United boss has focus on football for derby

Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho is ready to go toe-to-toe with “untouchable” Manchester City in this weekend’s eagerly-anticipated derby.

Pep Guardiola’s Premier League leaders lie in wait at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday as United look to emerge from a daunting double-header with another memorable away win.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s stunning volley was rendered meaningless on Wednesday as Mourinho oversaw a late 2-1 Champions League comeback win at Juventus - a side bracketed with City as among the continent’s best.

Wednesday’s 6-0 defeat of Shakhtar Donetsk underlined the quality of Sunday’s opposition,

“In this moment I have only to think about fooball”

but life off the field is not as rosy as City face allegations that they have tried to cheat European football’s Financial Fair Play rules.

Asked if he felt United were operating on a fair playing field ahead of the derby, Mourinho said: “It’s difficult for me to answer because I focus on my job, I focus on the four lines.

“I focus on football. If you want to speak about their potential, we can.

“And football potential starts with investment. After that, of course, there is a quality of the work and the quality of the organisation and I think that’s untouchable.

“But, in this moment, I have only to think about football, and to think about football is just to think about Manchester City as a football team.”

The allegations about City’s finances have been made by German publication Der Spiegel, citing documents and private emails obtained from the whistle-blowing group Football Leaks.