Henrikh Mkhitaryan is fit enough only for a place on the bench for Inter Milan’s Champions League final clash against Manchester City.
The former Arsenal and Manchester United midfielder, 34, has not played for almost a month due to a thigh injury and only returned to training on Thursday.
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While Mkhitaryan has recovered in time to make the squad for this evening’s Istanbul showpiece, Inter boss Simone Inzaghi has decided that he will be limited to a role off the bench.
“He had his first training session yesterday after 22 days,” Inzaghi said of the Armenian in his final pre-match press conference on Friday.
“We have a positive feeling but he is not 100 per cent. I will have to decide whether to field him from the beginning or send him on during the match.”
Argentine forward Joaquin Correa has also returned to training for Inter after a calf issue, while centre-back Milan Skriniar could play for the first time since March having been named on the bench against Torino in Serie A last weekend. Both are named among the substitutes, along with Romelu Lukaku as Edin Dzeko partners Lautaro Martinez up front.
Inter have reached the Champions League final for the first time since 2010, when a side featuring Wesley Sneijder, Lucio and Samuel Eto’o beat Bayern Munich 2-0 in Madrid to lift their third title under Jose Mourinho.
Now coached by Inzaghi, they finished third in Serie A this season, won the Coppa Italia and Supercoppa Italiana, and have knocked Porto, Benfica and city rivals AC Milan out of Europe.
Starting XI: Onana; Darmian, Acerbi, Bastoni; Dumfries, Barella, Brozovic, Calhanoglu, Dimarco; Dzeko, Martinez
Subs: Handanovic, Cordaz, Gagliardini, De Vrij, Gosens, Correa, Bellanova, Asllani, Mkhitaryan, D’Ambrosio, Skriniar, Lukaku
