Luke Shaw’s Mourinho admission which could serve as lesson for Dele Alli

Manchester United left-back Luke Shaw has admitted that he used Jose Mourinho’s criticism of him as a learning curve and that he has subsequently improved as both a person and a player.

Mourinho was quite vocal in his criticism of Shaw on occasions during his time as United manager with the former Southampton man was struggling for form at the time.

The Portuguese coach sometimes also praised the England international on the back of good performances but the 25-year-old was not able to perform on a consistent basis.

Shaw looks like a completely different player this campaign for the Red Devils and has established himself as a key part of Ole Gunnar Solksjaer’s side.

He admitted in an interview with BBC Sport that although Mourinho’s words were sometimes difficult to hear, he used it as a motivating factor to improve.

Mourinho’s treatment of Dele Alli at Spurs has parallels with his treatment of Shaw, with the 58-year-old not being shy of calling the midfielder out in front of the media.

Alli has largely been on the fringes of the Spurs side this campaign but the Tottenham boss has now admitted that the England international could be an important player for the side if he gets back to his best.

Perhaps, Alli, much like Shaw, could deliver on the pitch and look back on his time out of the team as a learning moment.

"It was a very hard time".

Ahead of Man Utd v West Ham in the #FACup (on @BBCiPlayer and @BBCOne tonight from 19:00 GMT), Luke Shaw has been talking to Gary Lineker about playing under Jose Mourinho.#bbcfacup #bbcfootball

— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) February 9, 2021

Spurs Web Opinion

As we saw with Ndombele, Mourinho often uses ‘confrontational leadership’ methods to inspire a reaction from some of his players. That certainly has worked with the Frenchman, who looks much fitter and more committed than he seemed last season. Hopefully, it also works with Alli and the midfielder takes the opportunities that come his way.

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