Jose Mourinho has the 26th trophy of his gilded coaching career in his sights but the Manchester United manager claimed his critics would be lining up to “kill” him if he failed to win the FA Cup next month.

United booked their place in the final at Wembley on May 19 after coming from behind to beat Tottenham Hotspur. Since taking charge at Porto in 2002-03, Mourinho has won at least one trophy in all but two of his previous 13 full seasons as a manager, with his final year at Real Madrid in 2012-13 and his first season of his second spell at Chelsea, in 2013-14, the only occasions he has ended a completed campaign empty-handed.

Victory over Chelsea next month would yield the fourth trophy of his two-year reign as United manager, following last season’s Europa League, League Cup and Community Shield successes, but Mourinho is already anticipating a backlash if he falls short.

“When I don’t win, you kill me,” Mourinho said. “Because I almost do that all the time, when I don’t do it, you kill me, which you are ready to do if I don’t win the final.”

As much as there is a clear desire at the club to finish the job and secure a second FA Cup in three seasons, it was also evident in the aftermath of their win that Mourinho and his squad are determined to achieve greater consistency in the Premier League and avoid some of the sharp fluctuations that have proven costly.