Aston Villa boss Steve Bruce says Manchester United's board need to stand by Jose Mourinho.

Former United captain Bruce has warned that the Portuguese must win his feud with Paul Pogba, a bitter power-battle that has consumed the club during the past few days.

Bruce said: “Let's not kid ourselves, to a certain degree, player-power has always been there.

“But there has to be respect between any player and manager.

“I worked under the master, Sir Alex Ferguson. He had that respect. As ­players, we didn't always like it – but we respected him.

“And if that relationship doesn't exist any more... well, the lunatics will be running the asylum.

“It becomes a ­free-for-all. One person has to be ­accountable because, if that's not the case, I can guarantee that the club – and that's any club, not just ­Manchester United – will have ­problems.

“It could be anarchy."