Jose Mourinho: Manchester United Spending 'Not Enough' to Match Manchester City

Jose Mourinho says he hasn't had enough money to keep pace with Manchester City in the Premier League title race, despite spending £300 million since he took over at Manchester United in 2016.

Speaking after the Red Devils' 2-2 home draw with Burnley on Tuesday—a result that leaves them 12 points behind City—Mourinho said, per Tom Doyle of the London Evening Standard: "It is not enough—Manchester City are buying full-backs for the price of strikers."

The United manager's words were an obvious reference to City paying around £52 million to sign left-back Benjamin Mendy from AS Monaco in the summer. It was a world-record deal for a defender, while the Citizens also paid £50 million to pry Kyle Walker away from Tottenham Hotspur.

Mourinho feels as though City have too much of an advantage in the market, per Doyle: "The price for big clubs are different to the price for other clubs."

It's next to impossible to put United in the bracket of "other clubs."

The Reds have as much spending power as almost any other club in the game. They also have greater pull than City, since United have 20 league titles and three European Cup and UEFA Champions League victories to their credit.

However, Mourinho suggested the club's decorated past is counting against them when it comes to transfers, per BBC Sport's Simon Stone:

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Jose's answer to whether eight points from five games is acceptable for @ManUtd pic.twitter.com/uQ7aiupnJy

— Simon Stone (@sistoney67) December 26, 2017"

Yet not everybody thinks the complaints are unjustified. Samuel Luckhurst of the Manchester Evening News offered some sympathy:

Criticising City's spending 20 games into the season reads more like a manager deflecting attention from his own side's problems, especially since Mourinho hasn't been shy about flexing United's financial muscle.

He paid a then-world record £89 million to bring Paul Pogba back to Manchester in 2016. The United boss also added Romelu Lukaku in a deal worth potentially up to £90 million this summer.

Lukaku was joined by Nemanja Matic, who cost a reported £40 million, while an initial £31 million was spent to bring Victor Lindelof from Benfica.

Even so, Tuesday's draw with Burnley has left an expensive squad still chasing a double-digit deficit in the title race with less than half the season left. United also dropped points in a 2-2 draw with Leicester City on Saturday and lost 2-1 at home to the Citizens on December 10.

Mourinho's problem hasn't been money, it's what he's got for his outlay. Lindelof is still struggling to be a first-team regular, while Lukaku has also disappointed at times, scoring just three Premier League goals since September 30.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan arrived from Borussia Dortmund for £26.3 million in 2016, but he has found himself left out of several matchday squads this season. Mourinho publicly lamented the Armenia international's form in November, per Stone.

Catherine Ivill/Getty Images

United have slipped further behind City than expected, but it hasn't been because of spending power. Too many of the club's signings haven't lived up to their price tags.

Mourinho doesn't need more money, but he may need to be shrewder about the buys he makes.