PLAYING TODAY KO 4PM LIVERPOOL V MAN UTD JOSE’S READY FOR NUCLEAR STRIKE BY MO

JOSE MOURINHO is the first man who went to Mo – and now he’s full of praise for the “fragile” boy who has become a fearsome “nuclear” weapon.

It was Mourinho who brought Mo Salah to Chelsea from Basel in January 2014, in what is now a laughable £11million deal.

Thirteen months later, the Egyptian (below) was shipped out on loan to Fiorentina unable to establish himself at Stamford Bridge.

Salah’s rise has been meteoric since Jurgen Klopp signed him from Roma two summers ago.

That hasn’t surprised Manchester United boss Mourinho, whose plan for today’s Anfield clash will centre around stopping the 26-year-old.

Mourinho said:

“I think he has developed incredibly well at every level – physically an amazing development.

“He was a fast, fragile boy and now he is a fast, strong man. He is nuclear in the strength. He plays like, ‘I’m Mo, Mo Salah and I’m afraid of no one and nobody’. “Psychologically he was not adapted, coming direct from a small club in Switzerland to a big club in the Premier League. It was too much. Now he plays everywhere against any team.”

CHRIS SMALLING has signed a new Manchester United contract which runs until June 2022, with the option of a further year. The 29-year-old defender has made over 300 appearances since his £10million move from Fulham in 2010.