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Wayne Rooney in Jose Mourinho's plans for Anderlecht clash

Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho with his players at the AON Training Complex, Carrington. Martin Rickett/PA Wire
Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho with his players at the AON Training Complex, Carrington. Martin Rickett/PA Wire Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho with his players at the AON Training Complex, Carrington. Martin Rickett/PA Wire

MANCHESTER United manager Jose Mourinho hopes to be able to call on club captain Wayne Rooney for Thursday's crucial Europa League quarter-final second leg clash with Anderlecht at Old Trafford.

The 31-year-old trained last Wednesday at the Aon Training Complex but did not travel to Belgium for the first leg, which United drew 1-1, nor was the forward involved in the squad that beat Premiership leaders Chelsea on Sunday.

Rooney has been struggling with ankle pain recently and Mourinho is to make a decision on his fitness after training.

"He is working now, he is improving," Mourinho said.

"And if in the training session the answer is positive, I would select him to be on the bench. His experience, his know-how of this knockout phase, I think he is a player who can be useful (tonight).

"If we need a goal, he can help us. If we need to keep a result, to keep the ball, to keep control by having possession, he can help us, too, so hopefully his answer in the training session is positive," the Portuguese added.

Mourinho also revealed that he will stick with Argentine international goalkeeper Sergio Romero for Thursday's match, as he has done regularly in the Europa League this season, but he said that it wasn’t simply a case of Romero for Europe and Spanish number one David De Gea as his main man on the domestic front.

"He is not my goalkeeper for the Europa League," Mourinho said on Wednesday, having also played Romero in the first leg in Brussels.

"He is my goalkeeper for tomorrow and he was my goalkeeper in other matches, but he is not my goalkeeper for the Europa League.I never like to do that, complete separation.

"I can say priority for Sergio to play in the Europa League, yes, but we had some matches when David played.

"David's priority to play Premier League but I don't like the complete separation. I cannot say every match is for one or another. The reality is Sergio is very stable, is very experienced, is playing very well."

While Juan Mata, Chris Smalling and Phil Jones are definitely out of the match through injury, Mourinho should have Anthony Martial and Henrikh Mkhitaryan available for selection, although he has called on the former to realise his potential after a campaign that has seen him left out of the United squad on a number of occasions by Mourinho, including Sunday’s win.

"You know, we have been together for almost 10 months or something like that. The same way I know the players much better now, the players they should also know me much better now. The same way I know what the players like, I think the players also know what I like. The same way I have to go in the direction of the players, the players they have also to come in my direction and that's the point,” said Mourinho, who called on the 21-year-old Frenchman to learn from his younger strike compatriot Marcus Rashford, who scored the opener at the weekend.

"That's why Marcus Rashford, even without scoring goals, even without being since September scoring a goal in the Premier League, even without that he was always a player that I trust.

"He was always a player that I play, always a player that I support because he was always coming in my direction, in the direction of what I want from a player, what I want as a Manchester United player, so I think it is about that,” Mourinho revealed.

"It is about getting to know each other better and better and better, and go in the direction of the things that we like.

"So do I think Anthony is a player with great potential? Yes, I think.

"Do I think he can play successfully for me? Yes, I think. But he needs to give me things that I like very much."