Saturday 10 September 2016 16:27, UK
Jose Mourinho has started the mind games ahead of Saturday's Manchester derby by suggesting Manchester City might actually be stronger without talisman Sergio Aguero.
The Argentine striker will be absent from Saturday's hotly-anticipated clash between Manchester United and City at Old Trafford after being suspended for three matches by the FA for elbowing West Ham defender Winston Reid.
Aguero, who has the best goals-per-minute record of any man in Premier League history, has been a consistent thorn in United's side in the past with five goals in his last four league appearances.
Most observers would expect Mourinho to be pleased Aguero will miss the game but the United boss says it has made his preparation more difficult because Pep Guardiola has so many different options to replace the 28-year-old.
Mourinho has had less time to work with his players this week because most have been on international duty - Antonio Valencia, Marcos Rojo and Sergio Romero only arrived back in time for training on Friday - and he says Aguero's absence means there are many different scenarios he needs to drill with his players.
When asked if Aguero's absence has affected United's preparation, Mourinho said: "Yes, it changes because it is more difficult.
"When Aguero is available we know that Aguero plays. We know their formation and what their dynamic is. Nobody has doubts. When a player like him is ready he plays. At this moment he doesn't play.
"They have a very rich squad full of options and now Guardiola can have many different decisions. One thing is if he decides to play with Iheanacho. Another thing is if he decides to play with Sterling. Another one is for example if he decides to play with Silva as a fake number nine in between the lines.
"So they have so many options that for us in the preparation of the game we have to go step by step. We have to go situation after situation because we try to reduce the unpredictability of the game.
"We know they have so many options so to try to do that job for the players is more difficult. It looks a little bit of a contradiction but without Aguero it is more difficult."
On the injury front, United have a clean bill of health with Mourinho confirming both Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Marouane Fellaini have recovered from thigh and back injuries respectively.
"Everybody is available," Mourinho told MUTV. "It's not the same as if we were here all week and working, resting and not travelling, but there are no injuries and everybody has returned safely and on time for at least one training session. Everybody is ready and wants to play, of course.
"Mkhitaryan is available. I'm not saying he's ready to play 90 minutes but he's ready to try to help us."
