After this past Wednesday's Europa League success with Manchester United, Jose Mourinho proved that he is still a better manager than Manchester City's Pep Guardiola.

Even if this week needs to be taken more seriously after the horrible terrorist attacks that occurred in the city of Manchester, it's inevitable to compare the seasons that Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola had in their first year as managers in Manchester. Granted, United spent much more money with Paul Pogba's record-breaking signing and not winning trophies would've been a disaster. But Pep Guardiola also signed many players, and his results were vastly different from Jose Mourinho's, the Portuguese manager proves once again who is the better manager out of the two. 

Three Trophies in a Season

Jose Mourinho started the year with a banging Community Shield performance which presented Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic as his most trusted offensive player. The striker managed to score over 30 goals throughout all competitions but was sadly cut off by a nasty knee ligament injury he suffered while playing the Europa League; this didn't prevent the already great season he had. During the rest of the season, United also won the League Cup back in February with yet another stellar performance from Zlatan who scored the winner near the final whistle against Southampton. But the best was yet to come. 

Zlatan's influence this season

A Difficult Premier League season

Although Jose Mourinho's new signings were an absolute hit, it took them a while to work as a unit with the rest of the players. Another reason why the Red Devils didn't perform well on a regular basis, if because other players didn't reach their full potential until later in the tournament. Key matches at the start and middle of the season were lost, important points were left behind, and United wasn't able to compete for a top four spot that other clubs such as Manchester City, Tottenham, Liverpool, and champions Chelsea would end up getting. The only option to play the Champions League next season was to win the Europa League final which they reached against Ajax from Amsterdam.

With Zlatan Ibrahimovic gone due to his nasty injury and Wayne Rooney clearly finished at the club, Jose Mourinho had to rely on a young player who had barely made his debut last season: the precocious Marcus Rashford. Jose Mourinho quickly understood that Rashford has the potential to become Manchester United's best player for the next decade, leading him through the best possible path to success is still an objective the Portuguese manager still has his sight set on. During an interview with Rio Ferdinand for BT Sport this week, Mourinho explained that Rashford is his weakness because he is exactly the type of player he loves coaching.

For Mourinho, coaching a player who is in a different class from the rest of the squad gives him the courage to push him hard without being afraid he will break this player's will. Marcus Rashford is a football nut, Mourinho holds on to that passion and always demands more from him than what he demands from the other players. The results came just in time for the final stretch of the season, Rashford responded with stellar performances and practically gave Manchester United a place in the Europa League final. But Rashford's performance against Ajax this past Wednesday proves he still lacks the experience that other players like Paul Pogba or Henrikh Mkhitaryan do have.

Marcus Rashford with many Academy players

The French midfielder appeared in the final against Ajax with his team's first goal of the night, Mkhitaryan was named the MVP of this Europa League season after the Red Devils lifted the trophy. This victory gives Manchester United a direct ticket to next season's Champions League group stage, which in perspective is a much better position than the Premier League's second place because they got a trophy out of it in the process. Contrary to what many critics and journalists have said of Mourinho, he is far from finished. Pep Guardiola on the other hand, seems like he is still a rookie who was very lucky to coach a club like Barcelona. But next season we will see if these two managers can live up to the expectations the world has of them, Mourinho and United had the last laugh for now.