Lingard Relishes Rams Return

Jesse Lingard spoke to MUTV ahead of the FA Cup fourth-round tie at Derby County, which represents a return to the iPro Stadium for the former Rams loanee...

It’s Derby next on Friday where you spent some time on loan – what are your memories of that spell?
It was a good time. The lads were really good as well and welcomed me with open arms. I played a few games and scored some goals. The fans were amazing with me as well. It will bring back a lot of memories.

Are there are any players we should particularly look out for?
They are all very good technically. They’ve got Tom Ince scoring goals and he comes in a lot on his left foot so we have to be wary of that. The midfield of [Jacob] Butterfield and [Bradley] Johnson is very stable so they’ll be hard to break down. But it’ll be an enjoyable game.

Will the 4-1 defeat to Burnley have any effect on them?
You’ve got to take each game as it comes and forget about the last match, just concentrate on the next game ahead. It’s like us. We had a defeat as well but we’re concentrating on the Derby game, to get that win and it will be a massive confidence booster for us.

After the high of winning at Anfield, it was disappointing to come back down to earth against Southampton, although it's probably fair to say we didn't deserve to lose…
There weren’t that many chances in the game for each team, they got the break at the end with the Charlie Austin header, which was disappointing.

Is it about bouncing back? We’ve proved we can be tight defensively but need to be capable of creating more chances…
Definitely, we’ve got the team spirit and the character in the dressing room to bounce back after any defeat really. We have players who can win games and defenders who can keep clean sheets every game. We need to put the overall package together and work together.

Will the away fans create a special atmosphere and one all the players will enjoy?
Of course, the FA Cup is always a great competition to be involved in and especially for me in this match, being away to a team I used to play for. It’s a massive buzz for me and hopefully I’ll score as well.

You won the FA Youth Cup with United so how much of a dream would it be to go all the way in the senior competition?
Definitely, it’s a massive competition and, as a team, we’re always looking to win it.

You mentioned the stable midfield pairing. Do you think Derby will keep things tight like Sheffield United did in the previous round?
To be fair, I’m not sure. They probably will try to attack us as well because they’re not going to sit back – they’ll have the home fans behind them and are an attacking team anyway. They are high up in the Championship and can score goals so I don’t see why they won’t attack us.

Derby are similar to Leicester in terms of their location and size of club so do you think they can aspire to achieve similar success?
Leicester are definitely an example for all teams in the Championship, especially the top four teams, because anything can happen. You can fulfil your dreams and play in the Premier League.

You spent time at Leicester too so can you compare the clubs?
They both like playing football and are attack minded. It’s just small little details in the end that got Leicester where they are. Like I said, I don’t see why Derby can’t do it too.

You operated in a wing-back role against Southampton – it’s somewhere you’ve played before…
I played there in pre-season – and on my debut when I got injured [against Swansea] – so you’ve always got to adapt. I’ve been playing left and right and then, to go to wing-back, you’ve got to adapt really quickly. But I was trying to attack as much as you can to play as a right-winger but obviously you’ve got to do your defensive duties as well.

The onus is especially on you to attack the defenders usually so was it a different mindset?
With the wing-back role, it’s a bit of both. You’ve still got to get back into shape and be line with the rest of the back four when we’re defending. It’s a different role and is something you’ve got to get used to if the manager puts you there.

The FA Cup is special to the club – especially to some of the slightly older fans who remember the two sweet successes in the 1980s. How much would it mean to go all the way?
We’ve not won it for a long time and I think this year could be our year to try to win it. I don’t see why we can’t go all the way. We’ve got the team and the team spirit to do that so I don’t see why not.