What Jose Mourinho did to leave Eric Bailly speechless before Manchester United move

Eric Bailly may not have envisaged his Manchester United career petering out as it did when he first joined the club, but he still has fond memories of his arrival.

The defender is currently out on loan at Marseille, where he has found regular game time, with the club third in Ligue 1 having lost just once. Bailly had slipped down the pecking order at United due to injuries and inconsistency.

He has already suffered another setback while in France and hasn’t played in the league since, although he featured for 77 minutes in last week’s 4-1 Champions League win over Sporting Lisbon.

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Bailly has played 113 times for United. He was brought to Old Trafford by Jose Mourinho, who paid Villarrael £34million for him in 2016. The Ivorian has now revealed how Mourinho left him lost for words when he first spoke to him about a move.

“The first contact was on the phone,” he told L’Equipe. “I was in Abidjan (in the Ivory Coast) when he called me. I see a Portuguese number I don’t really know, I pick up and I hear 'hello, it’s José Mourinho'.

“There, I had no words,” he laughed. “We talked a bit, he knew that there were interests from several clubs in England, and, for him, the best way to convince me was to call me personally.

“He told me that he had followed me for years, that he had seen me grow at Espanyol and then at Villarreal. Mourinho is someone very demanding who has a lot of character. He’s called the Special One and he’s really special. He’s been a big part of my progression.”

Speaking about his stay at United, Bailly added: “The first two seasons in Manchester were the best, they are good memories. Then there was the accumulation of