Young Spreads His Wings

United’s newest centurion Ashley Young is back from injury and focused on regaining a first-team place - be it on the left wing, at left back or in his new wing-back role...

You made your 100th appearance for United in the FA Cup replay against Cambridge – how proud were you to reach that milestone?
It was a very proud moment. There are a lot of times in football that you have proud moments and reaching 100 games was brilliant. I only realised just before kick-off so it was nice to get on the pitch and get back out there [after injury].

What’s your stand-out memory from those 100 matches?
I’d have to say winning the Premier League title - it’s a feeling you can’t really explain. It’s everything that comes with it - things like the parade up and down Deansgate in the city centre, which was brilliant. It’s one of the things that I came here to achieve and to do it was fantastic. It’s something I’m determined to help the team achieve again.

How have you evolved as a player across that period? We’ve obviously seen you play in a number of different positions…
Yes that’s right. When I first came here I was a left winger but now I’ve played in quite a few positions. I think that’s how it is nowadays – players have to adapt and be able to play in different roles. I think the manager here expects you to be able to do that. I’m one of the more senior players in the squad now and in that role you want to help the younger lads. I’ve evolved in that way and I’m just enjoying my football.

How would you assess this season from a personal perspective?
I think it’s gone really well. Of course you always have that thing in your head that makes you want to do better. I’m my own worst critic – I want to play my best and I always try to do my best. Even when I’ve played well there is usually something that I think back to that I didn’t do right. I think this season has so far gone as well as it could have gone for me, bar the injuries. I’m happy about that and hopefully we can continue with good results as a team.

You’ve excelled in the wing-back position – did that positional switch almost give you a new lease of life?
I think you could say that. The manager said when he arrived he was going to look at all the players and make his judgements so I wanted to play well. I was pleased with how I did at the start but then I got the injury which is always disappointing. I’m back to full fitness now and hopefully I can stay injury-free and get back in the team.

How does a role in a midfield diamond compare to the wing-back position? We’ve also seen you at full-back…
Yeah I’ve played wing-back, full-back and in the diamond as well. The manager decides what formation he picks for every game and no matter if it’s a back three or a back four we all adjust and adapt. We obviously work on it in training leading up to the game and I think both formations have worked.

Do you have a preference or do you enjoy the variation?
I like the variation. I think there are a lot of players who just like to stick to one position, but for me I don’t mind as long as I’m in the team.

Looking at the league table, how would you assess the current state of play at the top?
When you look at the table now we know it’s going to be difficult to win the league but we have that never-say-die attitude, not just in games but throughout the whole season. The team spirit in training is fantastic and we always take that out onto the pitch in matches. We just have to concentrate on the games coming up and look to take three points from every one.

What ultimately do you think is going to decide the final positions?
I think it’ll change each week, so it won’t just be about the games between the sides around us in the table. They’ll be important of course, but every match will be. You can treat each game now as a cup final. We want to continue picking up wins and keep building momentum.

How are the players enjoying the challenge of fighting in two competitions?
If you look around the dressing room everyone is full of confidence. We’re all fighting for places and that competition is great to have. For a lot of the foreign players here they’ll have watched the FA Cup on TV and seen how big the competition is. There are a lot of us who haven’t won it and we want to change that.

What are the qualities required to keep the team’s performance level as high as possible in every game?
You don’t really need to say much about the team spirit because it’s always been fantastic and it gets better each day. The training side of things is very important. You have to keep that freshness around the squad which the manager and the fitness staff spend time looking at. As players you know your own body and we all have to make sure we’re fully fit and are producing performances which help get the team the points we need.

Has the manager reiterated any particular points to the players as we move towards the most important phase of the campaign?
Of course, he talks to us a lot. He knows how much the FA Cup means to everybody in England and to everyone at the club, and he knows how he wants to progress in the league as well. It’s going to be tough but as I said before we’ve got that team spirit that means we always believe we can be challenging come the end of the season.