Four Manchester United players came under fire for their ‘lack of maturity’ last week.
Jose Mourinho singled out Jesse Lingard, Luke Shaw, Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial in a stinging criticism.
And while most have been stunned by Mourinho’s words former Rangers and Nottingham Forest manager Mark Warburton thinks the players need to deliver.
Warburton insists Mourinho is sending a message and it’s now up to the players to respond.
“He’s a very smart manager and he knows his squad,” Warburton told Love Sport Radio.
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“If any manager at any level makes a comment of that nature, you’re doing it with a purpose.
“You want a consequence of your words and you hope that people and players respond to it.
“Everyone has different styles but Manchester at the moment has two of the world’s managers in situ.
“My first thought whenever I see comments of that nature is ‘why is he doing it? What’s behind it?’.
“These are not random throwaway comments. There’s obviously a method in the madness, so to speak. There’s reasoning behind it.
“I think we have to respect the quality of manager that he is and trust the reasoning behind his decision. Let’s see what comes of it.
“Our job is to see what happens and how the players respond to it. That should be quite a shot across the bows and it’s a tough barb to take but you’ve got to deal with it.
“You’re a professional athlete, deal with it and deliver the performances.”
However since those comments from Mourinho performances have been lacking.
United were held to a goalless draw by Crystal Palace on Saturday and needed a late winner to beat Young Boys last night in the Champions League.
Marouane Fellaini’s injury time strike provoked an incredible response from Mourinho as he picked up a water bottle crate and slammed it down on the floor.
And he admitted he was relieved with the result despite another frustrating performance.
“Relief,” he said when asked how he felt.
“We didn’t play to be in trouble until the last minute. I was frustrated we couldn’t score. My players were very tired at the end. That’s what I want. Without David de Gea’s save, no winning goal. We qualified. We did it.”