Jose Mourinho explains why he's okay with losing to Chelsea in the FA Cup:

When you're competing for multiple trophies, the inclination is to try to win all of them. But even then, in a manager's mind, it's no surprise to think that a manager will naturally have a pecking order in his mind.

special one;

Jose Mourinho definitely does, as he admitted before the FA Cup quarter-final clash with Chelsea which trophy he wants the most come the end of the current campaign.

With one already in the bag, and their Premier League aspirations falling by the wayside, United are left with just the FA Cup and the Europa League to compete for, and one is standing out much more than the other.

United have hit a purple patch of form in recent weeks, and have strengthened their credentials for a spot in the top four, though with just under three months left to run in the domestic season, their place among the top flight's elite is far from guaranteed.

And it is because of that, that Mourinho would rather his side pick up the Europa League than the FA Cup.

Winning the Europa League would guarantee the Red Devils a place in next season's competition, meaning it wouldn't matter where they finish in the Premier League this time around.

“For me it’s just a game that comes in the wrong moment for us," Mourinho said as per the Daily Mirror.

“Because the Europa League is a competition that can give us a Champions League spot, and the FA Cup, it isn’t.

“So the Europa League is more important than the FA Cup for us.”

pogba and fellaini trying to catch willians pace

This logic should make Man United's defeat to Chelsea in the FA Cup easier to take. United travelled to Stamford Bridge with a threadbare squad and failed to put the Blues to the sword, crashing out of the competition and missing out on a second trip to Wembley this season.

Red Devils midfielder Ander Herrera was given his marching orders in the first half for two yellow card offences on Chelsea's Eden Hazard, and from that point on the visitors had a mountain to climb.

Marcus Rashford and Paul Pogba both had opportunities to score, but couldn't make Thibaut Courtois work hard enough and the Blues managed to see out the game without any major scares.