European Debut Pleases Pereira

Andreas Pereira was naturally delighted to sample his first taste of UEFA Champions League football during Wednesday's 2-1 win over Wolfsburg and the young Brazilian is hungry for more opportunities in Europe's premier competition.

The Academy graduate stepped off the bench to replace Memphis during the second half of the vital comeback victory at Old Trafford in midweek, exactly a week after impressing with a goal-scoring display during his first competitive start in the Capital One Cup success over Ipswich Town.

Last season's Under-21s Player of the Year has been impressively unfazed by the step up to the first-team and admits he is now hoping to repay the faith shown in him by manager Louis van Gaal.

“I’m very happy that I can have my chance now and I’m very pleased that the manager has given me this opportunity," he told ManUtd.com. "I hope I can do well, as I am doing, and continue my form.

“I’m very pleased with the performance against Wolfsburg, I think it was really important for us to win and hopefully we can kick on from here.

“I think it’s very important for me also to play in a competition like this. I played my first 30 minutes in the Champions League and hopefully I can play more and more games now."

Notably, many have put Pereira's rise down to his level-headed attitude, something which was obvious in his analysis of the Reds' good form in recent weeks.

Victory over our German opponents leaves United in a stronger position in Group B, and although van Gaal's side also sit top of the Premier League, the winger stressed the importance of staying grounded.

“I think we’re very confident in the dressing room but we have to keep both feet on the floor and take every game as it comes," he added. "Hopefully we can win the next game against Arsenal now and continue from there. Every game is tough.

"Every game in the Champions League is obviously tough, as well as every game in the Premier League so we have to take each one on its own. We need to stay focused and continue to train hard."