It looks like Mourinho has put one "absolutely special" Neville favourite off joining Man Utd

Borussia Dortmund defender Manuel Akanji has admitted Jose Mourinho would put him off joining Manchester United.

Ankanji, 23, has previously confessed to being a United fan and is regarded as one of the hottest stars in a Dortmund team currently top of the Bundesliga.

Why are Man United so undesirable to Akanji? Five key things to know…

1. Akanji, who joined Dortmund from Basel in January, is tipped to become an “absolutely special” defender by ex-United defender Phil Neville.
2. The centre-back has been a big part of Dortmund’s rise to the top of the Bundesliga this season, starting 10 games.
3. Akanji has previously spoken of his future desire to join Manchester United, having been a fan of the club from a young age.
4. But the Swiss international has now admitted he is turned off by Mourinho and the current goings on at the club.
5. United are already 16 points behind Premier League leaders Liverpool after 16 games.

The Swiss centre-back joined Dortmund in January 2018 from FC Basel and has quickly made a name for himself as one of the best young defenders in Europe.

Given his ability, the links to some of Europe’s biggest clubs are not too far away for Akanji, and Manchester United have been mentioned to the centre-back.

But, despite being a fan of the club, Akanji admitted he would stay away from United while Mourinho is still in charge.

“It’s true that I was a Manchester United fan from an early age,” he told German publication WAZ.

“But at the moment I don’t look at their games closely because I don’t like the way they play under Mourinho.

“[I don’t know why] I’m not there and don’t know what they’re training.”

United are currently in poor form in the Premier League, sitting eighth in the table after 15 games, and look a shadow of the teams which used to dominate the division.

Mourinho has previously spoken of his desire to sign a new centre-back having tried, and failed, to lure Harry Maguire and Toby Alderweireld to Old Trafford last summer.

READ MORE: 13 footballers with unusual talents

Akanji’s previous dreams of representing United

Growing up, every young football fan has a team they support, whether it’s local or through family.

However, as they get more into football as a profession, players often drop the team they support as they move around from club to club throughout their career – sometimes facing their boyhood club.

Some do still harbour feelings for their team and that was the case for Akanji in the summer when the Swiss international admitted his dream was to join and play for United.

At the time Akanji said: “Many know that Manchester United has been my favourite club since childhood. It would be nice to play there, but that’s not an issue right now.

“I am very satisfied in Dortmund. I want to win titles with BVB and compete in many more big tournaments with the Swiss national team.”

The post Dortmund rising star Manuel Akanji put off Man Utd by Jose Mourinho appeared first on Squawka News.

From Squawka NewsSquawka News https://ift.tt/2EmCb26