EARLY TEAM NEWS: UNITED V LIVERPOOL
Jose Mourinho says Marouane Fellaini could be back in the Manchester United squad for Saturday’s crunch Premier League clash with Liverpool.
The Belgian midfielder has not featured for the Reds since being substituted in the second half of the 2-0 defeat at Tottenham on 31 January after undergoing surgery on an ongoing knee problem.
The boss also confirmed that defender Eric Bailly is fully fit after making only two substitute appearances since returning to the fold after three months out with a knee injury.
Speaking at his pre-match press conference at the Aon Training Complex, Jose said: "Yeah, he [Bailly] was fully fit for a couple of weeks. Yeah, but he's okay. The only one that is back to the team is Fellaini."
The boss suggested in an interview with MUTV that Anthony Martial would not be available, after missing Monday’s 3-2 win at Crystal Palace through injury.
“It’s basically the same [squad],” he said. “The people injured are recovering step by step and a few of them are very, very close to a return – but not yet. We are fine, we have a squad ready for everything. The number we choose – 23 – was to protect them and we are coping with that.”
Saturday’s eagerly awaited encounter at Old Trafford will be United’s 200th meeting with Liverpool in all competitions stretching back to 1894 – but the boss played down the significance of the historic rivalry.
“In my mentality, every match is the same,” he told his press conference. “I'm not very good on that culture - ‘this rivalry is special, that match is special’. I've never been very good at it. I never look to AC Milan has the biggest rival, I never look at Atletico [Madrid] as the enemy, I never look to Spurs or Arsenal as the big rival, I've never been any good on it.
“For me it is just a big match, two historical clubs, not just in England, but in the world. In this moment, [there are] important points for the top four, important points for second position, which is better than third or fourth place. I still don’t look to some matches as special opponents. It's just a big match, because we are speaking about two big clubs.”
Meanwhile, for Liverpool, left-back Andy Robertson, captain Jordan Henderson and midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum are in contention to return after struggling with respective injuries recently. Boss Jurgen Klopp also told his pre-match press conference on Friday that right-back Nathaniel Clyne is edging towards fitness but won't be considered for the game.
MUTV’s exclusive live build-up to United v Liverpool will start at 10:30 GMT on Saturday.