Our Manchester United fans here in the Transfer Tavern are sitting back in astonishment at Jose Mourinho’s recent upturn in fight towards the players and performances on the pitch.

Many of the United players haven’t shown up properly this season in large parts and it’s starting to show which ones will be around next season. It’s typical of Mourinho to start to blow up as he nears his third year in charge at Old Trafford, a scary notion for our resident Red Devils.

Many of the regulars have seen it far too often over the years and, inevitably, the ‘Special One’ usually bows out pretty soon after. Although, amid the recent fighting talk, he sounds determined to stay around for a while.

Mourinho is on course to finish the highest a United manager has since Sir Alex Ferguson retired and if he wins the FA Cup, it would bring him his third trophy in two seasons. Indeed, to conquer the Premier League, Mourinho must have all his troops singing off the same hymn, and there are a couple that, at present, are fighting for their United futures.

Here’s the TWO our landlord believes will need to up their game after the international break…

Luke Shaw

The obvious one is Shaw. He came in for another Mourinho bashing following the win over Brighton at weekend and life looks hard for him at the Theatre of Dreams. The England left-back has had a torrid time at Old Trafford, despite possessing all the skill and attributes a top-class full-back should have.

He could be a United regular for years to come, but something seems missing in his play and his mindset. That is the thing that is holding him back a lot for truly reaching his full potential, the potential that brought him to Old Trafford in the first place.

Paul Pogba

The Frenchman is enduring his worst time at United since his mega-money move in 2016. Ever since the defeat to Spurs at Wembley, he has played a bit-part role in the first-team amid suggestions from our punters that Mourinho isn’t the coach for him. The £90m midfielder hasn’t been able to find his form during the Serie A days with Juventus and bring it to the Premier League on a regular enough basis.

Maybe this tough love will do Pogba some good further down the line, but at present, he needs to dig deep and pull his socks up for the remainder of the season.