JOSE MOURINHO WAS spotted at a friendly between Austria and Russia on Wednesday, as rumours swirl he is targeting a move for Austrian forward Marko Arnautovic.
The West Ham star has been linked with a big money move to the north of England as Mourinho looks to bring in reinforcements for Manchester United behind Romelu Lukaku.
The pair previously worked together in 2009-10 at Inter, when Arnautovic was on loan from Twente, but the move did not work out.
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The forward only appeared in three Serie A contests as a substitute, with Mourinho saying the striker had “the mentality of a child” and claimed he was “unmanageable”.
However, that was eight years ago, and the 29-year-old Arnautovic has displayed quality since then, scoring 11 goals last season for West Ham after making a £20 million move from Stoke City, where he had spent the previous four seasons. He also added six assists in his 31 Premier League appearances
It was the second time in three seasons Arnautovic had scored 11 goals and added six assists, having managed it with Stoke in 2015-16.
Those numbers have led to speculation Mourinho could seek to add him to play with or beside Lukaku after the Red Devils’ depth behind the Belgian was proven wanting in the 1-0 FA Cup loss to Chelsea .
And Mourinho’s presence at a friendly in which Arnautovic started is only likely to pour more fuel on the rumour fire despite Mourinho reportedly claiming he was only “on holiday” when asked why he was in attendance at Innsbruck
However, if Mourinho was there to have a look at the forward, he was treated to Arnautovic making an impact for his national side as he laid on the assist for Alessandro Schopf’s 28th minute opener.
That proved to be the winner as Arnautovic played 83 minutes of the victory over the World Cup hosts.
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Mourinho watches Arnautovic in Austria action amid Man United transfer links
JOSE MOURINHO WAS spotted at a friendly between Austria and Russia on Wednesday, as rumours swirl he is targeting a move for Austrian forward Marko Arnautovic.
The West Ham star has been linked with a big money move to the north of England as Mourinho looks to bring in reinforcements for Manchester United behind Romelu Lukaku.
The pair previously worked together in 2009-10 at Inter, when Arnautovic was on loan from Twente, but the move did not work out.
The forward only appeared in three Serie A contests as a substitute, with Mourinho saying the striker had “the mentality of a child” and claimed he was “unmanageable”.
However, that was eight years ago, and the 29-year-old Arnautovic has displayed quality since then, scoring 11 goals last season for West Ham after making a £20 million move from Stoke City, where he had spent the previous four seasons. He also added six assists in his 31 Premier League appearances
It was the second time in three seasons Arnautovic had scored 11 goals and added six assists, having managed it with Stoke in 2015-16.
Those numbers have led to speculation Mourinho could seek to add him to play with or beside Lukaku after the Red Devils’ depth behind the Belgian was proven wanting in the 1-0 FA Cup loss to Chelsea .
And Mourinho’s presence at a friendly in which Arnautovic started is only likely to pour more fuel on the rumour fire despite Mourinho reportedly claiming he was only “on holiday” when asked why he was in attendance at Innsbruck
However, if Mourinho was there to have a look at the forward, he was treated to Arnautovic making an impact for his national side as he laid on the assist for Alessandro Schopf’s 28th minute opener.
That proved to be the winner as Arnautovic played 83 minutes of the victory over the World Cup hosts.
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Jose Mourinho Marko Arnautovic Scouting mission