Jose Mourinho's return to Stamford Bridge ended in ugly scenes as he reacted angrily to the celebrations of one of Chelsea's coaching staff after Ross Barkley's last-gasp equaliser on Sunday (NZ time).
Barkley scored a 96th-minute equaliser to salvage a point for Chelsea in a thrilling 2-2 draw, prompting assistant coach Marco Ianni, to celebrate animatedly in front of Manchester United's bench, running right past Mourinho.
Mourinho then jumped out of his chair, sparking a melee and had to be restrained by stewards.
Then, as tempers cooled after the final whistle, the self-declared "Special One" stuck three fingers up to the home crowd, one for each of the league titles he won with the Londoners.
Chelsea fans, who once lauded Mourinho by singing his name long and loud, responded to the United managers behaviour with a far from adulatory version of the song.
Just as during his two spells in charge of Chelsea, Mourinho is dominating the headlines, taking the attention away from his players unless, as in the case of Paul Pogba recently, they are involved in arguments with him.
Mourinho has been charged by the English Football Association for abusive language after a 3-2 win over Newcastle United this month, a match which Manchester United had been losing, adding to speculation that his job was on the line.
United have lost ground on Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City at the top of the table, having lost to Brighton and West Ham United away and Tottenham Hotspur at home.
Mourinho sought to dispel any notion that the ugly scenes at Chelsea were his fault, saying he had been the victim of rudeness on the part of a member of the home team's coaching staff and fans.
"I did not get respect back from Chelsea, but that is not my responsibility. What I did here today I will do in Madrid, in Milan, in Porto, the reaction from the fans is not up to me," Mourinho told reporters.
"But I also made mistakes in football matches, and I will make more. So when he came after the game to make his apologies, I accepted his apologies."
Chelsea coach Maurizio Sarri backed Mourinho, saying he had already reprimanded his staff member for his role in the incident.
"We made a mistake," he said.
"I have spoken to a member of my staff and have dealt with this immediately."
Whether Mourinho can restore his grip on Manchester United will hinge in large part on the outcome of a daunting run of fixtures over the next few weeks.
They face Italian giants Juventus on Wedneday (NZ time) and again on November 8 in the Champions League, after which they visit cross-town rivals and reigning domestic champions Manchester City. In between the also face Everton and in-form Bournemouth.
Reuters
