Mourinho defends players' commitment, denies his job is at stake

Manchester United coach Jose Mourinho on Monday stood up for his players amid criticism over the Premier League club's poor results so far this season, denying that his job was in danger.

In the last three matches, Man United played to a 1-1 draw against recently-promoted Wolverhampton, lost a League Cup match to second-tier club Derby County and were stunned by West Ham United on Saturday, reports Efe.

"I am still the kid that I was 20 years ago, I am still naive, but I still don't believe that the players are not honest," Mourinho said at a press conference on the eve of his UEFA Champions League clash with Valencia.

Regarding players' reactions to the string of defeats, he said "I see sad people, I see people that do not look like they lost a game. I see so-so, but in the little two sessions of training we had everything was normal. Everyone with desire to work and play."

The former Real Madrid and Chelsea coach denied that his job was on the line, declining to reveal whether he spoke with club president Ed Woodward after the loss to West Ham.

"That is a private matter. I'm not asking you 'Who did you speak to yesterday, or this morning, or your last phone call?' That's a private matter, I'm not going to answer you," he said.

Mourinho revealed that Spanish midfielder Ander Herrera, Argentine defender Marcos Rojo, English forward Ashley Young and English forward Jesse Lingard have been left out of the Valencia roster.

-IANS