Lukaku is tired but i cant rest him - Mourinho

Manchester United manager
Jose Mourinho has admitted Romelu Lukaku is
"tired" but insists he cannot rest his star striker.
Lukaku has scored four goals in his last 19 games
after starting his United career with 11 in his first
10 appearances.
The Belgium international has also been partially
to blame for goals United have conceded against
Manchester City and Burnley as Mourinho's team
have struggled to defend set-pieces.
Lukaku has played every minute of United's 20
Premier League games so far this season and
started 27 of their 30 games in all competitions.
Mourinho said the 24-year-old is running on
empty but, asked whether he could afford to give
the frontman a rest, he replied: "No, I can't."
He told a news conference on Friday: "First of all,
people don't have to be grateful to Romelu. I
have to be, not you, not the supporters, not the
pundits. I have to be.
"I think for a striker, any player, he's absolutely
incredible, but if you are a central defender, a
holding midfield player, where you can control
your energy, positional play, you can resist,
survive.
"But for a striker to play 20 matches in the
Premier League, 90 minutes, I have to be grateful.
"Is he unlucky in our box in recent matches? He
was in the picture, was not a direct influence on
just him, but he was in the picture in some of the
last goals we concede, but it is a consequence of
a player that really needs a little rest.
"But the guy is fantastic for me and for the team
and gives absolutely everything and I've no
[criticism]."
Mourinho used Anthony Martial, Marcus Rashford
and Zlatan Ibrahimovic as his striker during their
Carabao Cup campaign and started Lukaku and
Ibrahimovic in tandem in the 2-2 draw with
Burnley on Boxing Day.
Ahead of Southampton's visit to Old Trafford on
Saturday, Mourinho insisted he could pair Lukaku
and Ibrahimovic up front again this season -- but
not until they are in better form.
He added: "It can happen but I think to happen
they need both to be in their best moment and
they are not.
"One is not because the situation in his team
didn't allow him to have any rest and he's giving
absolutely everything in every minute and we just
manage to give him a little rest in cup matches
and even so he was on the bench for emergency
situations.
"Champions League was about the same -- we
had to fight until the last match for qualification
and the boy is tired. He is physically a monster
but not a machine and he's feeling it.
"And Zlatan is a man with an incredible injury, an
injury that a 20-year-old man or young man
would suffer, imagine a man 36 years old and so
many miles in high-level football, so it is not
easy.
"We did that against Burnley, we will do that in
some more matches if we need to do, but for
both to play together we need them to be at their
best level."