José Mourinho’s training-ground clash with Paul Pogba occurred because the manager believed the midfielder had posted a story to Instagram in which he laughed at Manchester United’s penalty shootout defeat against Derby County on Tuesday night.

The episode happened on Wednesday at the start of the training session at the club’s Carrington base and came as the hierarchy backed Mourinho’s decision to strip Pogba of the vice-captaincy.

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Sky Sports cameras caught the two men having unhappy words, with media officer John Allen also involved. In the footage Pogba can be seen high‑fiving the coach Michael Carrick, then shaking Allen’s hand. At this point Mourinho says something that startles the France international.

Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) JUST IN! 😳



Frosty footage just in from @ManUtd's training session between Paul Pogba and Jose Mourinho… ❄️



What has been said between the pair this morning? 👀 pic.twitter.com/nRiTEgDJlH

As they wander off, the discussion continues with the player turning back to Mourinho, spreading his palms before shrugging. He points at himself as if to say: “Who, me?” before Allen is called back into the conversation.

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Mourinho was concerned with the Instagram story and the timing of its posting at around 10.25pm. In the video Pogba, who was at Old Trafford watching the tie, is seen in jovial mood as he laughs with Andreas Pereira and Luke Shaw, who were also rested. Pogba tilts his camera-phone at the pitch where the game can be seen in play. This was shot around an hour earlier but was not posted until later because of an issue with stadium wifi. When Pogba denies laughing at the defeat, Allen is called back into the conversation by Mourinho.

The club’s hierarchy has no intention of asking Mourinho to reconsider his decision that Pogba should never captain United again. The player, who has led the side in three games this season, was told of his demotion before the defeat.