Jose Mourinho will be without a handful of first team regulars heading into this weekend’s matchup with Everton, including Alexis Sanchez and Marouane Fellaini.
The Chilean and Belgian both picked up injuries during the international break and have been unable to recover in time for this weekend, along with Diogo Dalot and potentially Scott McTominay. The injuries will force Mourinho, with an already short bench, to play many of his starters from Tuesday’s 1-0 defeat against Juventus this Sunday against the Toffees.
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“In this moment he’s struggling,” Mourinho said on Friday about Sanchez, “because he’s injured and because he come to the Chelsea match to try to help the team, but his physical condition was not good and then he had to stop and he was not available for Juventus and he is not available for tomorrow again. So now the point is to be physically in the best conditions. I think he’s the kind of player that needs to be really sharp to play his best game.”
Sanchez has struggled to find his form and his place in Mourinho’s system since joining Manchester United last January, but Fellaini has been a key player when fit. Mourinho even blamed part of the defeat to Juventus on Fellaini being injured. The hulking Belgian was expected to be fit for Man United’s 2-2 draw with Chelsea last weekend but he ultimately was ruled out.
"He's almost there," explains the boss on @JesseLingard. "Can he help us in the next match? That's the question we have to answer tomorrow, or wait one more week." #MUFC pic.twitter.com/NV1o126wDj
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) October 26, 2018
On the plus side midfielder Jesse Lingard, who has missed the last month of matches with a groin injury, is nearly 100 percent and could feature against Everton. Lingard reportedly carried the groin injury into the new season from his time at the 2018 World Cup, but should he recover, he would add some needed steel and skill on the ball to Man United’s midfield.