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Football

30th Nov 2016

Jose Mourinho seems to be taking EFL Cup seriously as he fields surprisingly strong starting XI

No messing about

Darragh Murphy

There were suggestions that Bastian Schweinsteiger was going to come in from the cold tonight but he will have to go on shivering for a little while longer.

Jose Mourinho has named what appears to be something close to a full-strength side for Manchester United’s EFL Cup quarter-final clash with West Ham, although he will be watching from the stands after being hit with a one-match touchline ban for his weekend bottle-kicking.

With Paul Pogba and Marouane Fellaini suspended for Wednesday night’s meeting with the Hammers, a rare opportunity was expected to be offered to Schweinsteiger, with a number of outlets reporting that the former German international was set to start.

But instead, Mourinho has opted to play Michael Carrick and Ander Herrera in the centre of the park, while Henrikh Mkhitaryan appears to have finally won over his manager as he starts for the second week in a row, having played 82 minutes against Feyenoord last Thursday.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic starts up front, supported by Wayne Rooney and Anthony Martial takes his place on the left flank.

And here’s how West Ham will line up just three days after they left Old Trafford with a 1-1 draw.

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