Former England international Paul Merson believes Jose Mourinho should be selecting the underperforming Wayne Rooney ahead of Zlatan Ibrahimovic. 

The Red Devils were hammered 4-0 at the hands of Chelsea this past weekend, a reverse which only serves to compound the difficulties facing Mourinho. United have now won just once in their last six Premier League outings, a run which sees them languishing in seventh on the table.

The Red Devils will have a chance to bounce back from their latest defeat when they take to the field in the EFL Cup on Wednesday, a tie which sees them come up against rivals Manchester City.

For his part, Merson believes it is time Mourinho got more ruthless with his squad, particularly with the stuttering forward line.

‘Ibrahimovic used to be world class, but he’s 35. He used to be in the top three or four players in the world but he’s not the same player anymore. Even Lionel Messi won’t be world class when he’s 35,’ Merson wrote in his Sky Sports column.

‘He can’t play twice a week either now, which we saw on Sunday. He played Thursday and Sunday and he didn’t get a kick.’

Merson believes recalling Rooney may pay greater dividends for the Red Devils, while he has also suggested the 31-year-old has been unfairly scapegoated by the club and its fans.

‘I think Wayne Rooney has got to come back in. He got the blame before they dropped him and they’ve not improved since then. He got dropped for not doing too much wrong.’

The Manchester Derby is set to take place at Old Trafford, with the action getting underway at 21:00.