It was impossible to ignore the shift in mood, the supporters singing the name of their charismatic Portuguese head coach, parachuted in to solve a myriad issues but chiefly the miserable results and the leaky defence. Determined to immerse himself in the local culture, he and his staff spent Christmas Day enjoying a traditional lunch at a local pub a few miles out of town. Then there is the friction between those who pay their money in the stands and those who spend it in the boardroom. It has been an unhappy picture for a while, the players presumably thinking of an appropriate escape route. The problem for Ruben Amorim is that Vítor Pereira was the manager who triumphed here.

For Manchester United, it is now four defeats in their past five matches. United, who drop a place to 14th, are eight points above the relegation zone, 11 from the top four, which is badly fading from view, having taken seven points from a possible 21 since Amorim replaced Erik ten Hag. Matheus Cunha – just where would Wolves be without him? – scored the first goal, direct from a corner, and squared the ball eight minutes into stoppage time to allow the substitute Hwang Hee-chan a simple finish. For Pereira, it has been a flawless start, two wins from two and the worst defence in the division has been bolted secure. At least for now. At the same time, a gutless United never looked like scoring.

• Updates from the 8pm GMT kick-off at Anfield
• Get in touch! You can email Simon here

Andy Hunter listened to what Arne Slot had to say ahead of this fixture. And this is what he heard:

Arne Slot has said his experience of facing Ruud van Nistelrooy in the Netherlands, plus Liverpool’s brief drop-off against Tottenham , ensures Leicester will not be underestimated at Anfield on Boxing Day.

The Liverpool head coach was unable to beat Van Nistelrooy’s PSV when guiding Feyenoord to the Eredivisie title in 2022-23, drawing 2-2 at home and losing 4-3 away. PSV were one of only two teams to defeat Feyenoord in a season when Slot’s side won the league by seven points from their closest challengers from Eindhoven.

Police chief says 33 prisoners dead and 15 others injured after confrontation with security forces

At least 6,000 inmates escaped from a high-security prison in Mozambique’s capital Maputo on Christmas Day after a rebellion, the chief of police has said, as widespread post-election riots and violence continue to engulf the country.

The police general commander, Bernardino Rafael, said 33 prisoners had died and 15 others were injured during a confrontation with the security forces.

Northwest Naturals has told customers to throw out Feline Turkey Recipe pet food after batch tested positive for virus

A voluntary recall of raw and frozen cat food has been issued in Oregon after a cat that died of bird flu was linked to the product, state officials have said.

Northwest Naturals has instructed customers of its Feline Turkey Recipe raw frozen pet food to throw out the product if its sell-by date falls between 21 May 2026 and 23 June 2026.

On Truth Social, president-elect also lashes out at Chinese troops in Panama Canal and Canadian PM Justin Trudeau

Donald Trump has told 37 people on death row who had their sentences commuted by Joe Biden to “go to hell” in a lacerating Christmas Day social media post.

The president-elect – long a vocal advocate of capital punishment – lashed out at Biden’s decision on his Truth Social platform, after wishing a merry Christmas to political opponents he addressed as “Radical Left Lunatics”.

He may be in league of his own on social media, but can he convince the big money he leads a viable national party?

On brand as ever, Nigel Farage got the news that Reform appears to have surpassed the Tories in membership numbers while attending a traditional Boxing Day hunt.

Flat-capped and tweeded, he was filmed for TikTok and Instagram getting the news on his phone: “We’ve done it. We’re through. How about that! We’re now the official opposition.” Sticking out his tongue and smiling straight into the camera, he added: “It’s going to be a long day.”

Over the holidays, this column will explore next year’s urgent issues. Today we look at the crisis in western democracy, Donald Trump’s victory and the role played by digital media

In November 2020, shortly after Donald Trump’s defeat in the US presidential election, Barack Obama observed that America risked entering “an epistemological crisis”. The prospect of Mr Trump’s return to the White House in January validates his predecessor’s premonition.

Mr Obama was talking about media fragmentation and polarisation: different segments of society existing in discrete information spaces; arguments no longer drawn from a common reservoir of facts; no shared reality, no foundation of truth. “Then by definition the marketplace of ideas doesn’t work,” he said. “And by definition our democracy doesn’t work.”

• Runaway leaders Celtic stroll to 4-0 victory
• Aberdeen lose 4-0 at Kilmarnock as slump goes on

Celtic eased to a comfortable 4-0 win over Motherwell after getting a penalty breakthrough in first-half stoppage-time.

Arne Engels opened the scoring after a tight first half as Aston Oxborough, the Motherwell goalkeeper, was penalised for a collision with Yang Hyun-jun. Daizen Maeda doubled the lead before the substitutes Nicolas Kühn and Reo Hatate netted to give Stuart Kettlewell, the visiting manager, a first taste of defeat in four visits to Celtic Park.

• Coventry win 4-0 in duel between ex-England teammates
• Leaders Sheffield United slip up in 2-0 defeat to Burnley

Josh Eccles scored twice in Coventry ’s 4-0 thumping of Plymouth Argyle , increasing the pressure on Wayne Rooney.

It was Rooney’s first managerial meeting against his former England teammate Frank Lampard, whose side clinically punished a woeful first-half performance from the visitors.