Mourinho rips young players, Martial following Liverpool loss

Rarely at a loss for words, mercurial Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho was at his vitriolic best following Saturday's one-sided 4-1 defeat to rival Liverpool.

Famous for a third-season syndrome which has seen Mourinho's previous appointments slump at this juncture, the Portuguese gaffer had plenty to say about his side in advance of the returns of those who participated at the World Cup in Russia, less than two weeks before the campaign kicks off.

"We started the game with a lot of players who will not be in our squad on Aug. 9. This is not my squad, not even half, not even 30 percent of my squad. So don't look to this," the Red Devils boss told reporters, courtesy of Goal's Neil Jones.

One player who was missing from Mourinho's team Saturday was Anthony Martial, a frequent occupant of the manager's doghouse who has been linked with a summer exit and was home for the birth of his child.

"He has the baby and after the baby is born - beautiful baby, full of health, thank God," Mourinho told MUTV, per the Manchester Evening News.

"He should be here and he is not here."

With Martial and other first-team players missing, those who did make the trip showed signs of discontent. When asked about Alexis Sanchez's body language, Mourinho pulled few punches, saying, "Look, do you want him to be very happy with the players he has around him? We are here just to survive and to have some not very ugly results.

"Alexis is the only striker we have. And the poor man is there trying his best," Mourinho added.

Academy products and fringe players the likes of Axel Tuanzebe, Timothy Fosu-Mensah, Demetri Mitchell, and Andreas Pereira all started, while highly touted youngster Angel Gomes and Tahith Chong made appearances off the bench.

United have not been especially busy in the summer transfer window, but have already brought in full-back Diogo Dalot and Brazilian international Fred, who came on for Juan Mata during the loss. They've also been mentioned as a potential destination for Leicester City center-back stud Harry Maguire.

"I think I am not going to have two. It is possible that I'm going to have one. And that one, I gave at least to my club, five names a few months ago, and I wait to see if it is possible," Mourinho admitted about prospective additions in the summer transfer window.