Rojo: It's Great To Be Back

Argentinian defender Marcos Rojo was hurt by Manchester United's midweek cup exit - but he's otherwise enjoying his return from injury...

How do you reflect on the cup tie against Middlesbrough?
It was a fairly tough game. They sat back and waited for us, defending together as a team, and in the first half it was very difficult to get in behind them, either through the middle or down either flank. In the second half we played a lot better and created a lot of chances, and it was the same in extra time, too: the best chances fell to us, but we couldn’t manage to convert any of them. So then it went to penalties, which are always a lottery, and unfortunately it wasn’t to be for us this time. It hurt a lot and we were still smarting afterwards because it’s an important competition and we wanted to go a lot further in it.

On the positive side, you kept a second clean sheet in a row. As a defender, do you enjoy those?
You enjoy keeping a clean sheet but at the same time you don’t enjoy not scoring a goal because football is about scoring goals and winning games. So coming off the back of two games on the trot without being on the mark does hurt and frustrate you a bit, but we are doing a good job at the back and defending well; we just need to turn the chances that we’re creating into goals.

Do you and the team feel a lot of pressure when you’re facing a lower-league side or is it just a different challenge compared to a Premier League game?
It is different, because of course all the pressure is on us. But then it’s a bit like that in every home game throughout the season; the onus is on us to take the initiative and look for the victory. Yet it’s accentuated when the team is from a lower league as I feel they come here to defend and hold on for any result they can get; if they win it’s great for them but a defeat is just what is expected anyway. The pressure is always on us but generally we deal with that and go all out to try to win the game.

Crystal Palace are the next opponents. They’ve lost their last three games after winning three in a row, so is it difficult to know what to expect from them?
It’s going to be a tough game down at their place. They will be strong and will try and take the game to us, but we need to go there ready to battle hard for the entire 90 minutes if we want to grab all three points.

They have a host of tricky wingers including Yannick Bolasie, Bakary Sako and former United player Wilfried Zaha, so you’re likely to be facing someone with pace and a few skills…
For sure! I’ve seen a few of their games and they are very skilful and above all very quick, so we are going to have to be on our guard and mark them tightly to deny them the space they need to play well.

What have you made of United’s start to the season and league position?
I think we’re doing OK so far. Maybe our form has dropped off a little in the last couple of games, but that can be expected when you are playing so many games one after another, every midweek. I think we’re fine; we are in a decent position in the Champions League and also right behind City in the league here at home. We have to maintain our good form and fight hard in every game to make sure we are in with a shout for the title at the end of the season.

Has the campaign turned out as you’d expected so far?
Yes, I think so. When you begin a new campaign you always hope to be right up there in the table, really contesting the title, so yes, I think we’re doing that quite well.

How much do you feel United can achieve this season?
I think we can be involved in the title race this season, and try to win it, which is very important for us. As I say, we’re doing OK up to now, but we have to keep this going right to the end of the season. In the Champions League it’s a similar story: we’re quite well set and getting through to the last 16 is in our own hands. But it’s a tough competition with some difficult teams, so first of all it’s about ensuring you get through the group stages and then try to take things game by game.

How much are you enjoying your football at the moment?
At first it was hard for me to begin to get back into the team, but I trained hard to be able to earn my place in the starting XI, so now it’s about enjoying my football now that I’m featuring and that’s exactly what I’m doing.