Mourinho backs countryman Silva to succeed

Manchester - Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho says Marco Silva is a talented young manager but admits he faces a difficult task attempting to save Hull City from relegation.

In his relatively short career, the 39-year-old Portuguese boss secured promotion and Europa League qualification with minnows Estoril, the Taca de Portugal trophy with Sporting Lisbon and the Greek Superleague with Olympiacos.

In his first game in charge of Hull, Silva led the side to a 2-0 win over Swansea in the FA Cup, while his next test is a League Cup clash with the Red Devils on Tuesday.

Ahead of the tie, Mourinho said he hopes his countryman does well, except in the three upcoming games against his team.

He said: "He is known in Portugal as one of the good young coaches. He went to Greece and nobody knows what he did there.

"Nobody knows he was a champion and now he comes to the big one. It's a big opportunity for him so I hope he loses three matches and wins every [other] one.

"He was not given a top job immediately. He did well at a small club in Portugal then he went to Sporting, one of the top three.

"He won the cup, I think he finished second in the league then he goes to Greece and is champion with Olympiakos.

"For me, he is very stable. In spite of being a young guy, he is very experienced and very mature and I look forward to having another Portuguese guy here.

"In this case, he is from a younger generation than myself and I would love him to do well but we all know it's hard to jump when you are bottom of the Premier League.

Hull face United in the first-leg of a EFL Cup semi-final tie Tuesday night before turning their attention to the league where they face a tough run of fixtures against Bournemouth, Chelsea and again United.

Kick off is at 22:00.