Jose Mourinho goes for Pep Guardiola and Gareth Southgate as he demands answers on WHY Raheem Sterling pulled out of England duty but is fit for Man City – and which bosses get special treatment
- Tottenham boss Jose Mourinho hit out at Pep Guardiola and Gareth Southgate
- Mourinho is searching for answers after Raheem Sterling withdrew for England
- Despite the injury scare, Mourinho believes the star will feature against his side
- Top flight managers were concerned with their players’ international workload
Jose Mourinho has called on Gareth Southgate to reveal the club managers who are putting pressure on their players to withdraw from England duty.
Tottenham boss Mourinho says he is certain Raheem Sterling will play for Manchester City at White Hart Lane on Saturday despite withdrawing from Southgate’s squad.
Sterling joined England for the international break but did not feature in games against the Republic of Ireland or Belgium, and then returned to his club before the UEFA Nations League tie against Iceland on Wednesday.
Jose Mourinho demanded Gareth Southgate to explain Raheem Sterling’s absence for England
The Three Lions boss says his players are pressurised to manage their international workloads
‘Of course we all know that Sterling is going to play,’ said Mourinho, ahead of the clash with City.
‘When Eric Dier left the national team injured last month, he didn’t play two matches for Tottenham.
‘He didn’t play the Premier League match and the Europa League match, and he needed a couple of weeks to recover. And Raheem is going to play tomorrow.’
Sterling had left the England squad during the recent break as a precaution due to a calf strain
But Mourinho believes that old rival Pep Guardiola will field Sterling against his team tomorrow
The Spurs boss, who revealed Harry Winks returned from the England camp with a ‘little problem’ which makes him a doubt against City, said he had no issue with Harry Kane starting against Iceland, even though there was nothing at stake in the competition.
‘I’m okay with that,’ said Mourinho. ‘A national team match should never be a dead rubber. The only problem for me is it should be the same for everybody, not just for some.
‘Gareth Southgate, I have read and I don’t think I am wrong, supposedly told that some club managers put pressure on the players not to play for the national team.
Mourinho was angry after Eric Dier suffered a hamstring strain last month while with England
‘And because of that he feels sometimes the need to call club managers to cool down the emotions and control a difficult situation for him.
‘I would like him to say who. I would like him to say which coaches are putting pressure on the players not to play. And I would like him to say which are the coaches that he calls and speaks on the phone with them.
‘He has the right, the power to call the players he wants. He wants to win matches, especially after a defeat the next match, even being a dead rubber, is an important match. I sympathise totally with that.’
