Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho has revealed a brief list of former Red Devils players he would not have sold had he been at the helm earlier.

The Portuguese coach said that he would have kept Angel di Maria, Javier Hernandez and Danny Welbeck, all of whom were offloaded by Louis van Gaal.

"When I first arrived, I found a sad club. Manchester United sold players that I never would have sold, and bought players I never would have bought," Mourinho told BBC Sport.

"I would never have sold Di Maria, Chicharito or Danny Welbeck, never, no chance."

Di Maria has since found success at French champions Paris Saint-Germain, while Hernandez plies his trade in Germany's Bundesliga with Bayer Leverkusen.

Welbeck was sold to Arsenal in 2014 and was initially a hit at the Gunners, although his current season has been marred by injury.