Manchester United host Benfica this evening and if they maintain their flawless Champions League record they will secure qualification for the knockout stage.
Having taken nine points from their first three games in Group A, a win against the Portuguese visitors at Old Trafford will see them guaranteed a place in the tournament’s last 16, a phase that they last reached in 2013-14.
It will be a perfect night’s work for Jose Mourinho if his side wins and Romelu Lukaku gets on the scoresheet. Not only will it end the Belgian striker’s five-match barren streak but it will get the fans off his back, a state of affairs that the United manager addressed during yesterday’s press conference.
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Despite the fact that Lukaku, who arrived at Old Trafford from Everton in a £75million summer deal, scored 11 goals in his first ten matches for United, he’s mislaid his scoring boots this month and Mourinho senses some of the fans are beginning to voice their concern.
“For me, he is untouchable in my team and I think he should be untouchable in the support and the respect he deserves from the fans,” said Mourinho. “What he does for the team is fantastic and to play football for a striker is not just about scoring goals.”
Pointing out that Lukaku set up Anthony Martial’s winner in Saturday’s 1-0 win over Tottenham, Mourinho also described how his striker had unsettled the normally solid Spurs defensive pairing of Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen.
“Ask Vertonghen and Alderweireld if he was quiet, and they are some of the best centre-backs in football,” said the Special One. “I don’t think he’s quiet at all. The point is scoring or not scoring because in the end that is what people analyse sometimes.”
Asked if he was irritated with those fans who were beginning to get on Lukaku’s back, Mourinho said: “The fans are the fans and I also told [on Saturday] that the fans pay for their tickets and are free to express themselves the way they want to express.
“But my job, when I feel they deserve it, is to protect my players… he is playing extremely well for us and yes I have to protect my players when I feel they deserve it. And Romelu always deserves it because what he does for the team is fantastic.”
United should have the firepower to beat Benfica comfortably but Mourinho dismissed suggestions that the greatest threat to three points is complacency, particularly as the club plays Chelsea on Sunday in a vital Premier League clash.
“Nobody here thinks about any other match than Benfica,” he declared. “Nobody here thinks about Chelsea. Benfica will give us a difficult match.
“They have their own ambition and pride and they will try to win, we just want to get to the last 16 by finishing first in the group.”
Tonight’s Champions League fixtures (7.45pm UK time)
Group A
- FC Basel vs. CSKA Moscow
- Manchester United vs. Benfica
Group B
- Celtic vs. Bayern Munich
- Paris Saint Germain vs. RSC Anderlecht
Group C
- Atletico Madrid vs. FK Qarabag
- Roma vs. Chelsea
Group D
- Olympiakos vs. Barcelona
- Sporting Lisbon vs. Juventus
