Exiled star Mkhitaryan set for recall to face Bristol

MANCHESTER UNITED’S playmaker Henrikh Mkhitaryan may be called in from the cold for tonight’s Carabao Cup quarter-final against Bristol City, says Jose Mourinho, after all but ignoring the Armenian since he came off in the defeat to Chelsea at the start of November.

The 28-year-old (above) has been left out of nine of the previous 10 match-day squads by Mourinho, and his future is in serious doubt 18 months after his move from Borussia Dortmund, but the United manager said there is a chance he will feature at Ashton Gate.

It is not much of a return for a player who has been ignored by Mourinho and criticised for his increasingly poor contribution which the United manager says is reflected by his match data.

Paul Pogba is also due to make a return, which will increase the competition for attacking places further when United return to league action against Leicester City on Saturday.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic might also get a start, which would be his first since he came back from injury in November.

CONDUIT

During Pogba’s absence Mourinho has used Jesse Lingard as a conduit between midfield and attack with the Englishman mobile and willing to run in behind opposition defences.

Lingard has started the last five league games and been praised by Mourinho for his willingness to follow instructions and cover a lot of ground.

United retain an interest in Mesut Ozil, who played for Mourinho at Real Madrid. Mkhitaryan will know that it is a long way back if he is to regain Mourinho’s faith but if it does not work out at United then he can be sure of plenty of options if he leaves in the summer.

Mourinho said: “We need to take the game really seriously but I’m going to make a few changes and it’s possible Miki is involved.

“In this moment we are playing with Mata, Lingard, Rashford or Martial and Lukaku, and the bench has been Ibra and one of the other ones: Martial or Rashford. There is no space for everybody because you need balance on the bench too.

“I am making a few changes for the match, not many, because Bristol City are one of the best teams in the Championship. And for me now, the Championship is not the Championship any more of five, 10 years ago.

“The Championship is now high-quality teams with lots of high-quality players that could be playing in the Premier League easily.” (© Daily Telegraph, London) Bristol City v Manchester Utd, Live, Sky Sports Main Event, 8.0