UNITED Time is right to give Henrikh a rest, Jose
THERE was little surprise when the board went up after 83 minutes of United’s Champions League tie at Benfica and Juan Mata’s number was up.
The diminutive Spaniard is yet to complete the full 90 so far this season.
It has been a feature of the season so far to see Mata depart ahead of Henrikh Mkhitaryan, who limped along until stoppage time on Wednesday. But if there was one match when Mata might have outlasted his teammate, the one in Lisbon was surely it.
For the second game in a row, Mkhitaryan was a non-factor, and given he was struggling to find a team-mate with a simple pass, withdrawing him earlier might have been kinder.
But it isn’t too difficult to see the reason why Jose Mourinho is tempted to leave the Armenian on the field.
A total of two goals and five assists in 11 competitive United fixtures is an impressive yield for the playmaker who can turn a match in an instant.
Swansea provided the blueprint - at the Liberty Stadium, Mkhitaryan was struggling to influence the game until two brilliant late assists for Romelu Lukaku and Paul Pogba.
But the 28-year-old has now had two stinkers in a row, and he was also quiet against Crystal Palace.
A couple of bad games is no reason to write off any player, but it is a sign a rest is due. Mkhitaryan has had a heavy workload this season, and has suffered more than most in Pogba’s absence.
But while others have been rotated, Mourinho has written Mkhitaryan’s name onto the teamsheet in apparently permanent ink.
Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford have both sizzled this season, but have been forced into a job share. Mata has been in good form but did not start at Anfield and has played three fewer games than Mkhitaryan, while Jesse Lingard’s position is getting increasingly chilly.
But Mourinho has a different treatment method for the player signed from Borussia Dortmund in 2016.
It all flies in the face of 12 months ago, when one bad half against City ensured he did not feature for United for six weeks.
Mourinho has spoken at length about the benefits Martial and Rashford have been given when coming off the bench against tired limbs, and the two young forwards are going from strength to strength.
The United manager has the options to give Mkhitaryan the same advantages.
Mata can play centrally, as can Lingard - who is no slouch and has scored in two Wembley finals for United in the last 18 months.
It does not have to be a case of going all-out attack with Rashford and Martial either side of Lukaku.
Seeing Mkhitaryan coming on late, with his guile and quick brain, is likely to spark fear in the majority of defences – especially combined with the speed and power of his team-mates.
United have tough fixtures against Spurs and Chelsea coming up, for which they will need fit and firing Mkhitaryan.
There are few in the league more dangerous than United’s Armenian on top form.
Giving him a rest from the start in the next two games may be the quickest way for Mourinho to get him there.