Jose Mourinho tells fans not to read too much into Manchester United's 4-1

Jose Mourinho insisted that he can't judge his Manchester United players on a 4-1 pre-season defeat to a fitter Borussia Dortmund side in Shanghai.

Mourinho said: 'The engines were completely different – it was Formula One against Formula Three'. 'My thoughts are simple,' said Mourinho. 

'I know that in pre-season the team that is at an advanced stage of preparation looks far better than the other team. 

'It happens year after year. Some good teams lose to a big result. I think it's too obvious. After 10 minutes we know that one team started training 10 days ago and played one match, and the other team started one month ago and played already four games. It's so easy to see the difference of intensity and sharpness. For us it was very difficult.

'In the second half we were better and we were more adapted to the game. I think 3-2 would be more natural than 4-1 but they (Dortmund) showed the good quality they had, individually and collectively. They showed that they are in a much advanced stage. '