Jose Mourinho says Aguero Absence makes it harder for United

Mourinho and his Manchester City counterpart Pep Guardiola have locked horns, most notably in Spain but also in the Champions League when they were in charge of Inter Milan and Barcelona respectively, and their rivalry resumes in Manchester tomorrow.

The two teams have both won their opening three games of the season but with more attention than ever on the fixture, Mourinho was keen to play down the importance of the managers in the game. During their managerial careers, Mourinho has won two more trophies than Guardiola (23-21) but the Catalan has come out on top nine times in the 16 competitive matches where they have faced each other.

The United boss was certainly in good form, insinuating that the absence of Aguero due to suspension could actually be a hindrance to his side rather than an advantage. Aguero, who has scored 105 Premier League goals in 152 games since his arrival in 2011, is suspended for the next three games after his elbow on West Ham's Winston Reid was retrospectively punished by the FA.

Without the Argentine, Guardiola has a number of options available to him, and according to Mourinho that makes it trickier for his team.

In Mourinho's words  "It changes because it is more difficult, when Aguero is available we know that he plays, we know their formation and their dynamics - nobody has doubts. If he is ready, he will play. But now he doesn't play, they have an amazing reach squad in terms of options and there are many things he could do." "He could decide to play with Iheanacho or Sterling. He could decide to play with Silva as a fake no.9 between the lines. It is clear that they have many options. That for us, in the preparation of the game, makes us have to go step-by-step with every situation because we are trying to reduce the unpredictability of the game. To try to do this now is more difficult." "This is a normal game"

As is often his way before a big game, Mourinho played down the importance of the match, with the attitude and knowledge of a man who has won league titles in four different countries.
Source: Eurosport