Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho insists he has no 'special rivalry' with Arsenal's Arsene Wenger

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James Benge9 May 2017

Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho insisted he has “no rivalry” with Arsene Wenger after seeing his unbeaten run against the Arsenal boss come to an end on Sunday.

Mourinho and Wenger have traded barbs on several occasions since the former’s arrival in the Premier League in 2004, most notably when the then-Chelsea manager called the Frenchman a “voyeur” in 2005.

Both have looked to play down the conflict in recent years and speaking after his victory, a first in a competitive match against Mourinho, Wenger insisted that the 2-0 win was “between two teams”.

The United boss, who joked that he welcomed the chance to end Arsenal fans tears at his hands after the defeat, insisted that there was nothing special about his relationship with Wenger.

“There’s no rivalry,” Mourinho told ESPN Brasil. “Maybe the rivalry started because when I came to England in 2004. Arsenal were the best team and started losing league titles after 2004.

“There’s no special rivalry, I respect the manager and have no personal issues.”

United will lose fifth spot to Arsenal if the Gunners win at Southampton and Mourinho has conceded that a top four finish will be “impossible” for his side.

Mourinho rested Paul Pogba and Marcus Rashford for the visit to the Emirates and has hinted he will make similar changes for next week’s trip to Tottenham as he focuses on the Europa League, where United hold a 1-0 advantage over Celta Vigo after the away leg of their semi-final.

“It’s impossible for the players to play on Thursday, on Sunday, on Thursday, on Sunday like they’ve been doing all season,” Mourinho said.

“And I want to give the players the conditions to compete on Thursday with a team that is resting all of their players in the Spanish league today. They rest eleven, I rest eight. We’re going with everything on Thursday.”

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