Jamie Carragher: ‘Manchester United appointing Jose Mourinho would show fear’

“So if that’s someone that they go for, I think it will show the fear the Man United board have, maybe even some of the supporters who are chanting for him, of other teams getting away from them”.

United play Chelsea at Old Trafford next Monday after what is shaping up as a make-or-break game at Stoke on Boxing Day. Previous year we had only 13 [points, after 10 games] and they believe in me.

Tottenham were blocked in their approach for Jose Mourinho when he first left Chelsea, but Manchester United face no such issue.

Former Manchester United defender Phil Neville has called for calm, urging the club to stick with embattled manager Louis van Gaal.

A six-game winless streak in all competitions saw United bow out of the Champions League in the group stages and out of the top-four in the Premier League, nine points behind surprise leaders Leicester City after 17 games.

Speaking after the weekend’s loss, Van Gaal voiced concerns about his future, but Jones insists the players are fully behind the manager with the mood better than it was during David Moyes’ reign.

Similarly, van Gaal is reported to have lost the backing of several senior United stars because of his autocratic manner.

However, in Manchester, United boss Louis van Gaal is being slammed following another defeat at the hands of Norwich City on Saturday, with many calling for the Dutchman to be released. “We knew they would want to keep the ball but we were able to get the ball back a lot quicker than we expected sometimes”, Brady said. Most of the time it’ll be the manager who will say, “Get out there and have a word with them”.

Duncan Castles is the man with the news, and he claims that Chelsea are keen on Pellegrini, with the current Manchester City boss likely to be replaced by Pep Guardiola in the summer. “We have the chance to do that against Stoke, which is going to be a hard game again, but we’ve got to go and do it. We’ve got to prepare right and win the game”.

The 23-year-old said: “The manager is doing all he can and is doing a terrific job”.