United Men Seek Derby Response

Manchester United make the short journey to Manchester City's Etihad Stadium for Sunday's derby, a game that will have huge repercussions in the battle for a top-four spot.

Louis van Gaal, Jesse Lingard and Chris Smalling have all spoken on MUTV ahead of the showdown, which gives United the chance to close the gap on the Blues to a single point in the table, if the Reds can pick up a crucial victory.

Following the disappointing Europa League exit to Liverpool, van Gaal and his players appreciate the importance of providing a positive response at the weekend with work to analyse Manuel Pellegrini's side under way.

LOUIS VAN GAAL

"[Is the derby do or die?] I think so, yes. We are now four points behind. We have to win, otherwise the gap gets bigger and bigger. The matches that you have to play are not so big. [If we lose], then it is seven points and have to play maybe eight matches which is very sharp to recover from. It would still be possible, but very difficult I think because West Ham United is also in front as well as City.

"I never feel that I am under pressure; I do what I have to do. Do you feel like you are under pressure? People put this question to me every week and it is not so nice.

"The players are already recovering, taking ice baths and so on. We cannot train in between. I don’t train [the players] already for two or three weeks. I train the substitutes and, because of this, Antonio Valencia can play 45 minutes tonight and that was the highest [number of minutes he could play]. I could not make the change in the first half [against Liverpool] because extra time was possible. I am always solving this kind of problem.


"What is my approach? Normally we play in the same style and try to press in a certain way. However, that is dependent on the opponents' qualities, as you saw against Liverpool.

"We have to disorganise City's defence. We know, for example, that [Nicolas] Otamendi and [Vincent] Kompany maybe cannot play so you would expect them usually to play with [Martin] Demichelis and [Eliaquim] Mangala, so we have to analyse that, and analyse City.

"I know how they play, of course, but we have to analyse them still. We shall, from this point, analyse City. I will sit down with my staff and discuss the game plan.

"It is dependable also on which players are fit to play. When you play the Liverpool match, so close to City, you have to wait and see which players are available and then that will impact on my game plan because some players may make me alter my style. It is not so easy to be a manager."

JESSE LINGARD

"Of course, any game is winnable. It’s going to be a tough game but as long as we’ve got the right game plan and the right tactics, and we can start with the tempo and energy that we showed against Liverpool, I don’t see why we can’t win the game.

"It means everything; it’s the same for all of the staff as well. To come up through the ranks playing Liverpool and City, they’re always massive games and ones you want to be a part of. Obviously this Sunday’s game is going to be another massive game for me to be a part of, and another ticked off my list. We’re going to go into the game with the right mindset, focused on the task in hand, and hopefully we’ll put that to good use.

"Coming up through the ranks, you’re just enjoying your football and seeing where it will take you. If you get the opportunity to finally play against the big teams and in the big games, it’s a dream fulfilled. Obviously, you want to go and win those games and put on a good performance for the fans and your family at home.

"I think they will leave us a lot of space in midfield, around the defensive midfield area, so if we can exploit that by getting our full-backs bombing down the wing and putting low crosses in, we’ve got a good chance. We’ve got to keep compact and stick to the game plan.

"I think the first 20 minutes of games is vital; we showed the other night that we dominated it, we won our fights and battles all over the pitch. That’s the most important thing but, obviously, you’ve got to keep a cool head, you don’t want people getting sent off in the early stages of a massive game – that will automatically put you on the back foot. You’ve got to keep your head, but if the ball is there to be won, you’ve got to win it."

CHRIS SMALLING

"Luckily, we've got another big game to get another big reaction. There's nothing like a derby to kick us on. We're going to want to make sure we go into that international break on a high and the only way we can close the gap on the top four is by beating somebody who's already in there. It's our time to step up."