José Mourinho says he would be prepared to drop Paul Pogba and Zlatan Ibrahimovic as Manchester United have no "untouchables" in their squad, unlike the Chelsea team that won two Premier League titles under him.

Instead, the manager pointed to the collective qualities of the team as being “non-negotiatable”. In December 2006 Mourinho named nine Chelsea players who were undroppable from his strongest XI. Asked if United also have untouchable players, possibly including Pogba and Ibrahimovic, the manager said: “That was 11 years ago, a different Premier League and situation – it was the best team by far.

“Untouchable in our team has to be the spirit, the commitment, the pride, the commitment to the club, respect to the fans. That has to be untouchable, not players.”

Wayne Rooney has lost his regular starting place and Mourinho refused to confirm if the captain will return to the side against Fenerbahce in Thursday night's Europa League group game at Old Trafford.

“I don’t want to give you the team, honestly,” Mourinho said. “Wayne is working well – he’s one of the big responsible people for the atmosphere that the players can breathe because he’s positive, he’s a good example. We count on him to start or be on the bench, but he will be there tomorrow.”

On whether Marcus Rashford will be available for England duty at the European Under-21 Championship next summer, Mourinho said: "We are in mid-October and the championships would be in the summer, so I think we have to wait and see what happens until then."

(Guardian service)