Jose Mourinho criticises Manchester City for fielding weakened team in last season's FA Cup match at Chelsea

The Portuguese hit out against City for fielding a 'second team' in the FA Cup at Chelsea last season and promised he would avoid repeating their mistake, despite facing a fixture logjam

Jose Mourinho issues instructions from the sideline during United's 1-0 victory over Saint-Etienne (Getty)

Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho has caustically criticised Manchester City for fielding a “second team” in the FA Cup at Chelsea last season and insisted that he could never do the same, despite schedulers lining up a sixth round tie at Stamford Bridge 72 hours before his club’s potentially decisive Europa League last-16 game next month.

Mourinho is deeply unhappy about the FA’s announcement that United’s tie in west London will take place before a Europa League second leg which could take them deep into eastern Europe. But he insisted that he would not make the same decision that saw Manuel Pellegrini’s players lose 5-1 at Chelsea because, as he put it: “We are Manchester United.”

Displaying more of his capacity to play to the gallery where his own fan base is concerned, Mourinho said City had displayed a disrespect for the history of the competition by fielding a “second team” in their fifth round tie at Chelsea, three days before beating Dynamo Kiev 3-1 away in the Champions League. The date of United’s own Chelsea sixth round tie was announced an hour before they ran out to play Saint-Etienne, in a tie from which they emerged 4-0 aggregate winners.

“I feel really surprised that the decision is made before our draw in Europe because at this moment nobody knows where we play, where the first and second matches are,” Mourinho said. “Imagine we play Chelsea on Monday and go to the second match in Europe in Russia, Turkey or Greece? I think once more the interests are going in front of the clubs and English football’s interests, and nobody cares about it.

“I cannot play against Chelsea with the second team. I cannot play Chelsea with the under 21s like Manchester City did last year. I cannot do that. We are Manchester United. I don’t do that as Manchester United manager. I don’t do that to the FA Cup because the FA Cup is not guilty of these decisions.

“The FA Cup is beautiful, the competition is historical. I have to treat Manchester United supporters and the FA Cup in the right way. I cannot go there with the under 21s. Probably they (the FA) would deserve it but I don’t do that.

“So what is going to happen is an accumulation of matches. People playing a lot of matches. I have to make some rotation but some of the boys will have to play in all these consecutive matches.”

Mourinho’s determination to field a strong side at Saint-Etienne saw Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Michael Carrick both sustain injuries which make them doubts for this weekend’s League Cup final. This situation could repeat itself next month, he said. “If situations like the Mkhitaryan one or the Carrick one happen, they happen,” he reflected.

Of the pair’s availability to face Southampton, he said: “I think they are both out but this is based on my experience not on my medical knowledge and not based on tests. I think ‘no chance’. I repeat it’s just my experience, a calf (Carrick), a hamstring (Mkhitaryan), even if it’s minor, minor - some fibre damage - I think out.”

Paul Pogba looks to get past Vincent Pajot and Florentin Pogba (Getty)

Wayne Rooney is understood to be in line for a place on the bench at Wembley on Sunday and determined to continuing fighting for his future at the club, despite Mourinho saying on Tuesday that it was the player’s choice whether he left for China before the country’s leagues transfer window closes on Tuesday.

The 31-year-old is understood to be motivated by finding the environment to play his football and by a desire to see out his England career at the 2018 World Cup in Russia – which joining a Chinese club would make difficult.

Mourinho said that he was happy to face any team in the Europa League next round, though seemed to suggest that the draw could be weighted in favour of United facing particularly difficult clubs. “I’m used to difficult draws. Sometimes I think some balls are cold and some balls are hot,” he said.