Leicester City Manager, Claudio Ranieri, said the pressure on new Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho was to be expected as their sides prepare to meet at Old Trafford on Saturday.
Despite winning the first four games of his tenure, Mourinho has come under scrutiny from the media after United’s slump in form, with the club currently six points behind leaders Manchester City in the league.
United were beaten 3-1 at Watford last weekend, having lost 2-1 in the Premier League to neighbours Manchester City the week before and going down 1-0 at Feyenoord in the Europa League.
Mourinho’s side ended the three-match losing streak by winning 3-1 at Northampton Town in the League Cup on Wednesday (September 21).
“Every manager has a lot of jobs to do, it’s normal. He (Jose Mourinho) is a great manager, a fantastic person, and I wish him all the best, not on Saturday but after Saturday of course,” Ranieri told reporters on Thursday
“When you change coach, when you change players, you need to work hard to complete your idea with the new players, it’s normal.
“For me it’s not important the pressure with the others, I want to manage our pressure with my players, we are okay, we manage very well the pressure. We want to make a very good match Saturday and that’s it.”
Media speculation has linked Manchester United with a big money move for Leicester City midfielder Danny Drinkwater, but Ranieri said he was not concerned and sees any interest in his players as a compliment to his team’s achievements.
“I’m very very surprised because often it happens one month before opening the market, not now. He’s signed a new contract, then everything is normal. For us it’s good, for him it’s good, it’s good when I have players who a lot of big teams want him, I’m very happy because that means we are working very well,” said Ranieri.
United are seventh in the table with nine points from five games, four places above Leicester.
