Jose Mourinho ordered to cut costs at United

If Jose Mourinho wants to strengthen Manchester United’s squad in January then he’ll have to show some of his current stars the door. That’s the claim made by BBC Sport, with the broadcaster reporting that the Old Trafford board “want to control costs before sanctioning more outlay on new signings”.

Since arriving at United 18 months ago, Mourinho has forked out £285m on transfer fees with six major signings accounting for most of the costs. The pricey posse are: Romelu Lukaku, Nemanja Matic, Victor Lindelof, Paul Pogba, Eric Bailly and Henrikh Mkhitaryan, and as a result the BBC says that United’s wage bill has rocketed by 13.5% to £263.5m.

The Old Trafford bean counters are said to be alarmed at the spiralling wages and the word has been passed to Mourinho to sell before he starts buying. So who might expect a P45 in their Christmas stocking next month?

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The BBC says 22-year-old defender Luke Shaw, who cost United £27m when he signed from Southampton in 2014 “is the most likely departure”. There is also some speculation about the future of Marouane Fellaini. The big Belgium midfielder’s contract runs out next summer and he will be free to negotiate with foreign clubs in January. Mourinho is known to be an admirer of Fellaini’s physical approach but he’s not getting any younger, and according to ESPN Turkish club Besiktas “have joined the race” to sign the midfielder.

Another player who may be heading for a January exit is Anthony Martial with the Daily Mail reporting that the French frontman is unhappy with his super-sub role. Martial has scored six times this season for United, four of them from off the bench, but in an interview with French broadcaster SFR Sport, he admitted: “I prefer to start the game, I have more time to get myself into the game. I have faith in my qualities, and I think the manager has confidence in me, too, so it’s up to me to continue putting in good performances, and if I do that, I think I’ll play a bit more.”

If he doesn’t get more game time, however, Martial could be off in the new year with Arsenal among the clubs said to be monitoring his situation at Old Trafford.