Manchester United news: Jose Mourinho believes Premier League title will come down to three horse race

The United manager added that this year's title campaign will be 'tight'

Jose Mourinho makes his Premier League predictions (Getty)

Jose Mourinho has stated that three teams will "probably" be competing for the Premier League title towards the business end of the season.

The Manchester United manager also believes that the title race will be tight for the 2016/17 campaign.

But despite his predictions, the Portuguese joked that he wouldn’t be making any big bets given the unpredictable nature of England’s top division.

Speaking ahead of his side’s eagerly anticipated clash with Chelsea on Sunday, Mourinho said: “Probably not six [teams], probably three.

“Probably during the run somebody will fall a little bit. I am not a gambler but, if I was, I wouldn’t bet a lot on the title or top four because there is a big risk of losing money.”

The 53-year-old added that the a run of good form can help give the impression of a side’s strong title chances.

“You look to the table and the distances are so short,” he remarked.

“It looks like the team that wins three matches in a row is immediately in the top three or four. And the team that has a bad run for a couple of results, just a couple, goes immediately outside the top four. It looks like it is going to be tight.

Jose Mourinho believes the Premier League will be 'tight' throughout the season (Getty)

“We are in a period where some teams are having easier fixtures. If they win two or three of those easy fixtures and the other ones are playing between them, they share points, like what happened at Liverpool [United drew 0-0] and Tottenham against Liverpool.

“My feeling is it will be close and probably one team that you think is playing for the title in March, probably in May doesn’t finish in the top four.”

United head into Sunday’s game in seventh place on 14 points, two points and two places behind Antonio Conte’s Chelsea.

The top four itself remains close. Manchester City lead Arsenal only through goal difference, with Tottenham in third a point behind, and Liverpool in fourth place, a further point back.