.
Silva has already rejected the comparison, with his United counterpart agreeing the perception of Hull’s boss as a ‘Mini Mourinho’ is a plaudit he can do without.
“I don’t think it is good for Marco to be compared with me,” said Mourinho. “I don’t think it’s good for him.
“And I don’t think it’s fair, but I can see a similar start of career, because he was in a small club, Estoril, before he moved to Sporting Lisbon. I was in a small club, Leiria, before I moved to Porto, so we had a similar start in Portugal.
“He did well and I see him as an intelligent guy with a good attitude.
“You know, it’s not easy to come to the Premier League when you’re a foreign coach.
“He knows he’s going to face a difficult challenge. They’re bottom of the Premier League, with 13 points, but it’s a big opportunity for him.
“He’s known in Portugal as one of the good young coaches. He went to Greece, he was champion there, and now he comes to the big one.
“His formation [as a coach] was good, because he started low. He wasn’t given a top job immediately.
“He did well in a small club in Portugal, then he goes to Sporting, one of the top three. Then he goes to Greece and is champion with Olympiacos.
“For me, he’s very stable. In spite of being a young guy, he’s experienced because he’s stable, very mature.
“I look forward to another Portuguese guy in the Premier League, in this case one from a younger generation than myself.
“I would love him to do well but we all know that in the Premier League, when you’re bottom, it’s hard to jump, but he’s going to try for sure.”
Mourinho goes into Tuesday night’s game boasting a remarkable record of having never lost a League Cup tie in 90 minutes. As well as winning the trophy three times, Mourinho has suffered two penalty shoot-out defeats and an extra-time loss.
It was the first trophy he won in England, with Chelsea in 2005, and he is desperate to get back to Wembley and lift the trophy for a fourth time - his first as United boss.
“I won the League Cup twice in Cardiff,” said Mourinho. “But, honestly, especially after the move from Cardiff to Wembley - for me Wembley is Wembley - and I want to go there as many times as I can.
“So we’re going to face this Hull match with everything we have, with all the power we have, because we know that it’s two legs, but the second leg is away.
“So if you can do something in the first leg that gives you an advantage, we are going to try to do that. For big clubs, a competition is a competition. I was never good at choosing competitions.
“So many times at some of my clubs you get to April and you have a busy fixture list, but you’re in competitions to try to win.
“I always felt the League Cup, as a cup, is not the FA Cup, but it’s a cup, it’s the League Cup. When it moved to Wembley, I think the meaning is even better, so why not try?
“It’s a two-legged competition. If we don’t play well in one leg, you have another match to try, so we’re going to try. I know Marco, he’s an intelligent guy, he will organise his team well for sure, but we want to be there.”
United go into the tie on the back of eight successive wins in all competitions, their best run of form since 2009 under former boss Sir Alex Ferguson, with Mourinho desperate to maintain that momentum.
He said: “I think the fact you’re winning matches is good and you’re not going to throw away an opportunity for that.”