Mourinho not moaning about fixture list after getting a bye in Covid outbreak

Leyton Orient could be Punished For Covid Outbreak! by Dan Smith

Two weeks ago Jose Mourinho was claiming a conspiracy against his team when their League Cup tie was arranged two days before a trip in the Europa League. As a manager who takes both competitions seriously and under pressure to end Spur’s trophy drought, he was using the Pandemic as a ready-made excuse just in case he failed to win silverware.

At a time where the whole world is having to adapt, he accused the FA of not wanting his team to win the Carabao Cup as a reason to have the third-round date the same midweek they flew to Macedonia. Including trips to Bulgaria, Southampton, Leyton Orient, Macedonia, then Newcastle, that’s 5 away fixtures in two weeks.

Everyone knows the reasons. Due to lockdown, the 2019/ 20 season was late to finish, meaning this campaign’s start was delayed. It has to end by next summer due to the Euros. Meaning that everyone at Project Restart had a choice. Agree to a year of cramming games into a hectic schedule or void football.

When it was suggested back in March that it wasn’t practical for Sport to resume, owners were willing to do anything to get games played, no matter what. So don’t cry now.

It makes me angry that some in the game want everything their way, especially considering the compromises others around the world are facing, far more serious than a fixture list.

In reality Tottenham have the squad to rotate and still best a League Two side and win in two random parts of Eastern Europe. It is actually sick that a coach would hide behind Covid. He knows the unique reason teams are playing every few days, and knows the Europa League Qualifiers are a consequence of only finishing 6th in the League.

So the Portuguese boss must be delighted he got his way. The visit to Orient was postponed due to an outbreak of the virus at Brisbane Road. Not just did that mean his side played only once in midweek but they have been given a bye into the next round.

The irony, the man who said there was a witch hunt to stop Spurs winning the Carabao Cup, is simply put into the last 16. Can you imagine if Spurs were knocked out if the same thing happened to them?
But guess what? Nothing’s been said. No offer of a replay. No talk of integrity. No insistence that Spurs want to play the tie. Certainly zero talk now of personal agendas.

The same person who kicks up that the calendar is unfair, says nothing about fairness when a club are thrown out due to players being ill. The O’s were a win away from facing Chelsea which could have been precious TV revenue. They lose out on that for an outbreak of a virus.

The cruel irony is Orient only took the test because of Spurs’ generosity. The Premier League have made it compulsory for testing to be done in the top flight but because of cost, that’s yet to include the lower divisions. So most Prem clubs in these ties have been offering testing to their opponents as it’s been paid for anyway.

The likes of Hull for example were criticised for not taking West Ham up on their offer.

Leyton Orient on the other hand do the right thing and safeguard their staff, yet it’s bizarrely cost them their place in the Cup. If they had played, won but the virus had spread, surely that’s worse?

That’s not how you would read into this decision. Let’s say Newport got to a semi-final and they were at the Etihad and City ask would their players like to be tested for free?

I would want the FA, sponsors, everyone to do everything to encourage them that the correct thing to do is take the test. Yet now they know by taking that test, you could miss Man City away or even Wembley. How can that be right? If this were a bigger club treated this way there would be uproar.

It’s not Spurs’ fault of course. Yet if they go on to win the Cup, I wonder if Jose will admit they got an unfair bye? Not bad when you consider there is an agenda against you?

Dan Smith

15 Comments

  1. Not to sound rude Dan but I don’t see the point of this article as I don’t even care what Mourinho thinks or what he does as long as it has nothing to do with Arsenal.

      1. Now thisnt about Covid_19 is it?
        This is you clearly voicing your opinion on what Mourinho did and didn’t do.
        Plus we’ve done our part in the carabao cup, looking forward to the next game, so I care less what other teams in the competition do

            1. A team has been kicked out for accepting a covid test not applauded for it
              If they had refused the test game would have been played
              So by own rules , the league is discouraging teams to take test
              That to me is important

  2. Mourinho has always been clever at positioning himself. It’s his talent to blame everything and everybody for any shortcomings- on or off the field
    Hopefully, he’ll get his comeuppance in the not too distant future

    Yes Dan, there is a small element of a hollow victory should they win the Carabao Cup (even though a win for the O’s was unlikely)

    For me it will be interesting how the season pans out in general. Covid hasn’t gone away

  3. Some fans attitude sums it up.
    Long as the prem is okAy , don’t worry about about the little clubs ?
    PFA for example has 55 million , they claim responsibility is their members welfare

  4. Some unthinking comments which wrongly, blame DANS keenly obser3d article a shaving nothing to do with Arsnel or JA are mealy mouthed pathetic andplain wrong. Deeper thinking fans easily see that all clubs not merely just ours are affected by the Orient Spurs spat and I feel enormous sadness at both the unthinking , selfish posts I have red above mine AND the sheer lack of thought that seems , by some , to think we are not affected by this. OF COURSE WE ARE! Just as all thrPrem is much affected byt his pandemic and are charged with amoral and busines duty to ensure the EFL clubs manage to survive this crowdless season ahead.
    Put simply my fellow Gooners, I have always believed that we are ALL “our brothers keepers” and I will always challenge as morally bankrupt , those who do not see this truth!

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