"The boy is tired. He is physically a monster but not a machine and he’s feeling it" - Mourinho on Lukaku

JOSE MOURINHO has laid it right on the line for Manchester United fans.

The club will never give up trying to keep pace with neighbours Manchester City but, the reality is, it is tough.

Boss Mourinho uses one example of having to play Romelu Lukaku when he needs a rest — due to a lack of striking alternatives — while City can chop and change.

Mourinho said: “I don’t want to take any credit from what City are doing. But it’s difficult.

“Is it possible? Yes. But if you don’t have that financial profile of club where there are no limits, there is only one way — patience and calm and time.

“For example, we bought a striker in the summer — a very good striker — but that was to replace Zlatan. It was not him and Zlatan in the best of their form from day one.”

City have been able to rotate Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus all season.

But Mourinho says Lukaku needs a rest — and his recent blunders in helping City to two goals and Burnley to one could be a consequence of his fatigue.

Yet he claims he cannot let him have time out from the league as there is no one to replace him with Zlatan still struggling to get back to his best after his knee injury.

Clearly, he does not trust Marcus Rashford or Anthony Martial to lead the line.  As for Lukaku’s  output Mourinho added: “For a striker, he’s absolutely incredible.

“If you are a central defender, a holding midfield player, where you can control your energy, positional play, you can resist, survive.

“For a striker to play 20 matches in the PL, 90 minutes each time, I have to be grateful.

“He was in the picture in some of the last goals we conceded but it is a consequence of a player that really needs a little rest.

“The boy is tired. He is physically a monster but not a machine and he’s feeling it. And Zlatan is a man with an incredible injury. A man 36 years old and so many miles in high-level football, so is not easy.”

Mourinho pointed out each signing has been to replace not to add to what he has at Old Trafford.

He said: “We signed Victor Lindelof as we didn’t have Marcos Rojo.  If next summer we are going to sign a midfield player it will be to replace Michael Carrick.

“Michael is a phenomenal player who this season could give us nothing. So to improve our squad in midfield we would need to buy two.