Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho is to appear in court to answer accusations of tax fraud in Madrid later on Friday.
The 54-year-old was summoned at the end of September over allegations that he defrauded Spanish tax authorities of €3.3-million between 2011 and 2012 while he was head coach of Real Madrid.
When the charges were announced in June, Mourinho’s representatives issued a statement denying he had been contacted by prosecutors and insisting his taxes had been paid in full.
United altered their pre-match media duties earlier this week due to the court hearing, which is scheduled for 10:ooam local time in Pozuelo de Alcarcon.
Addressing the impending court case at a media briefing on Thursday, Mourinho said: ‘No [it has not been a distraction].
‘It’s just a change of normal training time because I want to be there, and I can’t be there in the morning so I have to change the timings.’
-This story originally appeared on FourFourTwo.co.za