Share

Mourinho explains Mkhitaryan left-back switch

Manchester - Manchester United coach Jose Mourinho claims his decision to move Henrikh Mkhitaryan to left-back in the 1-1 draw against Liverpool was done in a bid to score the equaliser.

Jurgen Klopp's side looked to be heading for their first victory at Old Trafford since 2014 when James Milner's 27th minute penalty put them ahead, however a late equaliser by Zlatan Ibrahimovic saw the two teams share spoils.

The Portugese mentor made three second-half changes bringing on Wayne Rooney, Juan Mata and Marouane Fellaini for Michael Carrick, Anthony Martial and Matteo Darmian respectively.

When quizzed on his perplexing decision to play midfielder Mkhitaryan in defence - the former Chelsea mentor initially appeared annoyed, but said it was done as a last gamble of the dice as he had already substituted Darmian.

"Do you work for the Italian federation?," Mourinho said in post-match comments.

"Do you want to buy him? Are you an agent?."

"When you have Antonio Valencia playing as a right winger you cannot defend with two players, you need that third player to give some cover inside and to keep some balances, and he [Darmian] did that well.

"But then losing, you take Darmian out and play Mkhitaryan left winger, covering a little bit and Valencia right winger, covering a little bit, and you risk everything."

"But I was watching the game, we were losing, I was looking always to the same side - I have a problem with my neck because I was always looking to the left side - and I watched so many yellow guys in front of me I thought let's go for it, let's try," he concluded.

United on paper have an easier fixture list than their rivals as they only play a top 6 team next in April and next travel to the Britannia Stadium to face Stoke City on Saturday.

Kick off is at 17:00.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Should Siya Kolisi keep the captaincy as the Springboks build towards their World Cup title defence in 2027?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
Yes! Siya will only be 36 at the next World Cup. He can make it!
25% - 1162 votes
No! I think the smart thing to do is start again with a younger skipper ...
30% - 1357 votes
I'd keep Siya captain for now, but look to have someone else for 2027.
45% - 2067 votes
Vote
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE