LONDON • While the Old Trafford faithful are hopeful more tales can be sung about "the legend of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer" when Manchester United welcome Huddersfield in what will be his first home game tomorrow, Ashley Young is seeking to temper expectations despite their "crazy week".
The 45-year-old stand-in manager went back to basics at Cardiff on Saturday to provide an antidote to the misery of the Jose Mourinho era, as United scored five goals in an English Premier League game since Alex Ferguson's last match in May 2013.
But, while Solskjaer will field a similar attacking line-up at home to keep the "feel-good factor" going, Young has urged his teammates to "concentrate on what happens on the pitch, not off it".
He said: "We have lots of games coming up over the Christmas period and it is about recovering in the right way, and we just have to concentrate on each game coming up and not look too far ahead.
"You go out to do a job and go out and play football. That is what every single player in the squad has been doing and obviously, there has been a change of manager... A lot of the press will talk about us, but Huddersfield is our focus."
The wing-back admitted that Solskjaer's positive demeanour had been a refreshing change to the sullen manner often exhibited by Mourinho.
He joked: "I don't think he has stopped smiling. He was like that as a player, he always has a smile on his face and that can reflect down on to the team which is a good thing."
United captain Antonio Valencia also felt the mood had lifted around the club.
Despite having been left out of the match-day squad in Wales, the defender, who has made only four league appearances this term after being ostracised by Mourinho, remains convinced that under Solskjaer's watch, a top-four place is still within their grasp. The Red Devils are eight points adrift of fourth-placed Chelsea.
He said: "Nobody is giving up at all. You know there is half a season left to play so it's all about working hard, battling and playing well.
"We know we have got the quality within the squad to be able to do that. The main thing is to get everyone together after Christmas and it is a great fact we don't have to travel as it's at our doorstep. Playing in front of our fans is always a special occasion.
"We are getting the chance to make them happy and, hopefully, (we can) put any recent bad results behind us to get into good form again."
With the Terriers mired in the relegation zone after five league defeats on the trot, United have an opportunity to close the gap and Nemanja Matic believes they can put David Wagner's men to the sword by following Solskjaer's mantra of "more forward play".
However, pundit and ex-United player Gary Neville has urged caution as one swallow does not make a summer, insisting it was too early to make a judgment call on the Norwegian's managerial credentials.
Speaking on his own podcast, the former United defender said: "There was an immediate bounce and impact from Ole, however it was Cardiff and we need to see if they can do it over six months."
MAN UNITED V HUDDERSFIELD
Singtel TV Ch103 & StarHub Ch228, tomorrow, 11pm
Cesar Luis Menotti Named Director Of Argentina National Teams
Angel Di Maria scored a sumptuous free-kick and Kylian Mbappe was also on target as Paris Saint-Germain continued their relentless march towards another French title by hammering Montpellier 5-1 on Wednesday.
Draxler on Cavani, Neymar & Mbappe: They have big - goal.com
And, as confirmed in an official FA statement a short time ago, the Tottenham boss' actions have this evening seen him hit with an improper conduct charge: 'Mauricio Pochettino has been
However Pochettino went on to distance himself from the rumours, more or less re-affirming his commitment to Spurs by saying: "I have just signed a long contract with Tottenham and I am very happy here." There was rumour that Pochettino's contract with Spurs included a clause that would allow him to leave in the instance of an offer from
Pochettino happy at Spurs but would `have to listen´ to
To this end, Dudley has turned the theatre into a gigantic aviary. This gloomy Greek earns little of our sympathy. Kourtney Kardashian wears all-black to Sunday Service where son Reign and
Daylight Dies - Lost to the Living Review - Thrashpit.com
LONDON (AP) — Norwich is returning to the English Premier League after a three-year absence, and Sheffield United is likely to be promoted, too.. Norwich, from eastern England, clinched one of
Norwich promoted to EPL after 3-year absence
Small Cities Feel the Clock Ticking on Opportunity Zones which has an $11 million revolving loan fund to help revitalize "core urban" areas. Oscar is Next
TIN - Ticking - YouTube
Football: Solskjaer praises buccaneering Man United players
Hack Kahoot Quizes and answers with our advanced free bot that can spam the game in seconds
Kahoot! - Wikipedia
Ex-FAS gen sec Lee withdraws from AFC exco contest. Related Articles. 1 min ago. 0 .
Zainudin bin Nordin, Member of the Bishan-Toa Payoh Group
Soccer: Parris and White strike to give England victory over Scotland June 9, 2019 Soccer Football - Women's World Cup - Group D - England v Scotland - Allianz Riviera, Nice, France - June 9, 2019 England's Ellen White celebrates scoring their second goal REUTERS/Eric Gaillard
Soccer: Parris and White strike to give England victory over
Sarri is expected to return to a back four this coming season as he seeks to create an attack-minded side based around possession of the ball, movement through the thirds of the pitch and the technical quality of his players on the ball. Read More. Maurizio Sarri hails 'wonderful player' Jorginho and issues update on Alvaro Morata's future
England have moved up six places to sixth in the latest FIFA world rankings. The Three Lions' brilliant run to the World Cup semi-finals in Russia has seen the nation rise to their highest
FIFA World Rankings - Wikipedia
Five things we learnt from the Premier League this weekend
0 comments:
Post a Comment