Morgan: We Showed Fighting Spirit

Morgan Schneiderlin has called on his Manchester United team-mates to replicate the desire shown during Sunday's 3-2 win against Arsenal in the next game against Watford.

The French midfielder played in a youthful side as Marcus Rashford's brace and Ander Herrera's second-half strike earned the Reds an important three points at Old Trafford. Schneiderlin was naturally delighted to play his part in the victory and praised the determination of his team-mates after the game.

"It was just a question of fighting, playing for the fans and playing for the badge, because the results aren’t what we expected over the last few months," he told MUTV.

"Everyone knew when they saw the team-sheet that we have a very young team. So we knew that we had to be at our best and be very aggressive. There are a lot of points to take, but football is very quick so we now need to make sure that we win against Watford.

"We’ve seen this season all the teams above slip up and all the teams have some bad results. So it is up to us to exploit that." Louis van Gaal singled out Schneiderlin’s midweek performance against Midtjylland as his best display of the season and the Frenchman acknowledges he must remain focused on maintaining this form.

"I try to do my best," he added. "I had good spells before, in October and November, and then I didn’t play as much. But for me it’s an honour to walk out, to keep going and of course now I feel a bit better. It was a case of getting used to this. I’m feeling good and I need to carry on; hopefully I will carry on like this.

"You have to show that [desire] week in and week out, but even more so when we have a lot of injuries and a lot of young players that are not known. Everyone wants to show that they deserve a place at Manchester United and everyone wants to fight for the badge.

"We had a big discussion a few weeks ago, saying the results weren’t what we expect, but also that it’s not only about us. It is about the whole town, about the whole football club. So we need to make sure we place Manchester United in the right place."

Youngster Rashford ended a memorable week with another two-goal display and Schneiderlin believes the 18-year-old has a bright future ahead at the club.

"It is amazing for him," he said. "He reminds me a bit of Anthony [Martial], the way that he started, scoring against Liverpool and against Southampton. It’s the same for Marcus; he is a very good player.

"He didn’t train [with the first team] many times, but when he did train we could see straight away that he had this quality. On Wednesday he showed it and he showed it again [on Sunday]. I hope he continues like that, because he is an exciting prospect for the football club."