Jose Mourinho warns Man Utd of his night in Istanbul against Galatasaray ahead of St Etienne clash
Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho revealed how Galatasaray have helped prepare him for the Europa League Round of 32 second-leg clash against St Etienne in France.
Mourinho urged his side to be cautious and not underestimate St Etienne despite beating the Ligue 1 outfit 3-0 at Old Trafford on Thursday 16 February.
The Portuguese manager recalled a similar situation he experienced back when he was Real Madrid manager.
Real faced Galatasaray in the 2013-14 Champions League quarter-final and won the first leg 3-0 but almost blew their aggregate lead after losing the return tie in Istanbul 3-2.
“I’ve had crazy experiences in football. I was winning, it was Real Madrid against Galatasaray, we won 3-0 at home and then were losing 3-1 in Istanbul [the tie ended in a 5-3 aggregate win for Real],” Mourinho was quoted as saying on the official Manchester United website.
“I have been through so many crazy experiences that I believe in anything. We have to go there, defend well, not concede and try to score a goal that will put them in a very difficult situation.”
As any Liverpool fan will attest there is something about Istanbul and comebacks, Mourinho will be hoping the same does not apply for the city of St Etienne.
United cruised to victory over St Etienne thanks to a hat-trick from Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
The Red Devils qualified for the Round of 32 stage as runners-up in Group A to Turkish giants Fenerbahce.
The Premier League giants face St Etienne next on 22 February in France but take on Blackburn Rovers first over the weekend in the FA Cup Fifth Round at Ewood Park.
United have now kept a clean sheet in their last five games in all competitions and have won their last three games.
