Sir Alex: Mourinho was unlucky this season

Cape Town - Manchester United legend Sir Alex Ferguson has voiced his support for manager Jose Mourinho, claiming he has been unlucky in the Premier League.

Mourinho's men are 17 points adrift of first-placed Chelsea, and sit fifth in the standings after drawing 10 of their 27 league games.

Ferguson, who led the Red Devils to 13 Premier League titles, believes the Portuguese tactician has been unlucky not to have turned more of those draws into wins.

"I get on well with Jose and think he's doing a really good job," he told SiriusXM FC in quotes reported by the Daily Telegraph.

"He's been a bit unlucky actually because there are home games this season they've been absolutely brilliant in but have drawn them.

"If they'd got those wins they deserved they'd be challenging for the league, there's no doubt about that."

Meanwhile United midfielder Ander Herrera has described Zlatan Ibrahimovic as a 'genius' after the massive impact he has made at the club.

Ibrahimovic has scored 26 goals and provided eight assists in his 41 appearances since joining United as a free agent from Paris Saint-Germain.

Most recently, the 35-year-old striker scored two goals against FC Rostov to lead the Red Devils to the Europa League quarter-finals.