Mourinho has fitness concerns over seven first team players ahead of derby

Manchester United manager José Mourinho is sweating on the fitness of seven first team players ahead of the Manchester derby tomorrow (10 September), according to reports.

The Mirror is reporting that José Mourinho is unsure of the fitness of seven first team players, just 24 hours before his Manchester United side are due to host local rivals Manchester City at Old Trafford tomorrow.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan, the £26 million attacking midfielder signed from Borussia Dortmund, picked up a thigh injury on international duty the week before last, and faces a race against time to be declared fit for the derby. The Armenian collided with Czech Republic defender Marek Suchy, and had to be taken off in the first half of his country’s 3-0 friendly defeat.

Jesse Lingard is one player who would have been hoping to play against City, but the 23-year-old has not yet played in the Premier League this season, and his match fitness is under question.

Left-back Luke Shaw has made a fantastic start to the season after missing the majority of the previous campaign due to a broken leg, but the 21-year-old missed England’s World Cup Qualifier against Slovakia, with Three Lions Manager Sam Allardyce saying the young defender “didn’t feel right.”

Finally, Mourinho is waiting to see what kind of condition Antonio Valencia, Marcos Rojo and Sergio Romero will be in when they return from international duty in South America. The trio are due to return from their cross-continental travels today, just a day before the big game.