Mourinho: ‘Very bad pre-season’ may force position changes

Matt Stead

Jose Mourinho has suggested that Manchester United “very bad” pre-season could force him to play a striker as a striker.

Mourinho has already lamented the fact that he will be without a number of players during this summer’s preparation for the coming season.

The Portuguese has ruled out the prospect of any player who took part in the latter stages of the World Cup featuring in the Premier League season opener against Leicester on August 10.

It could even force Mourinho into playing striker Anthony Martial as a striker instead of a winger, with Juan Mata and a “really sad” Alexis Sanchez potentially joining him as forwards in the first weeks of the campaign.

“Pre-season is very bad, I have to say that,” he said.

“It’s positive for the young boys that have the fantastic opportunity to train with us and know what it is to be a United player, the chance to play against fantastic players. And my coaching staff, with three new staff it’s good for them to adapt to my needs and start working in a new reality.”

While Paul Pogba is having a post-World Cup break, Alexis Sanchez did not fly out with United for their United States tour at the weekend because of what the club said was a “personal administrative issue” which it was hoped would soon be resolved to allow him to join the party at a later date.

Sanchez was absent from the party which headed across the Atlantic on Sunday amid speculation that there was an issue with his visa after he accepted a 16-month suspended sentence in Spain over a tax issue.

Mourinho said of the Chilean on Wednesday: “It’s really bad and he’s really sad.

“It’s not good for him and not good for me, or for the team. There is no-one to blame. I know the club is making the effort but the US authorities have their processes.

“Hopefully, he can at least join us later because it is important to work with Juan Mata, Alexis and Anthony Martial, who we think are the forward players we have for the start of the season. There is no (Romelu) Lukaku, (Marcus) Rashford or (Jesse) Lingard.”

Mourinho also said full-back Diogo Dalot, signed last month from Porto, will be unavailable for the start of the season and that it is expected the injured Portugal Under-21 international will be “ready for September”.

He said: “Dalot is injured. We knew that but we didn’t want to lose him because of that. He is recovering really well.

“We think he can start training with the team when we go back to England. He is not going to be ready for the start of the season but we think he’ll be ready for September.”

David De Gea, Nemanja Matic and new signing Fred are set to join up with the squad next week. United face Club America in the opening fixture of the tour on Friday.