Jose Mourinho faces the sack if he fails to make the Champions League.
Manchester United are ready to head in a different direction should they miss out on top-table European football.
United sit EIGHTH in the Premier League — a staggering 12 points behind rivals Manchester City after Sunday’s 3-1 derby defeat.
He has been left in no doubt that Champions League football next season is critical to his future.
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Old Trafford executives still admire Mauricio Pochettino, but it looks almost impossible to get him out of the water-tight contract he signed with Tottenham in the summer.
Both United and Real Madrid are keen to snare the Argentine but Spurs chairman Daniel Levy will scrap tooth and nail to hang onto his man.
Madrid responded to interim boss Santiago Solari’s four-game winning streak by handing him a two-year deal to become Julen Lopetegui’s full-time successor.
But Solari — a close pal of former Argentina team-mate Poch — is understood to be willing to step into the background if the Spurs chief decides to head to Spain next summer.
Mourinho signed a new deal at Old Trafford last season, but the penalty clause for firing him is a year’s salary — around £15m.
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The former Chelsea boss is fuming behind the scenes as he believes United’s set-up is light years behind some big-spending rivals.
He has been moaning about standards at the club and told friends that everything is “second rate”.
Mourinho has been scathing about their recruitment and scouting network, along with the club’s failure to be in the mix for the top players when it comes to negotiations.
There is also frustration with the club’s travel arrangements, highlighted by their late arrival for Champions League group games with Juventus and Valencia this season.
Although United executives have given Mourinho credit for a recent upturn in league form, Champions League football is crucial.
This story originally appeared in The Sun.
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