Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho claimed after the 3-2 home victory over Newcastle that he was the subject of a "manhunt." Mourinho also said he may have been convinced he was set for the sack if he had not received a text message that morning from the United board which told him to "ignore what you are going to read and do your job".

Ahead of Saturday's Premier League match at Old Trafford, senior figures at the club strongly denied a report from the previous evening that the Portuguese would lose his job this weekend regardless of the outcome of the contest.