Jose Mourinho's tax fraud case is in danger of disrupting Manchester United's preparations for their match at Chelsea this weekend, with the Old Trafford boss travelling to Spain for the hearing on Friday.

United have brought Mourinho's weekly press conference forward 24 hours from its usual slot to Thursday, and sources have confirmed the Portuguese coach will be in court.

Mourinho's No 2 Rui Faria and his coaching staff will oversee training when he is out of the country, but the situation is far from ideal.

Jose Mourinho is accused of defrauding the authorities of £2.9million while at Real Madrid

Manchester United travel to Chelsea on Sunday, where they were beaten 4-0 last season

He suffered his biggest ever Premier League defeat as a coach when United were beaten 4-0 on his return to Stamford Bridge in October, and can expect another stern test against Antonio Conte's side on Sunday.

Mourinho is accused of defrauding the Spanish tax authorities of £2.9million during his time in charge of Real Madrid between 2010 and 2013 by not declaring profits from image rights.

The case is due to be heard in Madrid at 10am, just two days before United face Chelsea. Mourinho has denied the charges.

The Portuguese manager, 54, was in charge of the La Liga giants between 2010 and 2013

He settled a previous claim against him in 2014, paying a penalty of £1m, but prosecutors claimed in June that some of the information in that settlement was incorrect.

Mourinho responded by issuing a statement insisting that his taxes had been paid in full.

It read: 'Jose Mourinho has not received any notification with regards to the news published today.

'To this date, neither the Spanish tax authorities, not the public prosecutor have contacted Jose Mourinho or his advisers who were hired for the inspection process.

'Jose Mourinho, who lived in Spain from June 2010 until May 2013, paid more than €26m (£22.7m) in taxes, with an average tax rate over 41 per cent, and accepted the regularisation proposals made by the Spanish tax authorities in 2015 regarding the years 2011 and 2012 and entering into a settlement agreement regarding 2013.'