Jose Mourinho is demanding the public backing of Manchester United executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward before Saturday’s Old Trafford clash with Newcastle, sources have told ESPN FC.
The move amounts to a back-me-or-sack-me plea, amid reports that he will be dismissed as manager after the game regardless of the result.
Sources have told ESPN FC that Mourinho has been pushing for a show of support from Woodward and the Glazer family, United’s owners, in recent weeks, with further efforts made this week to prompt them into a public statement of their backing.
Mourinho goes into the Premier League fixture with United searching for a first home win in all competitions since the opening weekend of the season — a run that has put the 55-year-old’s job on the line at the club.
Sources said that the Florida-based Glazer family do not want to terminate Mourinho’s contract, which is due to run until June 2020, despite the recent run of form that has seen them slump to a mid-table position in the Premier League and suffer Carabao Cup elimination at the hands of Championship outfit Derby County.
But despite Woodward praising Mourinho’s credentials during a recent conference call to the club’s investors, the former Real Madrid and Chelsea manager has grown increasingly frustrated by what he perceives to be a lack of credible, public backing from his bosses.
Mourinho was angered by a lack of investment in his squad during the summer, when the club failed to sign a top-class centre-half, and he has also been irked by the absence of support following public spats with star players Paul Pogba and Anthony Martial.
The Glazer-led hierarchy at United has a long-held policy of not speaking publicly about club matters, however, and neither the Americans nor Woodward have been prepared to alter their stance, opting instead to operate a “business as usual” approach.
Sources at United have told ESPN FC that they believe Mourinho to be increasingly unhappy and ill-tempered at the club.
There is a determination among the Glazers to see Mourinho emerge from his current difficulties on the pitch, however, especially with no credible replacement available.
But with his future now a matter of daily discussion and headlines suggesting his time as manager is running out, Mourinho wants Woodward to dismiss all reports of his job being on the line.
A failure to do so ahead of the Newcastle game could be viewed by Mourinho as evidence of a loss of faith and therefore a clear signal that his time is up at United.