Mourinho regrets effect of international matches on derby preparations

Manchester United head coach Jose Mourinho spoke of his misgivings that international football matches will affect preparations for the September 10 Manchester derby in the English Premier League (EPL).

"We keep eight outfield players and Sam Johnstone as the goalkeeper for training. We are going to lose the others and we don't know the way they train, the way they recover, the life they are going to have with their national teams," Mourinho told the club's official television, MUTV on Friday.

"Some are coming back on the Monday before the Manchester City match but some are coming back on Friday. The day before Man City, we will still have Sergio Romero, Marcos Rojo and Antonio Valencia arriving," the Portuguese coach added.

United have won all three EPL games played so far under the command of Mourinho and now face Pep Guardiola-coached cross-city rivals City.

"It will be a complicated process but we know it is like this when we have these players," said Mourinho, who confirmed that the Swede Zlatan Ibrahimovic will enjoy more time off than the rest.

"I give the other guys, who are not selected for the national teams, two days off. And I give four days to Zlatan. At 34 years old, you need to rest," said the Portuguese.

--IANS

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