Gary meets Jose Mourinho MOTD: The Premier League Show

This week, we're looking out over the rooftops

of Manchester where I'm joined by Arsenal Ladies Captain Alex Scott

and Comedian and Manchester United fan Justin Moorhouse to look

Coming up on the show - Gary Lineker talks to Jose Mourinho

about success and expectation at Manchester United.

We're behind the scenes at Bournemouth with groundbreaking

club photographer Sophie Cook; and Danny McLoughlin

reflects on the loneliness of the international break.

But first, let's take a look back at the last seven days

In towards Romelu Lukaku. He finds the net, as he always does at

Goodison Park. It gets all the way through to Niasse. It was tough for

us. This is against the goalkeeper 's legs, extraordinary stuff, Josh

King. We dug deep and change things and it is great to win again. That

is a south side for Tottenham fans. To lose him for any period of time

would be a disaster. Emre Can, good try, Emre Can to give Liverpool the

lead. We have won and I am fine with that. Leicester City have confirmed

that Craig Shakespeare will be in charge until the end of the season.

I bear no grudges, neither does Claudio Ranieri and we have to try

and move on as a football club. The Everton striker Romelu Lukaku has

turned down the most lucrative contract offer in the club's

history. Middlesbrough have sacked by Aitor Karanka with 11 games of

the season remaining. They are looking for a new manager to try

keep them in the league. Middlesbrough have done what five

clubs have done, change their manager but have they left it too

late? I think the timing is suspect. They are looking around, hole have

done it and Swansea have done it and that has had an immediate effect and

Middlesbrough need that. We will see if it is the right decision. They

need goals. They just cannot seem to score. The rumour is that he has

lost the dressing room. I have never lost a dressing room. They play

Manchester United on Sunday. They are not expected to win so it gives

them new guys a chance to settle in and then they have two big games,

Hull and Swansea and if they win those, that will look great. Lester,

it seems to be that Craig Shakespeare is not only getting a

bit of bounce in the Premier League, but there are through to the

quarterfinals of the Champions League and you can understand the

thinking. He made the decision and people at the top have to make tough

decisions. Only time will tell. Jose Mourinho is one of only

a handful of managers in the modern game who guarantees trophies

but managing Manchester United may Gary Lineker caught up with him

before Monday's FA Cup # Something tells me I'm into

something good... Jose Mourinho, how are you enjoying life at Manchester

United? I am enjoying every moment of it. It is hard, it is difficult,

but I knew that before. Manchester United has a name and a prestige and

has something magical in football but attracts everyone. The hard part

is the expectation. Because of their history of the club. I am also a

little bit guilty of it because I am used to getting trophies with every

club. The relationship between our two potential and the expectations

we create, there is a gap. Kante finds a way. We are not ready to

beat Manchester United. Manchester United out of the FA Cup. We are not

ready to be the dominant force, we are not ready to try and win

everything, because of our nature, the club, myself, also the players

and also the will of the players, we are ready to fight for every game

and fight for every point and every objective. But there is a space

between the general ambition of such a giant club and what we are in

reality. What a save! Are you satisfied generally with the

progress you're making a Manchester United, you have already won a

trophy? Many other teams in England will finish the season without a

trophy and we have this and the Community Shield. We have to fight

for top four and fight for a Champions League. I do not think the

League Cup is enough for us to say, NDubz every recover the season is

over. You talked about the expectations at Manchester United,

but you have managed Inter Milan, Real Madrid, the very rich Chelsea

team, how does it differ, is it bigger here? I am saying bigger, it

was easier to get the objectives in the other clubs than here. Why do

you think that? I think I found her sad club when I arrived here.

Manchester United sold players that I would never sell and ball players

I would never buy. Probably when I leave a club, people say the same. I

would not be doing my job if I did not ask you which ones. Which ones?

I would never have sold de Maria. She cherry to. Danny Welbeck. Never,

no chance. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, 2-0. What a finish that is! I have spoken

to lots of Manchester United fans, they are enjoying the way this side

is playing, is that something that you thought about? I try always to

get the best out of my players and I try always my team to play the way

it suits them and the way I think I can get the best out of them. We

normally dominate matches, we normally have the ball and create a

lot of chances. But, we need kill opponents, you cannot play open, you

cannot play offensive, you do not kill, you are killed. I won so many

matches and titles in my career, the other way around, being safe and

under control, waiting for the mistake. I buy two, goodbye. Now, we

have to kill matches to have the complete pleasure of playing well,

playing in a certain way. I think we are missing this. What are you like

personally after a game if the result has gone against you? Does it

affect your mood? Always. But I think I have found a certain

balance. Josh King, makes it 1-1. After a bad result, I make a joke,

ten years ago, ie do not think so. I change, but I keep my nature and my

nature is bad result, you're not happy. You do not want to be in the

Europa League next season. I prefer to be in the Europa League than not.

Nick season, if we do not play Champions League, I think we have to

play the Europa League and try and win it. Do you need to qualify for

the Champions League to attract the big players? I think Manchester

United is very powerful. I do not think Manchester United needs to be

in the Champions League to attract the best players. Honestly, we have

got players that could be playing in the Champions League, Zlatan

Ibrahimovic could be in Paris, we were able to attract the players

because they know that Manchester United, sooner or later we will get

there, I do not think it is really a problem and if any player decides

not to come because of that, I am happy that they are not coming. Is

it hard as a manager to keep big players happy when they are not in

the starting line-up? It is impossible! It depends always on the

nature of the player, the way Mickey dealt with it is difficult --

Michael different from other players. He was not ready for this

reality. Visit goal, mental competitiveness, also his body, to

adapt to that physicality and that intensity, a little time to recover

from March to March is hard. In the end, I think that is the less

important thing. How happy are you with the progress of your summer

signings, Paul Pogba is taking his time to adjust to English football

and it is difficult? It is not easy. The country is so difficult from

Italian football. I think it is really hard for him. I am not

disappointed at all. The most important thing for me is his

personality. With everything that surrounds them, he is professional,

he will be just improving for sure. What would be your ultimate ambition

for this club while you are manager? To restore it to its former

greatness? Forget it. It is not possible. Do not try to go ten or 20

years ago, it is not possible any more. I have many doubts that sea is

going to be back to the Premier League, so winning titles, trying to

get back to the Champions League, trying to win in Europe, but it has

to be the empathy with the fans and the empathy with the fans is based

on the quality of our football. This is something that has to be the base

of everything. Last question, do you think you will be here longer than

three years? Do you think you will spend the most time at this club? I

would like to, I don't know, but I would like to. I am really happy and

I really enjoy working here, so I would like to stay here until the

owners of the board do not want me to stay here. Many things I got from

that interview but one of the overriding things was his mood and

demeanour and Jose Mourinho had this weird wobble at the beginning, it

was almost like his honeymoon period lasted about three days but he seems

more sanguine now as things were connected to the club, as a fan

would you say that is the case? I absolutely adore the man. I am in

love with Jose Mourinho. I think he is the kind of character we needed.

He is a big man and he is filling big shoes that two people before him

could not do and I think his approach to the game, his

realisation of his own limitations and everything else in the squad and

his honesty and openness, I am saying this all now, I mean if he

goes back to Real Madrid, here's a dog! I think he is brilliant he fits

hand in glove with what Manchester United right now. He gets the

history and understands it. It is a bit disingenuous to say that your

larder is empty when you have the likes of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Paul

Pogba. He manages expectations. He does and you can see it in the

interview. He seems more settled and he is enjoying what he has taken on.

It is interesting when he says we are not ready to beat the Manchester

United and I totally agree with that because people referred to the

greats when Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes were there but they have got

Paul Pogba but they are not there yet. People go to Old Trafford and

they do not fear going there, they know they can perhaps get a result

and they need to get that aura about them again and I think Jose Mourinho

needs time and he is building up. Fans are enjoying the way he is

playing, the way Manchester United are playing. This is not the

swashbuckling counterattacking great teams that Alex Ferguson had but it

is not the turgid Louis van Gaal misery -fest. The fans are behind

him and the fans are behind the players. We are turning this around

especially players like Paul Pogba. He is they give it obviously one

Zlatan Ibrahimovic to stay. He certainly played the man management

well with Mkhitaryan. He has also said that he was surprised about the

players who left Manchester United, the likes of Danny Welbeck. He was a

fan favourite. When he goes out there on a summer spending spree, it

will be interesting to see who he brings them.

Everything is easier in hindsight but everyone was shocked when Danny

Welbeck was sold. He was a Man U player, you want to keep those

players in the team. Yes, and maybe, we also don't know what message he

is sending to the dressing room. What kind of players he likes. Maybe

they were popular in the dressing room. Especially Welbeck. It is a

crying shame, Danny Welbeck left martial United. Good for us.

Arsenal. Next to Bournemouth,

where on Saturday we followed club photographer Sophie Cook,

who has a fascinating story to tell. It was 1979, I told my parents I was

going around a fraensd house and caught a train down to Brighton. I

remember coming out of the railway station with 100 other mods and

seeing ten rockers at the bottom of the road and chasing them all the

way down the road. I'm still a mod. I had the vestas and Lady Thatcher

ambrettas. Loved Brighton all my life. I love this town. It's part of

me, I'm so proud to be here. I moved to Brighton because it has an amaze

approximating LGBT reputation. I was born and Bournemouth. As a kid my

dad used to take me back to watch them in the mid-'70s, the day of Ted

McDougall and Bowyer. It is one of those teams that's in your blood. My

granddad got me into photography when I was a cud. -- kid. I started

working for the club probably about ten years ago, my first ever match

as club forever was away at Stevenage on a freezing cold,

October or something evening and it was - a far cry from where we are

now. I've known I wasp transgender since he was seven. -- I was. In the

mid-'70s no-one had a clue what it was. We didn't have the internet and

didn't have that knowledge. It was difficult. That lack of knowledgep

meant I didn't have a clue what was going on with me.

I don't know if it went in or not apart from the reaction. All I see

is a guy kicking a ball. I have no idea what happens after that. This

was this period before I came out where I was so emotionally

disconnected from everything and people look at old photos and they

can just see the pain in the eyes. There is just no happiness there. My

whole body has been a prison since I realised there was a difference

between the genders. When you spend three, four decades looking in the

mirror and the only thing you can see is your eyes because the rest of

your body is in prison, it's like pain like no-one can imagine. I

decided in January 2015 that I had to come out. But of course we were

pushing for promotion at the time. So I sort of led a double life for

the rest of that season. I was Sophie during the week and then I

was going to football matches and pretending to be Steve. I remember

when first started I did feel a lot of pressure and now it is like, you

are at work, just doing a job. The day we became Football League

champions at Cheltenham I was stood there on the pitch, I was terrified.

I thought I was never, ever going to work in football again. There had

never been a trans woman working in football. I thought when I came out,

that was it. I was sort of umming and ahhing when I was going to tell

the club. We were coming into preseason. I got hair extensions put

in and I suddenly thought - oh, I can't just pretend to be Steve any

more. Then I came in for a meeting and

there was Jeff Moston the chairman. Eddie Howe the first team manager

and Jason Tindall the sais and the manager and me in my pencil shirt

and heels looking fabulous. The first time they had ever meet

Sophie. Fist time I think they had ever met a Trans woman. Eddie said -

what can I do to make it easier. But when you come out, you can't expect

everyone to understand but for him to say, "What can I do to make it

easier?" It sums him up as a person, I think.

I hate to admit it, but it was my 50th birthday back in January.

Before the game, Eddie presented me with a shirt which was - I was

actually on the touchline in tears. It was such a beautiful gesture.

When I came out, it was at a training session. They called all

the players together and Jason Tindall the assistant manager said -

I suppose you noticed our photographer had changed. Grown her

hair and lost wait. The captain started clapping and the guys joined

in. And then he said - let's go and train and I was sort of - was that

it? I built it up so much on my head. Afterwards I sat down with

players, and told them how he struggled with self-harm and

suicide. It was important they knew this wasn't a whim, this was

actually saving my life. Before I came out, I just didn't think - I

didn't even think it was a possibility me still being in

football. The reality is that it has been better than I could ever have

imagined. I'm so pleased we've had that piece on this show. I started

out in this business over 20 years ago. I didn't think I would be

introducing a piece like that. Not because I didn't think it existed in

football, that football reflected society but it has changed, it's

moved massively in the last few years. It's important that football

reflects the wider society. Of course. I think football needs to

catch up. I think the line from that for me was Eddie Howe, I think what

he said there is perhaps the nicest thing I have heard a football

manager say all season, just, you know - what can we do to help? The

rest of the players applauded, let's get on with training. Football needs

to understand it needs to reflect society and not have to lead. You

know most people are all right. We are all aware of the little

differences in everybody and the diversity in our own lives, you

know. I think most people just cope with things. Sometimes football has

been a bit frightened of upsetting the traditional fan base and this

sort of thing I think we just all get on with it. I think it is

important football does reflect society, it is still a dominant

sport, dominates the back pages, gets column inches so, diversity and

the representation of diversity in football is vital. I was actually on

Monday unleashing a women's mar getting plan, moving forward, the

main strategy was - football is for all. From whatever level you are,

whether you are at elite level or playing on a Sunday, on a pitch in

the park, everyone is involved and this story highlights that. In 20

years' time, we will sit down around laughing at the fact that in 2017 we

don't have any openly gay footballers in the Premier League.

It wasn't something we talked about. Thankfully we are moving on.

Football is for everyone. It is the people's game. They should have that

at a slogan Right there. Manchester City v Liverpool

on Sunday is THE game of the weekend with third taking on fourth,

and in recent years when these two meet, it's the Reds of Liverpool

who have the edge. Court COMMENTATOR: What a result for

Liverpool. What a shot, what a got. Cortinho's shot.

Firmino. What a shot. And it is N Liverpool running away with it. Ball

in, headed it, about brilliantly. I guess it is a case of Manchester

City, how they react from that mid-week Champions' League defeat,

which Liverpool side turn up. It is difficult to predict this We finally

see Liverpool go out and win ugly. Klopp was happy with their

performance. We are used to seeing them attacking and high pressing but

it was good it seat other side but from Man City's perspective as a

player, I know once I have last a game I can't wait for the next game

to come around because it is almost like you have a point to prove, so

it'll be interesting, what have Liverpool got? 16 goals this season

and we all know about City's defence. They have to find a defence

for somewhere. As a Manchester United fan, sitting behind them. Do

you have a preference. Is there strategy going on here. You would

imagine for a draw, so they both drop a couple of points. But it is

difficult. It is not a game you want to watch, really. It is like

watching two people you don't like having an argument about something

you don't care about, it is irrelevant to me. I see which leg

you want broken. Exactly. Now, as Alex can testify,

the international break is a time for elite competition,

fun and dancing - nice moves - but spare a thought

for those left behind. ! Hello I'm donee McLaughlin.

Comedian and all-round popular guy with loads of hobbies and absolutely

loads of mates which is just as well because next week's international

break, meaning no Premier League footie for you, me or any of my

mates. So that's me sorted but what about the lads at the top clubs that

aren't getting picked for international duties? What do they

do when their team-mates are cashying their posh wash bags to

airports and jetting off to exotic locations like Italia, asker buyian

ia. Asker buyiania. I tell with you what they are doing, they are on

their phones:. I don't blame them for turning to

social media at times of utter boredom. How would you feel if you

went to work and there was absolutely nobody around. Come on

lads, lads. # All by myself

# Don't want to live #...#

Oh, it would be pretty bleak. What do they do with their time? I

imagine they have to do Loney pursuits like pogo sticking,

hoovering or even fishing. Imagine having to go fishing? Not me,

though, I've got loads of mates. OK, there's no-one picking up. Maybe

they're in the air or underground or something, or in church. Does two

blue ticks mean they've read T I mean I've got loads of mates but, if

you're free as well, we could do something. 14. 57 and ten seconds.

What do you mean you haven't got my number? Oh, I'll find something else

to do. International breaks, what do we

think? I have been in bar bay boss when Steve McManaman flew in for a

fight-and-a-half. And John Terry getting into bother for his

non-skiing ski strip. What should they be doing? Resting. Most

football fans hate the break. There is no real football. Your players

might get injured. No-one cares, half the times they are friend li.s

you go - oh, the international break. I want my players to be sat

at home doing nothing, hopefully not get selected and sit at home waiting

for the next game. It must be a very strange thing, though, if you are

not - your club is empty, nobody is there. You have not experienced it,

have you? I came back, we were away with the England team in America. I

got injured so had to come back and I was going in the training ground

for physio every day. Literally no-one was there. It was so weird. I

was tinning up, getting physio and I was - OK, see you later I'm going

home now. Watching daytime TV. Yeah.

Before we go, let's take a look at the weekend's fixtures.

West Brom face Arsenal in Saturday's early kick off and runaway leaders

Chelsea face a difficult trip to Stoke amongst five

And it's Bournemouth against Swansea at tea time.

On Sunday, Jose Mourinho's Manchester United visit

Middlesbrough, Tottenham take on Southampton and we finish

with that cracker between Manchester City and Liverpool.

There's no show next week due to the international break but we'll

be back in two weeks' time ahead of a tasty Merseyside Derby.

Please free to finish off the biscuits. Lent's almost over I'm in

training. See you next time, take care.