Moyes Relishes Second Leg

Manchester United manager David Moyes is looking forward to the second leg of the Capital One Cup semi-final against Sunderland, and is confident that his side’s fortunes will soon change.

The Reds suffered a 2-1 defeat in the first leg at the Stadium of Light on Tuesday, with a Ryan Giggs own goal and a penalty from Fabio Borini giving the Black Cats the advantage. But the manager is already relishing the chance to make amends when Gus Poyet’s side visit Old Trafford on Wednesday 22 January.

“I’ve been here before and done it before,” said Moyes. “I just sense that it’s on the verge of turning, we’re about to get a bit better. You need a little bit of good fortune to go for you, and it looks as if we’re not getting enough of that at the moment. I can sense in the dressing room that there’s an urge to fight our current position, and we’re looking forward to the second leg now.

“If you’re going to be in this job you’ve got to win, and the last few games I’ve not won. It’s part of football management. It’s never going to be an easy ride. To be the manager of Manchester United is a big challenge, whether it’s on the back of wins or defeats.”

Despite the result, the United boss was full of praise for both his players, and the thousands of fans who made the trip to the North East.

“Our performance was good without having the last bit. I’ve always been happy with how the players have responded. I thought they were good tonight apart from the opening period. It was always going to be a tough part of the game, the first part, so we’ve got a bit more to do in the second leg,” he added.

“Sunderland came out of the blocks as we expected, and I have to give them credit. They’ve done better tonight as well, but I thought that after the first 15 minutes, we bossed the game.

“Really, the big thing is how good the supporters were tonight. I need to say thanks to them all, the support was brilliant tonight; they backed both me and the team. They know we’re going through a difficult time, they probably haven’t seen it as bad as this for a long time, but I’m determined to put it right.

“Five thousand fans came up tonight and were fantastic throughout the game. I think they recognised how well their team had done for the most part of the game, apart from the free-kick and the opening 15 minutes. The way they supported me and the way they supported the club was nothing short of exceptional.”

Moyes also commented on two decisions by the match officials, which he felt cost his side.

“He [referee Andre Marriner] gave a free-kick for the first goal which I couldn’t believe. Maybe I’ve got to understand that’s what happens at Manchester United, but certainly not much is going our way. We looked the most likely to score, but how the referee gave a foul for Jonny Evans and [Steven] Fletcher challenging for the ball, I just don’t know.

“The linesman gives it [the penalty], but he can’t see through Patrice Evra. The referee is looking directly at it, he’s in a very good position, and he actually turned away when he [Adam Johnson] went down. Yet, the linesman who can’t see it gives the decision. I just think it’s incredible, especially when you think that we didn’t get a penalty against Tottenham [when Hugo Lloris challenged Ashley Young], so it’s hard to take.”