Manchester United Executive Ed Woodward Backs Jose Mourinho

Manchester United executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward has told club shareholders the Red Devils are not about to make a rash decision regarding manager Jose Mourinho after a relatively poor start to the 2018-19 campaign.

Per Goal's Kris Voakes, Woodward urged shareholders to "look at the bigger picture:"

"As it's easy to get caught up in the game-by-game fluctuations of our season, or even the relatively minor pieces of business and industry news, I would like to take this opportunity to take a step back and look at the bigger picture.

"We're the biggest sports team in the world as measured by number of fans, and we know that's a position that requires continued effort and investment to maintain.

"Our board, our investors and everyone at the club are aligned with the fans on what we need to do on the pitch and that is to win trophies.

"That's one of the reasons we hired Jose Mourinho, and we've already won three with him."

United have started the season in disappointing fashion, taking just 10 out of 18 possible points in the Premier League. They lost back-to-back fixtures against Brighton & Hove and Tottenham Hotspur and were held to a 1-1 draw by Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday.

On top of the disappointing results, the level of play has left a lot to be desired. Even star midfielder Paul Pogba has voiced his displeasure with the attacking approach, something many took as a swipe at Mourinho:

Woodward's primary focus as an executive is on the financial side of things, however, and in that department, the club continues to thrive.

As shared by the Manchester Evening News, United's income continues to rise:

The lack of excitement surrounding the side can perhaps best be summarised by this note from sports writer Martyn Ziegler, who listened in on the conference call in which the figures were discussed:

The increased income didn't lead to major transfer activity in the summer, while Premier League title rivals Liverpool splashed the cash and defending champions Manchester City also added to their squad. Those two teams already sit well ahead in the standings and have excited their fans with attacking play.

While it's too early to speak of a crisis, there are plenty of fans who question Mourinho's fit at Old Trafford. That includes Bleacher Report's Rob Blanchette:

The Special One seems to have the full backing of Woodward, however, so don't expect the current situation to change anytime soon.