Mourinho: “We've improved lots”

What went wrong tonight? Why are you not coming away with three points?

“We conceded a goal from a set-piece. Torino are difficult to play against. It's tough when you're up against teams that play this way – and Torino do it very, very well indeed. Very physical, very intense. It was a difficult match.

“I thought we played well. It's not easy to create openings against Torino. It's not easy to play the ball first time – which is what you need to do against this type of football – on a playing surface that was in such terrible condition that I promise I'll never criticise the Olimpico pitch again. The Olimpico is a carpet in comparison.

“Everyone put in a big shift today, with players like [Leo] Paredes, who a few weeks ago wasn't even up to playing 15 minutes, with new guys like [Rasmus] Kristensen and [Evan] Ndicka and what was essentially a new backline. They had a really good game.

“I'm happy with the team. It's hard to do better against this Torino side. We can always improve of course – that's the goal. But it was an extremely difficult match for us, and I think it was for them too. It feels like two points dropped because when you concede from a set-piece almost at the end that's the feeling you get, especially given the type of game and type of opponent, plus the fact they had a week to prepare for it while we were off on a midweek jaunt. I feel sad for my players because of the result.”

Result aside, given that you have so many midfielders, would you consider using three up front again, or was it a solution only for this evening because of injuries or fitness issues?

“With the personnel we have, it's not easy for us to play with three attack-minded players. We have three real strikers and I like them all. You might ask me why [Sardar] Azmoun didn't play a single minute. He didn't play because he doesn't have the condition needed to play in a game like this.

“But we have three forwards and I like them all, plus Paulo. [Stephan] El Shaarawy is the only one who could do what he did today. Him or [Lorenzo] Pellegrini. Today we had Lorenzo on the bench so that he could be with us but he only trained once with the team yesterday. When we have everyone fit, we have lots of options in midfield.

“We've improved in playing out from the back. Paredes brings an extra dimension to the team. [Bryan] Cristante is playing in a different position now but I like his ability to get forward, like when he hit the post. He's the one midfielder we have who can make that sort of run, when we don't have Renato available. I'm sorry about the result but I have a good feeling about our improvement collectively and individually. I'm happy with the lads.”

You’re conceding more goals this year. Is it a question of individual players, your set-up, absences or needing to find some stability?

“If you look at the team that played today, two and a half of our five defenders have only just come into the team. I say two and a half because one is [Evan] Ndicka, the other is [Rasmus] Kristensen and the half is Diego Llorente who joined us last year and has played ten matches at most.

“We don’t have [Chris] Smalling or [Roger] Ibanez, and Rui [Patricio], who is fine again now,  didn’t start very well either.

“We need to find stability in midfield. I liked the way we played today with just Paredes and Cristante. They both did a great job.

“I think we’ll get back to normal and concede fewer goals. People remember Ibanez for a few significant mistakes in one or two matches but from a defensive point of view, he was brilliant. Smalling is a key player for us. Today we weren’t sure whether to play [Gianluca] Mancini or Llorente as the middle centre-back and we’d planned to change if we hadn’t managed to contain [Duvan] Zapata. Llorente had an extraordinary match in all respects. I’m happy with the boys.

“Obviously if you look at the table today, it’s not going to be good. But it’s better not to look at it because it’s not accurate. If you look at it in December or January, the same teams won’t be at the top and we definitely won’t be in the same place we are today.”

Is there a more dominating centre-forward than Romelu Lukaku?

“He’s a fantastic player, that’s all there is to say. There are obviously other really great forwards in other teams. I can’t compare Romelu to anyone else. I’m very happy with him, Belotti and Azmoun, who I like. He’s in a bit of a difficult situation and needs time to work on things. But I’m very happy with all three of them.”