Jose Mourinho dismisses Carabao cup, claims it is affecting European glory

Jose Mourinho has dismissed the importance of the Carabao cup as he claims the competition affect the performance of the English teams in European competitions - He made the claim shortly after his side massive 4-1 victory over Burton Albion - Manchester United face double away ties to Southampton and CSKA Moscow Defending champions Manchester United coasted into the last 16 of the Carabao cup by beating Championship side Burton 4-1, with the Special One aiming for a record fifth triumph. But Mourinho says he could live without the extra demands of chasing a fourth piece of silverware, as he believes the Carabao piles up the fixtures for the Red Devils. Jose Mourinho dismisses Carabao cup. The United boss, whose team is set to travel to Southampton and CSKA Moscow in the next six days, said: “If the competition’s an official competition then it’s important for Manchester United and for me as a manager. “If you ask me could English football survive or even be better without this competition? Maybe. “Maybe we’d be fresher for European competition, for example.” Both Mourinho and Burton Albion boss Nigel Clough made nine changes apiece to their previous line-ups. Jose Mourinho dismisses Carabao cup, claims it is affecting European glory Arsene Wenger changed his entire Arsenal side, while Chelsea counterpart Antonio Conte made nine changes from the team’s 0-0 draw last weekend with Arsenal. Mourinho was not alone in his call for the check on the Carabao cup as Spurs chief Mauricio Pochettino also claims that neither domestic cup was a priority this season. Mourinho added: “But we have this competition, we have to respect the sponsors, we have to respect the opponents and a lot of us are trying to do our best.” Despite his comments, only Sir Alex Ferguson and Brian Clough have won the competition as many times as Mourinho. It was Clough’s son Nigel on the receiving end last night as Marcus Rashford, with two, and Jesse Lingard fired United 3-0 up at half-time, before Anthony Martial hit No 4. Mourinho added: “No injuries, no cards, we won and they lost with dignity and had a positive performance, so I think everybody is happy.” Clough was happy Lloyd Dyer hit a consolation goal. He said: “It was lovely for our supporters. Most will never have dreamt Burton Albion would ever score at Old Trafford.” Manchester United will face Southampton and CSKA Moscow in a back to back away fixture the next six days.