Jose Mourinho admits he would not have paid to watch his weakened Manchester United side on their pre-season tour of the United States.
Unitedâs troubled International Champions Cup campaign suffered another blow with a 4-1 defeat to Premier League rivals Liverpool in Michigan on Saturday night.
âThe atmosphere is good but if I was them I wouldnât come,â United boss Mourinho was quoted as saying by BBC Sport at his post-match press conference.
He added at his press conference: âI wouldnât spend my money to see these teams. I was watching on television Chelsea against Inter and the people in Nice decided the beach was better.
âThey didnât go to the game, the stadium was empty.
âI think the passion many Americans have for soccer deserves more. They deserve the best teams and invest to bring the best clubs to the US.
âBut we, and some other clubs, were not able to give to the people the real quality football that can attract even more passion in this country.â
Mourinho complaining about his squad being decimated by so many of his players being on post-World Cup holidays has been a constant theme of Unitedâs unhappy trip across the Atlantic.
The likes of Paul Pogba, Romelu Lukaku, Marouane Fellaini, as well as the England quartet of Phil Jones, Ashley Young, Jesse Lingard and Marcus Rashford, are still absent.
Antonio Valencia and Chris Smalling also missed the Liverpool defeat through injury, while Anthony Martial had returned home to attend the birth of his second child.
Alexis Sanchez did feature in Michigan, but he cut a frustrated figure as Andreas Pereiraâs stunning free-kick strike provided scant consolation for a United side ripped apart by Liverpool.
Asked about Sanchezâs demeanour, Mourinho replied: âDo you want me to be very happy with the players he has around him?
âWe are not playing here to improve the team, the dynamic or our routines.
âWe are playing just to try to survive and not have some ugly results. Alexis is the only attacking player that we have.
âWe donât have wingers, we donât have strikers. He is the only one who is here and the poor man is trying his best with the frustration of somebody who wants more.
âThis is not our team, this is not our squad â not even 30 per cent of it.
âWe start the game with almost half the players who are not even going to belong to our squad on August 9 (transfer deadline day).
âSo what did this game give me? Nothing. Nothing at all.â
On Martialâs absence, he said: âAnthony Martial has the baby and after the baby is born â beautiful baby, full of health, thank God â he should be here and he is not here.â
Mourinho praised Ivorian defender Eric Bailly for stepping in after Smalling had pulled up moments before the game.
But he revealed more worrying injury news with Serbian midfielder Nemanja Matic set to miss the start of the season after undergoing surgery in the US.
âWe had four or five players today who care for the club and try to give everything,â Mourinho said.
âThey even risked themselves because they donât want to let all the kids by themselves on the pitch against Milan, Liverpool, Real Madrid.
âAs an example Eric Bailly was not going to play and when he saw that Smalling in the warm-up was leaving, he decided that he didnât want another kid on the pitch. It is not fair for Alexis, (Juan) Mata, (Ander) Herrera and the guys that are there.
âMatic has had surgery. He is out for the start of the season.
âHe came from the World Cup with the injury and the time he had to rest on holiday was not enough to resolve the problem.â
Mourinho is keen to strengthen his squad before the transfer deadline with Tottenhamâs Toby Alderweireld and Harry Maguire, of Leicester, reported defensive targets.
âI would like to have two more players,â Mourinho said.
âBut I am not thinking I am going to have two. I think itâs possible I am going to have one.
âI gave a list to my club, five names, a few months ago and I wait to see if itâs possible to have one of these players.â