- Mark Hughes and Jose Mourinho clashed during Saturday’s 2-2 draw
- Mourinho refused to shake hands with Hughes who had pushed him and sworn
- The Portuguese then criticised Stoke for their apparent direct style of play
- United’s camp claimed that Hughes had told Mourinho to ‘f*** off’
- The Stoke manager claims Mourinho’s media department did hima disservice
Mark Hughes has aimed a jab in jest at Manchester United’s PR team in the wake of last weekend’s handshake snub by Jose Mourinho.
The United manager refused to oblige in the customary post-match routine between opposing managers after a fiery encounter that included Hughes pushing Mourinho in the chest when he entered Stoke’s technical area.
Mourinho was angered by questions after the 2-2 draw that focused on his decision to ignore shaking hands with Hughes, and he declined to answer anything about the incident in detail.
Stoke manager Mark Hughes has continued his public row with Manchester United
But Mourinho refused to shake hands afterwards and Hughes responded with a sarcastic wave
But allegations from United’s camp subsequently emerged that Hughes had told Mourinho to ‘f*** off’ when ushering the Portuguese out of the home dugout during a break in play.
Reflecting on the episode, Hughes said with a smile: ‘Handshakes are neither here nor there. We should move on. Maybe after the game the media department at Man United switched on to full mode and got involved and didn’t do Jose any favours, to be perfectly honest.’
Asked to expand, Hughes added: ‘I don’t need to comment on it much more. Too much was highlighted after the game by their media department with a view to maybe cementing Jose’s position. But I think they did him a disservice really.’
Stoke City boss Hughes and Mourinho embraced before Saturday’s 2-2 Premier League draw
Hughes has cut an animated figure on the touchline this season as Stoke have enjoyed a good start, beating Arsenal as well as drawing with United and West Bromwich Albion.
‘Yes I was showing emotion. Jose was showing emotion,’ Hughes said. ‘The cameras are on you. Truth be known, we are part of the show aren’t we?
‘It is what it is, as long as it doesn’t step over the line, which I didn’t think it did at the weekend. It was neither here nor there. We have all moved on.’
