Manchester United travel to Russia tomorrow in the Europa League as they take on FC Rostov in one of the toughest fixtures imaginable at this stage of the campaign. A long trip to eastern Russia while United continue to battle on three fronts is really not what Jose Mourinho needs right now, especially with a big FA Cup tie against former club Chelsea on the horizon.

Still, with his side losing ground on the top four following a frustrating draw with Bournemouth over the course of the weekend, perhaps the Europa League represents the team's best opportunity to make the Champions League this season.

While that may seem like a good plan on the face of it, Mourinho has already stated the club will only prioritise the competition if they make the quarter-finals. So, it seems their trip to Russia will take a backseat to their domestic duties and force the Portuguese into using the squad he has at his disposal.

With that in mind, here's a look at three key players United should rest.

Paul Pogba

Struggling to get a good run of performances together, the world-record man can surely afford to sit this one out. Bought for big game moments, the Frenchman is unlikely to be afforded a huge amount of space at the Olimp-2 Stadium, something that will seriously impact the nature of his play.

He needs to remain at his dynamic best for the upcoming game with Chelsea, arriving into the box late to peel into between the central defenders and full-backs gaps, if United are going to have any hope of winning.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan

Having missed the last few weeks with an injury picked up in the last round against St Etienne, the Armenian attacker has travelled to Russia. Still, Mourinho surely would have had his fingers burnt in France, so the notion of rushing the former Borussia Dortmund man back too soon will be worrying.

Mkhitaryan needs to be on the pitch, running at either Victor Moses or Marcos Alonso, if United are going to have any chance of beating the Blues on Monday night. A player of such quality needs time to find his rhythm and being rushed back at risk of further injury would be a nightmare scenario for him.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Over the past few months, United have tended to rely too heavily on their superstar Swede, typified in their EFL Cup final bout with Southampton, when he scored twice to hold off the Saints' onslaught.

However, the news Zlatan would be banned for three domestic games must prompt the Red Devils into finding a way of playing without his services up front. Indeed, there are options available to Mourinho, with both Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford offering more mobile options to break behind enemy lines.