Paul Pogba learns the hard way he cannot cross Mourinho
Not even Paul Pogba is safe from the wrath of Jose Mourinho, it would seem.
Three days after he was substituted at Wembley following a heated touchline exchange with his manager, Manchester United's £89million record signing was dumped on the bench for the game against Huddersfield at Old Trafford with young Scott McTominay taking his place.
That was the first time Pogba had been subbed in a Premier League game, and this was the first time he had been dropped. And, make no mistake, he was dropped.
Pogba shouts during the warm-up at Old Trafford as he started the match on the bench
The midfielder is well-wrapped up as he sits next to his French compatriot Anthony Martial
Pogba came on for Jesse Lingard with 25 minutes remaining at Old Trafford
Jose Mourinho argues with Pogba during United's defeat by Tottenham at Wembley
The United manager and the midfielder seemed to be disagreeing over the team's tactics
Pogba makes his way to the bench after being substituted midway through the second half
Mourinho can say all he likes about tactical changes in the 2-0 defeat to Tottenham, or his reasons for leaving Pogba out against Huddersfield.
But it is too much of a coincidence. The young Frenchman is the latest United player to discover that if you cross Mourinho, there will only be one winner.
That's how it has to be at United, as David Beckham, Roy Keane, Ruud van Nistelrooy and Jaap Stam found out to their cost under Sir Alex Ferguson. No player can be bigger than the club itself or question the decisions of the manager.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan has already fallen foul of Mourinho. He took issue with the manager's view of his performance against Brighton in November and the two men were said to have become embroiled in a frank exchange of views following a video analysis session at Carrington.
Pogba helps Alexis Sanchez celebrate his first United goal, tucking away the rebound after seeing a penalty saved by the Huddersfield keeper Jonas Lossl
Sanchez was delighted to open his account for United following his move from Arsenal
Mkhitaryan only made two more starts for the club while it was made clear that he was available for transfer, and he left Old Trafford for Arsenal last month in exchange for Alexis Sanchez.
It appears to be a similar scenario with Ander Herrera. The Spaniard was United's player of the year last season and one of the favourites to be named captain following Wayne Rooney's return to Everton.
Instead, Herrera has played a bit-part role this season. There is no doubt that the arrival of Nemanja Matic in the summer has restricted his first-team opportunities.
But Sportsmail revealed in September that Herrera had upset Mourinho by inviting a friend with very close links to Celta Vigo into Carrington shortly before the two teams met in the semi-finals of the Europa League. Mourinho was incandescent and gave Herrera a furious dressing-down in his office.
The midfielder has made just eight league starts this season and was not even among the substitutes against Huddersfield as Michael Carrick returned on the bench after heart issues.
The French midfielder challenges Huddersfield's Florent Hadergjonaj for the ball
Pogba heads the ball as he takes on two Huddersfield players during his 25 minute appearance
Which brings us back to Pogba. If the former Juventus player was carrying a knock or needed a rest, why not leave him out altogether and put Herrera and Carrick on the bench as cover for Matic and McTominay?
Asked before the game about the exchange of words with Pogba at Wembley, Mourinho was at pains to play it down and attribute the decision to replace him with Juan Mata in the 63rd minute against Spurs as a tactical one.
'In the first half, with some injury, he came to me and came with a couple of questions I answered,' said Mourinho. 'In the second half I decided to make a change and bring (Marouane) Fellaini with different qualities than him, to try to be stronger in midfield with Fellaini and Matic because I wanted Alexis to play as a second striker with (Romelu) Lukaku. It was just a tactical decision but I lost Fellaini too after a few minutes.'
Jose Mourinho pictured with the ball on the Old Trafford sidelines during United's 2-0 win
But can Pogba improve? 'Yes,' replied Mourinho. 'He is a young player, below 25, of course he has some things to improve. But it is not Paul, it is every player.
'Every player has a chance to improve until the end of his career, especially the ones below 26, 27. They always have areas to improve.'
The subsequent decision to bench United's record signing puts a rather different slant on things. Pogba came on as a 65th minute substitute for Jesse Lingard and showed some nice touches, even though the result was soon put beyond doubt at 2-0.
This was Mourinho sending out a message to the player and his teammates. No-one takes him on. Not even Pogba.