Jose Mourinho has revealed that Wayne Rooney’s lack of pace meant he had to start from the bench in the 1-1 draw with Arsenal over the weekend.

There were fears that Rooney could be punished by Mourinho for his boozing antics while on England duty, and those fears were seemingly confirmed when the United captain was named on the bench for the clash with Arsenal, but Mourinho says he started Rooney from the bench because he wasn’t fast enough for what he wanted.

“I thought we were going to have the ball,” said Mourinho. “Arsenal are a team who let the opponents play.

“I thought we would have space and the ball would arrive quite easily to the attacking players.

“I believed ones like Juan Mata, Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford were faster than Wayne — better attacking opponents one-to-one in the last line. I thought it was the best option.”

United led the Gunners in that game and looked set for a certain victory, before conceding a late equalizer but Mourinho insists he cannot fault the performance of his players on the day.

And the United boss also praised his midfield combination for the game, as he looks to have found his most effective combination in Ander Herrera, Paul Pogba and Michael Carrick.

“The midfield is playing very well,” said Mourinho. “Pogba, Carrick and Herrera are playing very well. The defenders, the way Phil Jones and Marcos Rojo performed, were so solid and confident. We defended high and were compact when we had to be.

“It was a very good performance, but I go home with the feeling that I lost against Arsenal in the Premier League.

“Pogba is adapting much better in relationships, with the intensity of the competition and he’s much more confident.

“Obviously he plays with some guidelines over his position, but at the same time with some freedom to occupy some attacking areas where he feel and thinks he can be important.”