Fighting to finish in top four

JOSE Mourinho believes Manchester United still face a fight to secure a top-four finish, never mind sealing second spot.

The inevitable became official on Sunday as Manchester City wrapped up the Premier League title without kicking a ball, thanks t o rock-bottom West Brom’s shock 1-0 win at Old Trafford.

United were a shadow of the side that stormed back to win the Manchester derby the previous weekend, leading boss Mourinho to say he would drop floundering stars for Saturday’s FA Cup semi-final against Tottenham.

Before that trip to Wembley comes tonight’s league match at Bournemouth, which takes on more significance in the wake of the loss to the beleaguered Baggies.

United can use their game in hand to stretch their lead over third-place Liverpool to four points and all but seal Champions League qualification, which Mourinho believes is up in the air as fifth-placed Chelsea look to kick on.

“We lost three points,” Mourinho said of t he defeat to West Brom.

“We lost three points that could give us great stability for the second position.

“Now, we still have the fourth position to fight for because Chelsea won (at Southampton on Saturday) and we lost, so we still have to fight for top four.”

Mourinho’s former club are 11 points behind United with five matches to play — the same number as United have heading to Bournemouth.

Jose Mourinho