Given there is quite a tight turnaround
between games, will you look to freshen up the team Tuesday?
I think now is too early to speak about that. I would wait to see how the players have recovered
tomorrow or Monday. Tomorrow they will train with the players that haven’t played or have only
played a couple of minutes today. I saw the game against Brentford on Friday and it’s a
very high-intensity team, more physical than Norwich played today. We need to be aware and
prepared for that different level of intensity. We have to wait and see. A few players are available
again. Luke Shaw, who was in the squad today, Wan-Bissaka will be available again on Tuesday,
and even Edi might be an option, so we have to wait and see. It’s too early
When you talk about intensity of the Norwich and
Brentford, why is it they’re not talking about your intensity? Because surely if you match
their intensity, your extra ability should see you win the game?
Yes, we were fully aware of how Norwich would play today. On the other hand, it’s a question of how
you react to that. The action of the team is vital, especially in away games. In the end,
we had a clean sheet, which is the most important thing, and we had another three points.
Although, last week, it was a home game against a Crystal Palace team that didn’t attack as
high and as intense as Norwich did today. We need to take the next steps and it’s
easier to take the next steps if you’re winning games. The second consecutive win
this season, the second clean sheet. Those are the things we can build on upon. As I said,
in defence, the full-backs, the centre-backs and the two number sixes did extremely well
and now we have to raise to the highest possible level that we play against the ball also.
You mentioned clean sheets there and you said they were one of your priorities
when you came to United. How do you address that? How do you improve the team in terms of being
hard to score goals against?
It can only be achieved as a whole team. It’s not only the back four, the two sixes and the
goalkeeper. The whole team has to defend in unison, together as a team. As I said, so far,
we have two clean sheets in the league. We won 1-0 today, away, in a difficult game.
We tend to call those games the ’30 games 1-0’. It wasn’t the nicest one. In the second half,
in my opinion, we just conceded too many corner kicks, too many free-kicks from
the side and therefore it was a game that could have gone into the other direction.
We needed a fantastic goalkeeper, a few headers in the centre of defence.
Anthony Martial wasn’t in the squad at Norwich, so can I check, is that a knee injury still? And,
his agent came out on the weekend saying that he wanted to look at opportunities
to leave the club in January. I just wondered about your thoughts on that…
Well, I don’t communicate with agents via the media or the press. The player hasn’t spoken with
me or with us about it. After the final training session before the Crystal Palace game, after
having trained with the team, he informed the doctor and the medical department that the pain on
his knee is too big. So, we have to wait and see, maybe he can train tomorrow but I have to speak to
the doctor first. To be honest, what his agent has said in the media is not that much of interest.
Just following up on that, will you now speak to Anthony and get his version
on what his agent has said?
No, because then I’d react to what the agent has said. It should be the
player. If a player wishes to go to another club, it should be the player who informs
either the board or myself, whoever. I have never spoken to a player via media or agents.