Eric Bailly is on course to hand Jose Mourinho a much-needed boost at Manchester United by returning to action ahead of schedule next month following a knee ligament injury.

Bailly, 22, had been ruled out until the Christmas period by Mourinho after being injured during the 4-0 defeat against Chelsea at Stamford two weeks ago.

The loss of the Ivory Coast centre-half, a £30m summer signing from Villarreal, has proven to be a serious blow for United with England defender Chris Smalling also being forced onto the sidelines in recent weeks.

But it is understood that Bailly is making excellent progress in his rehabilitation and that the player is now hopeful of a return to fitness within the next month and potentially in time for the Premier League encounter with Tottenham Hotspur on December 11.

In Bailly’s absence, and with Smalling also unavailable, Mourinho has been forced to deploy two left-backs – Daley Blind and Marcos Rojo – at centre-half in a makeshift defence that is also currently without broken wrist victim Antonio Valencia and Phil Jones, who has only just returned to contention following a long-term injury lay-off.

The United manager is determined to add to his defensive options in January, with the Portuguese maintaining a strong interest in his fellow countryman, the Southampton centre-half Jose Fonte.

Fenerbahce vs Manchester United player ratings Show all 11 1 /11 Fenerbahce vs Manchester United player ratings Fenerbahce vs Manchester United player ratings David de Gea - 6 Caught off his line for opening goal. Put in some important saves to limit the damage. Getty Fenerbahce vs Manchester United player ratings Matteo Darmian - 4 Gave away possession with far too many careless passes. Fenerbahce vs Manchester United player ratings Daley Blind - 5 Put in some important challenges here and there but disappointing as a whole. Getty Fenerbahce vs Manchester United player ratings Marcos Rojo - 4 Poor defensive performance. Caught out on too many occasions. Out of his depth. Fenerbahce vs Manchester United player ratings Luke Shaw - 4 Ineffective down the flank. A number of his deliveries were well off the mark. Confused positioning too when on the front foot. Fenerbahce vs Manchester United player ratings Morgan Schneiderlin - 3 Not enough forward passing and was largely ineffective. Brought off at half-time. Fenerbahce vs Manchester United player ratings Ander Herrera - 5 Handed possession away in a number of dangerous positions. Threatened here and there going forward. Fenerbahce vs Manchester United player ratings Marcus Rashford - 6 Utilised his pace on occasion but ultimately struggled to impress the boss and was substituted early. Getty Fenerbahce vs Manchester United player ratings Paul Pogba - N/A Forced off through injury in opening 20 minutes. Fenerbahce vs Manchester United player ratings Anthony Martial - 6 Provided some clever, piercing passes at times. One of United's few players who looked interested. Getty Fenerbahce vs Manchester United player ratings Wayne Rooney - 6 Deployed higher up the pitch but struggled to deliver. Missed early goalscoring chance but sparkled in dying minutes of the match with wonder strike.

Mourinho had already planned to be without Bailly throughout January and early-February due to his international commitments with the Ivory Coast in the Africa Cup of Nations on Gabon.

However, with the initial prognosis suggesting the player would be out until late-December, the possibility had been raised of Bailly missing out on the Africa Cup of Nations in order to ensure he regains full fitness at Old Trafford.

A sooner-than-expected comeback with United could therefore prove a double-edged sword for Mourinho if Bailly proves his fitness in time for selection for the Ivory Coast, who travel to Gabon as the reigning African champions.

United, meanwhile, are assessing the fitness of Paul Pogba, who limped out of the Europa League defeat against Fenerbahce in Istanbul with a leg injury on Thursday evening.