United will hope to stay on course to win another piece of silverware
this season with an important away result against their Belgian
opposition, and they’ll be buoyed following their win this weekend.
David de Gea was forced to miss the win over Sunderland with a hip
injury while Antonio Valencia has missed the last two games, but
Mourinho has suggested that both will be back available for their
midweek trip.
“I just expect Valencia to be ready to play and no more, I don’t
think. I don’t think any one of the other boys will be ready to play,”
he told MUTV.
“We played with the players available [against Sunderland]. Not one
single player stayed in Manchester because we were thinking about
resting them, or because we were thinking about rotation or about
Anderlecht. Not at all.
“De Gea’s injury is not serious and Romero every time he plays he plays so well.”
That would suggest that Phil Jones, Juan Mata, Wayne Rooney, Chris
Smalling and Ashley Young will all still be sidelined, and so it’s far
from an ideal situation for Mourinho who will be aware of the importance
of winning the Europa League this season.
With the risk of missing out on the top four in the Premier League
still hanging over United, triumphing in Europe this season will book
their spot in the Champions League for next season. As a result, not
having a fully fit squad at this stage could come back to haunt the Red
Devils, but their Portuguese boss should be confident enough in the
players at his disposal.
While United will surely not underestimate their opponents, they
should have enough quality to pick up a positive result to take back to
Old Trafford for the second leg later this month.
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