Marcus Rashford and Romelu Lukaku can be strike partners at Manchester United, says Jose Mourinho

Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho says he could deploy Marcus Rashford and new signing Romelu Lukaku alongside each other in attack in the 2017/18 season.

Speaking after United's 5-2 win over LA Galaxy in a pre-season friendly, Mourinho praised Lukaku's performance on his debut for the Red Devils even though he was unable to find the net.

The Belgium international came on as a substitute for Rashford in the second half at the Stubhub Center to make his first appearance for United since his £75m ($98m) move from Everton.

He missed a gilt-edged chance to open his account for his new club four minutes after coming on and saw another effort go wide of goal.

Nonetheless, Mourinho was wholesome in his praise for Lukaku and explained that the 24-year-old would offer United a different dimension in attack compared to Wayne Rooney, who has moved in the opposite direction to Everton.

"He didn't score goals, but he played better than the ones who did score goals," he was quoted as saying by the Daily Mail.

"A good thing for me today is he's a team player and was not worried about himself. He was worried about the improvement of the team.

"[Rooney and Lukaku] are incomparable. Rooney, for us, was not a striker. Lukaku is more of a target man with his back to the opponents. It's a point of attack to everyone who has the ball in defensive lines. He's really fast."

Rashford scored a brace in the win over Galaxy and Mourinho said the striker had improved significantly over the past year.

"Today he was in a different team than Lukaku. We will also try both in the same team, which I think can also work," the Portuguese tactician stated.

"Last season everyone was saying it would be difficult for me to play Marcus, but he was one of the top in appearances for the team. He's learning a lot, a great professional, great attitude."