Manchester United will look to seal their progress to the last 16 of the Champions League when they host Benfica at Old Trafford on Tuesday night. The Red Devils sealed a hard-fought 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur last weekend, and the victory is likely to have instilled the confidence lost earlier in the month. With a stiff encounter against Chelsea coming along this weekend, Mourinho could opt to bench a few regulars including Phil Jones.
Formation: 3-4-1-2
Lineup:
David de Gea has kept two clean sheets in three Champions League appearances, and he is certain to start for United between the sticks. Both Antonio Valencia and Ashley Young will have an important role to play versus Chelsea, and they could be replaced by Matteo Darmian and Daley Blind in the right and left wing-back positions respectively.
Similarly, Phil Jones has not been risked as yet due to his fitness concerns, and Mourinho could probably start him on the bench with Eric Bailly, Victor Lindelof and Chris Smalling making up the defensive three.
Paul Pogba has returned to individual training at Carrington, but he is unlikely to make the starting lineup in midweek. Marouane Fellaini and Michael Carrick are also sidelined with injuries, and this leaves Jose Mourinho with the automatic choice of Ander Herrera and Nemanja Matic in central midfield.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan was one of the worst performers in the 1-0 win over Spurs, and Mourinho could bench him in place of Jesse Lingard, who recently notched a match-winning brace against Swansea City in the League Cup. The Englishman will take up the number 10 position.
Anthony Martial produced another memorable performance from the bench last weekend, and he could potentially get the nod over Marcus Rashford to play alongside Romelu Lukaku up front.
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