Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho is reportedly set to be without a single fit striker for their FA Cup tie with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Monday night.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic will be absent due to suspension, but with the depth that United possess, it was expected that they would be able to cope without the influential Swede on this occasion.
However, it hasn’t worked out that way for Mourinho who has lost Marcus Rashford to illness, while Anthony Martial had been ruled out due to injury.
Further, Wayne Rooney has also failed to travel with the rest of the squad after he was hurt in a training ground clash with defender Phil Jones, as per the Manchester Evening News.
That in turn leaves Mourinho with a massive headache in terms of selections, as he could now be forced to field either Henrikh Mkhitaryan in a false nine role, or possibly start Marouane Fellaini up front as a target man.
It’s the last thing that the Portuguese tactician would have wanted at such a crucial time in the season, as he and his players face three games in three competitions within a week with Europa League and Premier League commitments still to come.
In turn, he’ll need all the depth he has at his disposal to rotate and keep everyone fit and involved, but it appears as though that has been taken away from him for Monday night at least.
That will be a major boost for Chelsea and Antonio Conte though, as with the Blues already boasting the joint-best defensive record in the Premier League this season, it was already a tough enough assignment for the United frontline at full strength let alone with so many missing key players.