Czech Republic captain Marek Suchy insisted he was not guilty of deliberately injuring Henrikh Mkhitaryan on the day the Armenia playmaker returned to England with a problem that could rule him out of the Manchester derby.

Mkhitaryan will miss his country’s clash with Denmark today having sustained a thigh injury following a collision with Suchy in a friendly on Wednesday that earned the Czech defender a yellow card.

A statement released by the Armenian FA yesterday said such a problem would “usually require a week to 10 days to heal”, and United’s clash with Manchester City is now only seven days away.

Mkhitaryan suffered the injury when running straight into Suchy after knocking a pass beyond him and looking to sprint in behind, yet the Czech player stressed no blame should lay at his door.

“I think it was not some really hard challenge, he was a fast player and I was just standing there,” Suchy said.

“We hit each other and I hope he will be okay and it will not be so hard for him and he will not miss so many days.

“This is football and I will not think about it much more.”

Earlier in the day, Mkhitaryan had said on his official Twitter account: “My dear fans, I appreciate much that you worry about me, thank you!

“I’m now back in Manchester for treatment and hope to be fit very soon!”