Beckham: I'll always love to watch United

David Beckham has spoken passionately about his immovable support of Manchester United and explained he will always love to watch the mighty Reds in action.

The 44-year-old football icon famously graduated from our world-class Academy as part of the fabled Class of ’92 before enjoying nine full seasons in the first team at Old Trafford.

Becks made 394 senior appearances in total, scored 85 goals and won 12 trophies during his decorated playing career at United, all of which was managed by the great Sir Alex Ferguson.

David believes it is only natural that the team has struggled since our former Scottish boss retired in 2013, when a number of legendary players also bowed out around the same time, yet he remains an avid supporter and feels the good times are coming back with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer at the helm.

“I think when you're a club as big as Manchester United and you've had the amount of success that we had, there was always going to be a period where other clubs have some success,” Becks explained to Sky Sports, at the launch of his Major League Soccer franchise, Inter Miami.

“When that success is being had by City or Liverpool it's always going to be talked about. There was always going to be a transition period, especially when Alex Ferguson stepped down. You had David Gill working at the club too and the players who stopped playing, Giggsy, Scholesy and the Nevs, they all stopped playing, so there was always going to be a period when they weren't as successful.

“Is it hard to watch them now? No, because I'm a real Manchester United fan and whatever the situation, I love watching them play. But let's hope it doesn't last for too much longer that we go without trophies because we are one of the biggest clubs in the world and not many clubs have that tradition.”

On the subject of Solskjaer’s reign as United manager, Beckham heaped praise on his former team-mate and explained how the Norwegian has clearly picked up a defining trait of Sir Alex’s.

“I think he's doing a good job,” David said of Ole. “The fact that he's stepped in and stepped up, and that he continues to be positive about players, he's got that from the boss.

“He would never criticise a player from his club and Ole has been exactly the same. He's still learning but he will protect his players and protect Manchester United. All of the fans will be behind him because he's a great person and because of what he's done for Manchester United over the years.”

Reds discover Europa League last-16 opponents

Manchester United have been drawn to play Austrian side LASK in the last 16 of the Europa League.

The Reds progressed to the second knock-out phase after eliminating Club Brugge over two legs, courtesy of a 6-1 aggregate scoreline.

Our reward for that emphatic victory is a two-legged tie against the Linz outfit, following the draw at UEFA’s Nyon headquarters on Friday afternoon.

Scroll down to find out more about the draw and the full list of the last-16 fixtures…

MORE ON LINZ

LASK finished second in the Austrian Bundesliga last term and, in 1965, became the first club from outside of Vienna to lift the domestic title. The Black and Whites are managed by former Crystal Palace and Bayern Munich defender Valerien Ismael and their squad is made up almost entirely of Austrian players. In fact, LASK only have four first-team representatives from other nations. To get to the last 16, Linz finished top of a group that included PSV Eindhoven, Rosenberg and Sporting Lisbon, and eliminated AZ Alkmaar - who we played during the group stage - by an aggregate score of 3-1. LASK are currently top of the Austrian Bundlesliga and are three points clear of second-place Red Bull Salzburg. Our last-16 opponents also play their home games in Europe at the 14,000-capacity Linzer Stadion, but host league matches at the Waldstadion.

WHEN DO THE TIES TAKE PLACE?

Like the last 32, the fixtures for the round of 16 are spaced a week apart. The first leg will take place in Austria on 12 March at 17:55 GMT, with the home fixture set to be staged at 20:00 GMT on 19 March.

WHAT THE FANS WANTED

We asked supporters who they wanted to play in the next round, via our Official App, and it seems they were keen on a reunion with former Reds Ashley Young and Romelu Lukaku. Inter Milan topped the poll with 17 per cent of the vote, followed by our actual opponents LASK Linz in second (16 per cent) while Rangers were third with 15 per cent.

OUR RECORD AGAINST AUSTRIAN SIDES

The Reds have played eight games against clubs from Austria and have won seven of those clashes and drawn once. We’ve previously locked horns with Rapid Vienna and Sturm Graz (four times each), meaning our double header against LASK will see us play our third Austrian team. We last met a team from Austria in 2001, when we beat Sturm Graz 3-0 at Old Trafford. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has also scored for the Reds against Austrian opposition - he netted in a 2-0 triumph over Rapid Vienna in 1996 and five years later during a 2-1 win against Sturm Graz.

THE DRAW IN FULL

Istanbul Basaksehir v Copenhagen
Olympiacos v Wolverhampton Wanderers
Rangers v Bayer Leverkusen
Wolfsburg v Shakhtar Donetsk
Inter Milan v Getafe
Sevilla v Roma
Red Bull Salzburg/Eintracht Frankfurt* v Basel
LASK v UNITED
* Second leg due to be played on Friday 28 February.

Solskjaer: No repeat of last year's Goodison trip

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has vowed that Manchester United will not repeat the “lowest point” of his Old Trafford managerial reign when the Reds visit Everton on Sunday in the Premier League.

Last April, United were beaten 4-0 at Goodison Park and the display prompted the boss to apologise to the travelling supporters afterwards. Solskjaer is confident that dark day is a thing of the past and he promises his new-look United side will be up for the fight on Merseyside.

The memory is a bitter one for the manager but also something of a turning point in his United rebuild.

“That was the lowest I have been,“ he conceded. ”We know that, we remember that it was just a capitulation.

“We had absolutely nothing about us, even though all the goals were counter-attacks from set-plays, long balls from throw-ins. But everything you didn’t want to see, we saw in that game.

“Everton, at home, they are hard to play against with the two up front. With the strikers, they put balls into the box, we knew what we were up against so I’m 100 per cent sure we will put a better performance up.

“I can, with hand on heart, 100 per cent say these boys will never give in, and never give up like that team did. These are the boys we want to build the next team around.”

The heavy defeat at Goodison confirmed Solskjaer’s thoughts that he had to reconstruct the Reds.

“That was the day, well the lowest, but I knew probably before then,“ he added. ”But that was when one or two had their last chance more or less. But we had to get to the summer first.

“We knew when we made the decisions we did in the summer that it would take time. As I’ve said a few times, Rome wasn’t built in a day. But the culture, the attitude, the fitness, the camaraderie, the spirit and maybe even the understanding between players have improved.

“We have missed that box-opener that Bruno [Fernandes] is proving to be now. He is a big, big boost for us.

“He loves football, he wants to be out there and wants to be better. I tried to send him inside [after being substituted against Brugge] because it was cold but he said ‘no, I want to watch.’ He just loves football. He’ll know everything about football. He is one of those old-school boys where football is everything for him.”

The arrival of Fernandes has provided one of the key pieces of the new jigsaw but the full picture is not yet completed.

“There were one or two pieces missing and we still know we miss one or two, to be where we want to be. It is a work in progress,” said the boss.

“Kieran [McKenna] and Michael [Carrick] are fantastic on the training ground, I have to say, and the boys are willing to learn. And now we have more and more fit players.”

United were fast and clinical against Club Brugge as they demolished the Belgians 5-0 on the night in the Europa League second-leg tie at Old Trafford.

“That is the Manchester United the fans want to see, I think,“ he said. ”There are loads of movements, combinations, one and two touch, runs into the box, attempts. We still think we have to be that type of team.

“We’ve also had six clean sheets in the last seven matches and that is not bad. It is a foundation to build on like the Bruces, Pallisters and Schmeichels.”

Team news: Will Martial be fit for the Everton trip?

Manchester United are waiting on the fitness of Anthony Martial, as we prepare to face Everton at Goodison Park on Sunday.

The French striker was absent from Thursday’s 5-0 win over Club Brugge in the Europa League, with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer revealing that our no.9 had picked up a thigh injury during a training session on Wednesday.

“He went off [during] training yesterday and had treatment,” said Solskjaer, at his post-match press conference.

“He reported this morning and had a fitness test. It’s not his hamstring, it’s his thigh, in and around the knee.“

Ole admitted the extent of the injury would not be known until Martial undergoes a scan on Friday.

If the 15-goal forward does miss out on the trip to Merseyside, the Norwegian expects Odion Ighalo to step up to the plate again, after scoring in his first start against Brugge.

“Odion has definitely shown what type of a striker he is. He will be ready for Sunday,” Solskjaer added.

Long-term absentees Paul Pogba, Marcus Rashford and Lee Grant remain on the sidelines for Sunday's 14:00 GMT kick-off.

Solskjaer also said earlier in the week that, although they are once again training with the first team, returning pair Axel Tuanzebe and Tim Fosu-Mensah will need some game time with the Under-23s in order to boost their match fitness.

EVERTON TEAM NEWS

French left-back Lucas Digne (muscle strain) and winger Theo Walcott (knee) are doubts for Sunday's match, having both missed last weekend's 3-2 defeat to Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.

Although midfielder Andre Gomes has returned from the leg fracture he suffered back in November, and is in contention to start, fellow midfielder Jean-Philippe Gbamin is still a long-term absentee after undergoing surgery on a thigh injury. The Ivorian has only played once for the Toffees since signing from Mainz in the summer.

Scholes: Fernandes looks like a special talent

Manchester United legend Paul Scholes does not often get carried away, yet he cannot help but feel excited by the quality that January signing Bruno Fernandes is bringing to the squad.

The Portuguese playmaker was signed from Sporting Lisbon just under a month ago and has already made a big impact, scoring two goals, registering two assists and winning three Man-of-the-Match awards.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has heaped praise on his performances and the players are all in agreement that the no.18 is something special, while supporters are constantly chanting his name at matches.

That was especially noticeable at Old Trafford on Thursday night, when Bruno’s name bellowed around the stadium as United turned on the style to beat Club Brugge 5-0 in the Europa League.

Scholes was at the Theatre of Dreams in his role as a BT Sport pundit and, as arguably the finest passer in the club’s history, he was perfectly placed to pass comment on the man who is wearing his old shirt.

“He looks a special talent and looks like he can be a hero of the fans as well,” said Paul. “He has got the right name for it, with the song and stuff. But then you think of Eric Cantona and Wayne Rooney, these people who are idolised by the fans, and you hope that in the future he can become as good as them.”

Scholes is widely regarded as one of the most gifted and intelligent players in the Reds' illustrious history, with some of the most iconic names in world football credited as members of his fan club.

A huge part of the midfielder’s craftsmanship on the pitch was his complete awareness of those around him and, as he explained on Thursday night, Fernandes appears to have that same gift.

“Awareness was drummed into me by Eric Harrison,” said Scholes, referencing the late coach who educated him in United's youth system.

“In that position, whether you are a number 10, a number eight, all of the numbers you give, I don't care about all of the numbers, if you are playing in that position then you need to know where everyone is on the pitch. Bruno has got that. He has got everything sorted before the ball gets to him and it makes everything quicker. It is difficult to defend against.”

While assessing the impact that Fernandes is making on Solskjaer’s young and improving United side, Scholes explained how the diminutive Portuguese could take the club to the next level.

“Do you know what, sometimes it can take just one player to make a team click and he looks like that player,” said the club legend. “We knew there were good players there, but I think this player will make those around him look better.

“When you look at the great teams, look at City in the last eight or nine years with David Silva, he has made them play football and makes good players around him, he feeds them and just makes the team tick. Kevin De Bruyne is taking that mantle over now with City.

“When you think of all of the great teams here, with Cantona playing in that number 10 role, making the team play, then Teddy Sheringham doing it, Dwight Yorke to a certain degree as well. All of these great teams have a great link between the midfield and attack.

“Look, it is early days and we don't want to get too carried away, it was Brugge at home. But to me, he [Fernandes] just looks like the type of player who can knit the full attack of a team together.”

Two-goal Fred wins Man-of-the-Match award

Fred capped off a superb individual evening by being voted Man of the Match after Manchester United’s 5-0 win over Club Brugge in the Europa League.

The Brazilian netted two late goals and provided an assist for fellow midfield man Scott McTominay, as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side coasted into the last 16, prevailing 6-1 on aggregate.

The 26-year-old’s brace – only his second and third goals for the Reds, after an effort against Wolves in September 2018 – secured him 40 per cent of your vote in our Official App.

That was just a single percentage point more than Bruno Fernandes, who opened the scoring from the spot on 27 minutes before helping craft Odion Ighalo’s first for the club with a sumptuous lob to Juan Mata, who squared to the Nigerian.

McTominay and Mata came joint-third in the voting, with six per cent each.

Getting on the scoresheet again for United has been a long time coming for Fred, with the Brazilian drawing a blank in each of his last 53 matches in a red shirt.

Even Ole Gunnar Solskjaer expressed his surprise at the former Shakhtar Donetsk man’s new-found sharpness in front of goal, revealing it was something the pair had joked about privately.

“Fred, I wasn’t sure if I was going to be alive for the next time he was going to score, he’s had so many attempts,” the manager told reporters.

“[He scored] one with his right and one with his left. It’s been an on-going joke between the two of us of course, but he got the goals and I’m very pleased for him.”

Tahith Chong, who set Fred up for his second goal, also said how delighted he was for his team-mate.

“It’s amazing for him to get a goal as he does a very good job in midfield, winning the ball and playing it forward,” Chong said.

“For him to get two goals is amazing.”

Ighalo's mixed emotions from first United goal

Odion Ighalo has dedicated his first Manchester United goal to his late sister, who sadly passed away six weeks before his dream move to Old Trafford.

The 30-year-old striker, who is currently on loan from Chinese Super League side Shanghai Greenland Shenhua, opened his Reds goal account when he scored our second in the 5-0 Europa League triumph over Club Brugge.

After scoring, Ighalo unveiled a T-shirt carrying a picture of his beloved sibling in a bitter-sweet moment for the Nigerian.

“The T-shirt is for my late sister,“ Odion told us after the game. “I lost my sister in December. She is very dear to me.

“She was a good United fan too. We hoped for this moment but, now I am at United, she is not here to see what is going on. It is emotional for me. I have promised myself that every goal I score, I will dedicate it to her. She is up there watching me.”

Despite the sadness behind marking his first United goal, Ighalo was also delighted to get on the scoresheet in his first start following a run of three substitute appearances.

“It feels great to score because this is what I have longed for,” he said. “Now, it is a dream come true for me.

“I dreamed of this from when I was small, when I was young. Playing for the team and scoring goals means a lot to me. I am going to cherish this moment for all the days of my life.

“Before the game, they all sent me messages [from Nigeria]. They have been waiting for my first goal for United. They have been telling me I am close, I am close, I am close and said hopefully it would be today.

“So I’ve got a goal and I can’t look at my phone now because I have got hundreds of messages from Nigeria, from everywhere, congratulating me. I am very happy for that.

“I am enjoying it here. The lads are great and have helped me settle down so easily, so I am very happy for that.”

United await the last-16 draw on Friday as the Reds continue on a road that leads to the Europa League final in Gdansk, Poland, on 27 May.

However, Ighalo isn’t looking too far ahead. “Everything is possible in football but I want to take it step by step,” he said.

“The big thing now is Everton away on Sunday and then, after that, we go to the next game. We go like that.”

Talking Points: United v Club Brugge

Manchester United put Club Brugge to the sword on Thursday night, with a win which secured our spot in the last 16 of the Europa League, courtesy of a 6-1 aggregate triumph.

Bruno Fernandes, Odion Ighalo, Scott McTominay and Fred (2) were all on the scoresheet for the Reds, and they dominated the post-match discussion at Old Trafford…

REDS BAG FIVE

On Thursday, United won by a five-goal margin in a European game for the first time since the Champions League romp at Bayer Leverkusen in 2013. The last time Old Trafford witnessed us hitting the net as many times was almost exactly four years ago, when we beat Midtjylland in the same competition. The Reds dominated proceedings against Brugge from start to finish and could have come away with even more goals - in fact, we registered 28 shots on the opposition goal, 10 of which were on target.

THE LAST 16 AWAITS

Victory on Thursday means we’ve progressed to the last 16 of the Europa League for the fourth time in our history, since its rebranding in 2009/10 from the UEFA Cup. Also in the next round are fellow Premier League side Wolverhampton Wanderers, along with Scottish club Rangers, while experienced European outfits Inter Milan, Sevilla and Roma are in the hat for the last-16 draw. Arsenal crashed out to a late goal by Olympiacos and Celtic lost to FC Copenhagen.

IGHALO OFF THE MARK

Before Thursday, Ighalo hadn’t started a match since 1 December, but you certainly couldn’t tell. The striker looked sharp at Old Trafford and physically imposing - several times he easily held off a Brugge defender, before turning and either shooting or passing to a team-mate. His impressive display was rewarded with a thoroughly deserved goal midway through the first half. The Nigerian anticipated Juan Mata’s pass across the box and poked it past Simon Mignolet, to the delight of the majority inside the Theatre of Dreams.

BRUNO PULLS THE STRINGS

Much was made of Bruno’s excellent showing last weekend, but, against Brugge, the midfielder was, if anything, even better. The Portugal international’s ability to link attack and midfield was great and, throughout the night, he repeatedly slipped through-balls into the opposition box. Bruno also regularly dropped deep during the game and sprayed passes into the final third. Like during Sunday’s 3-0 victory against Watford, Bruno once again got things going from the penalty spot. His spot-kick was slipped perfectly into the corner and, in doing so, he became the first Portuguese player to net in consecutive United games since Nani in 2012.

ANOTHER CLEAN SHEET

Sergio Romero had one of his quieter nights in between the sticks and actually didn’t face a single shot on target. That means, the Reds emerged with another clean sheet, our sixth in the last seven games. The only player to find the back of the net against United in the last month was Emmanuel Denis, in the first leg of our last-32 clash.

FRED IN THE GOALS

Fred has been one of the Reds’ most consistent players this season, but one thing that has been lacking in his game is goals and assists. However, our no.17 went about remedying that on Thursday and netted only his second and third goals for United. For his first of the night, Fred was teed-up by Jesse Lingard in the 82nd minute, before curling one in from just outside the area in injury-time, which was actually United’s last touch in the game. On top of this, Fred set up Scott McTominay for his goal just before the break and linked well with Bruno in the centre of the park throughout the night.

Solskjaer reacts to five-goal victory

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has provided his reaction to Manchester United's 5-0 victory over Club Brugge in the Europa League round of 16.

The Reds clinched a 6-1 aggregate triumph to take our place in Friday's draw, with Bruno Fernandes, Odion Ighalo, Scott McTominay and a double by Fred doing the damage after Simon Deli was sent off for a blatant handball.

Ole spoke to MUTV, BT Sport and at his post-match press conference to discuss the key points after the home crowd enjoyed seeing five Reds goals for the first time since the victory over Midtjylland in the same competition, almost four years to the day.

MUCH TO ADMIRE

“Well, the football we played at times, in the first half especially, I thought how we started the game was with great intent and tempo in our game. Combination play, good rhythm in our play and some very nice goals.”

IN THE GROOVE

“We’re not conceding goals, that’s a good start. Today, I thought we looked like we wanted to play attacking football, have combination play. We had players with swagger, confidence, a smile on their faces and I think the new lads have brought that in as well.”

BEST FIRST HALF OF THE SEASON?

“Well, it’s difficult to say. I think we created a few chances against [Manchester] City away. We did play some exciting football: one and two-touch combinations and third-man runs. More movement and confidence in our play. When we are 1-0 up and they’ve got a man sent off, it helps. You still play against as many players in and around the box. I thought our imagination there was good.”

DELI'S RED CARD

“I don’t know why the boy did it. That is not a fair attempt to stop a goalscoring opportunity. We’re lucky that he makes that decision and he makes it an easier game for us.”

IGHALO A NATURAL STRIKER

“I think, as a fellow striker myself, I know important that first goal is and he’s been close a couple of times. You can see he sniffs goals, he wants to be there, where it sometimes hurts. That goal, he was sharp in his head and, as that ball is played over to Juan, he spins and was on the six-yard line when Juan puts it there. That’s a natural striker.”

HAPPY FOR EVERYONE

“I think there are loads of players out there who have improved. Scotty is back and I think he’s improved. Fred, I wasn’t sure if I was going to be alive for the next time he was going to score, he’s had so many attempts! One with his right and one with his left. It’s been an on-going joke between us, of course, but he got those goals and I’m very pleased for him.”

Europa League: Man. United 5 Club Brugge 0 (Aggregate: 6:1)

Manchester United clinically steamrollered Club Brugge 5-0 at Old Trafford to send us through to the last 16 of the Europa League.

First-half goals from Bruno Fernandes, with his second penalty in five days, a first United strike for Odion Ighalo and a comeback goal for Scott McTominay swept aside the Belgians.

Brugge had Simon Deli sent off for the handball that gave Bruno his spot-kick and the Reds took full advantage of the extra man.

Fred scored twice in the second half to complete the rout, his first goals of the season, as United strolled to a 6-1 aggregate win.

It was a hectic and entertaining start to the second leg with both United and Brugge posting early goal threats.

Juan Mata was the first to fire on target with a fierce left-foot drive saved by ex-Liverpool goalkeeper Simon Mignolet.

The visitors' response was to storm towards the other end and United’s defence looked at sea but David Okereke couldn’t finish and Luke Shaw cleared the danger.

Inevitably, new crowd favourite Fernandes was prominent, hitting a post, via a touch by Mignolet, and having another shot also saved. Sandwiched between the Portuguese star’s chances, Mats Rits squandered another gilt-edged opening for Brugge when lofting over from Sergio Romero's punch.

All that before 15 minutes was on the clock!

United went ahead after a delayed penalty. Daniel James’s shot was spectacularly saved by defender Simon Deli, who launched himself at the effort to get a hand to it, clearly not realising Mignolet was behind him, mirroring his leap.

Referee Serdar Gozubuyuk red-carded Deli but then, as Fernandes steadied himself for the spot-kick, the official went over to review the sending off on the pitchside monitor. His decision stood but it was four minutes from the initial award before Fernandes finally struck home after his trademark stroll-and-skip style after 22 minutes.

Fernandes was inevitably also involved in United’s second as he picked out Mata, who squared the ball for Ighalo to open his United goal account from six yards out in the 34th minute. The Nigerian loan star almost got his second, four minutes later, but Mignolet saved well.

Scott McTominay, making his first start since his Boxing Day injury, completed a clinical half for the Reds as he side-footed in the third after 41 minutes from the edge of the area, wrong-footing Mignoley after Fred's square ball created the opening.

There was understandably a tail off in the action in the second half as the merciless face of the Reds faded and allowed 10-man Brugge to perform a damage-limitation job for a spell.

The manager took the opportunity to give some players a breather with James going off at half-time for Tahith Chong and, later, scorers Fernandes and McTominay were relieved of their duty by Jesse Lingard and Mason Greenwood.

With nine minutes remaining, sub Lingard squared for Fred to slot home with a simple finish, taken in his stride with aplomb. Lingard, Greenwood and Chong also had efforts but it was Fred who also struck the fifth. Another slick move unhinged the Brugge defence and Fred thumped in an inviting pass from Chong to round things off nicely and ensure United will be a team to fear in Friday's draw.

Solskjaer explains Martial's absence

Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has explained that Anthony Martial has been left out of the squad for the visit of Club Brugge after “not feeling right” during training on Wednesday.

The Frenchman has scored in each of his last three outings for the Reds, including notching an important away goal in the first leg in Belgium.

There will be the hope he can be available for Sunday's trip to Merseyside to face Everton in the Premier League, while his absence hands a chance up front to Odion Ighalo, who starts a United match for the first time.

“He [Anthony] didn't feel right during the training yesterday, or he walked off during the training, and he is injured so hopefully it won't be too bad,” said Ole to MUTV's Stewart Gardner. “But I don't really know yet how long it will be.”

The boss has suggested it is a muscle injury and he hopes Martial will be fit for the weekend but he is not certain yet whether that will be the case.

Meanwhile, Eric Bailly and Scott McTominay get a chance to show they are back to full fitness after being included in the XI.

“Yeah they need the minutes, but they have deserved to play,” added the boss. “Eric did really well against Chelsea, Scott has been fantastic all season. But this is not a game to just give minutes out, we need to go through. We want to win the game, we want to win it well. We know we are playing against a difficult team, they are hard to break down, they counter at pace, have size from set-plays and we need to play well.”

Of course, Ighalo will be desperate to do well on his full debut for the team he has supported all his life.

“Well, he is focused and, of course, he has been looking forward to this,” stated Solskjaer. “So let's make sure that we play well, create chances for him and go through.”

OLE EXCLUSIVE: HOMEGROWN DUO TO BRING THE POWER

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer believes Scott McTominay and Axel Tuanzebe have returned from injury lay-offs looking fitter and stronger.

The Academy products appear to have maximised their time out by working hard in the gym, with McTominay already back in action after coming off the bench in the 3-0 victory against Watford at the weekend.

Tuanzebe may require an Under-23s outing before he gets into the side again but both are providing options to the boss in advance of the Europa League last-32 tie against Club Brugge, with the scoreline at 1-1 after the first leg in Belgium.

In this interview with our lead MUTV commentator Stewart Gardner, Ole discusses the physical growth of both players and also explains how he is still pushing Anthony Martial to get better...

First of all Ole, is it nice to have a lot of players to choose from because from what we saw there were 27 out there at training?
“Yeah, we have a big, strong squad and everyone is like eager or you could call it desperate to be part of this team. Odion coming in, Bruno coming in, Scotty back fit, Timothy and Axel back training with us, the squad becomes bigger and the competition becomes harder with more demands when you’re on the pitch.”

Scott came off the bench at the weekend – is he ready for more minutes?
“He’s ready for more minutes than the 10-15 he got the other day. He’s training really hard and has come back, if possible, more motivated and ready for the last part of the season.”

Scott and Axel are looking massive, physically bigger – has that been something they’ve been working on when they were out injured?
“Well, when you’re injured, you can’t be out on the pitch running around so you do different things and programmes. You’ve got to be positive and say where can I make the difference for me now? What can make me a better player? If I can’t be on the pitch running, what can I do? They have both been building up and ready and physically fit, as you say, because it’s a strong part of their game. They’ve got to be good one on one, making challenges and winning challenges and, yes, they are looking strong.”

There were changes in Brugge and a fresh performance against Watford. We’re playing on Sunday again so what will the approach be?
“Win it. Win the game. That’s all that matters. It’s a knock-out competition and we’ve got to find a team that is going to create enough chances, to score goals and win games. And a team that is not going to concede chances. We want to look like a strong, energetic, aggressive Manchester United team.”

Hopefully, it will be Thursday-Sunday for the rest of the season but somehow it always feels different to Wednesday-Saturday…
“It is different. Sunday games and Thursday night is a different pattern to the week. You don’t have Saturday night at home with the family, you have them at a hotel, for example. But we want these games. We’ve got a strong squad and now it’s up to me to rotate and, when the players get chances, for them to be ready when they get them. I just want the rhythm of playing games and them getting match fit.”

Anthony [Martial] is in great form – how much work do you do with him as a no.9 as he seems to be relishing that role now and it’s different to playing wide?
“If you’re a wide forward, you’re facing forwards more and running at people. Now he’s in a different position, where it is more physical and you’ve got to be stronger with your back to goal and be more patient. It’s your job to be in the box when the ball arrives. I’m still at him. I demand more of him. Sometimes, the ball is squared across the six-yard line and it’s where he should be. I just nudge him and say: ‘It should have been a goal for you’. Scoring 25 instead of 15 is a big difference for a no.9.”

Brugge drew with Real Madrid and only lost narrowly at PSG in the Champions League – they won’t have anything to lose will they?
“Obviously, the expectation of Manchester United, and of most of the footballing world, is to expect us to go through. But I’m sure they will have an expectation to go through and want to go through. They’ve got to come here, score goals and beat us. I think that bodes for a good game. We want to win at home and want to improve as a team. They need to win the game or at least 2-2 and a score draw. Hopefully, it will be a good game of football.”

Nobody has scored at Old Trafford in the Europa League this season and we’ve kept five out of six clean sheets [in all competitions] so how much confidence do you have?
“It’s a foundation to build performances from. If you concede goals, you need to score more goals and we’ve got many individuals at the back playing really well. The keepers, the full-backs, centre-backs and as a unit, we’re getting more solid and more compact. When I’m on the touchline, I’m stood watching and not confident until the game is gone and then, clean sheet, and a pat on the back. Concentration and focus. That is what it’s about – in both boxes.”

BAILLY: IT WAS MAGICAL TO LIFT THE EUROPA TROPHY

Eric Bailly wants a repeat of the 'great memories' he experienced during Manchester United's victorious Europa League campaign of 2016/17.

The 25-year-old centre-back has recently returned from a 10-month injury lay-off and is ready to help the Reds bid for a place in the last 16 of this season’s competition.

Speaking in United Review, the official match programme for tonight’s second leg against Club Brugge, Bailly says he’s already seeing signs of the togetherness which propelled the squad to glory in Stockholm three years ago.

“You always have great memories whenever you lift a trophy,” Bailly told us. “You remember the effort, how you’ve all pulled together and worked hard, together as a group. But lifting that trophy is the magical thing you remember.

“We’re in it again, this time with a younger squad that has lots and lots of talent, and I think there’s a real energy about the place that could help us to continue to progress through the tournament.”

Unfortunately, the Ivorian was suspended for our 2-0 final win over Ajax at the Friends Arena in May 2017, having been sent off in the semi-final second leg against Celta Vigo.

However, Bailly was able to put aside the setback of missing out on a European final by supporting his team-mates from the sidelines and ultimately sharing in the glory as we completed the full set of major trophies won in our history.

“Obviously that [my suspension] was disappointing, but if anything it goes to show how much we all wanted to win in that semi-final,” Bailly continues. “You do what you can to try to help the team.

“It didn’t work out for me but I was showing my commitment to help the team, and sometimes you want to give so much for the team that you can forget yourself.

“Although I wasn’t in the team in the final, we had good enough players to step in and fortunately I was on the pitch at the end to enjoy sharing that moment.

“We had all won together because we’d all contributed throughout the campaign.”

United are in a strong position going into the game against Club Brugge at Old Trafford, having secured a 1-1 draw in Belgium seven days ago, with Bailly watching on from the bench at the Jan Breydel Stadium.

Eric thinks that if we get through tonight, there should be no reason why we can’t go the distance in the competition, even considering the potential presence of Premier League sides Arsenal and Wolves, as well as former winners Internazionale and Sevilla, in the last 16.

“First of all, nothing is impossible at Manchester United. It would be brilliant if this time we were able to go all the way and I was part of the team in the final. That’s what I’m working towards.

“Manchester United is a club that is used to being in the Champions League year after year, but the Europa League is a competition that not every team gets to be in, so it’s something we’re working hard in.

“Two or three seasons ago we were fortunate enough to go all the way and win it. This season we’re hoping for a repeat and that continues tonight with the next challenge against Brugge.”

SHAW: I'M HAPPY WITH NEW DEFENSIVE ROLE

Manchester United defender Luke Shaw has spoken about how playing in his new position has helped him reach his best form of the season so far.

The 24-year-old has built his career at left-back, first at former club Southampton and then at Old Trafford following his transfer in 2014.

But in recent months, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has deployed Shaw as a third centre-back, where the England international has excelled to the left of Harry Maguire.

Speaking in the press conference ahead of United's UEFA Europa League last-32 second leg against Club Brugge, Shaw explained how he has adjusted to the challenge.

“To be fair, I played it a couple of times last season and it's a role that I have been enjoying,” he said.

“Don't get me wrong – it's not too much different to left-back. I'm still kind of in the same position [of the pitch].

“But I'm enjoying it, and I've said before, wherever the manager wants to play, I'm happy to play and happy to be on the pitch to give my all for the team.”

Since the recent winter break, the left-footer has twice appeared to the left of a three-man central defence – during the 2-0 win against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge and three days later in Belgium, where the Reds gained the 1-1 away draw that gives us a slight advantage ahead of tomorrow night's second leg against Brugge.

The player was also keen to cite Solskjaer's support and encouragement in his development.

“I think man-management-wise, he’s been unbelievable for the whole squad and he’s brought a smile to everyone’s faces. I think you see that every day,” he continued.

“He’s been brilliant and the lads are all really enjoying it and I think even more so now that we’re getting better results. The team are coming back and we’ve got a lot of players back.

“We’ve got an important second half of the season and Ole’s been great. We’re all really enjoying working under him and we need to keep giving him results.”

Solskjaer also went on record to praise the full-back's recent versatility during the press conference.

“Luke was out for two months and he’s done really well in a new position,” said the manager.

“It’s mixing between left-back and the left side of centre-back. He runs forward more as a left centre-back than as a full-back. I’ve been very pleased with him there.”

OLE: BRUNO FERNANDES HAS THAT X FACTOR

January signing Bruno Fernandes adds an extra dimension to Manchester United’s attack, according to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

The Portuguese midfielder has enjoyed an excellent start to his career at Old Trafford and Ole believes he is already showing all the attributes he expects from a United player.

“We feel we’ve added some X factor and quality with Bruno,” Solskjaer said at his pre-match press conference before the visit of Club Brugge in the UEFA Europa League.

“The addition of Bruno gives us that little bit of a different flavour. He’s a player who likes to play penetrative passes, forward passes.

“He likes to task risks, which a Man United player should do.”

The 25-year-old scored his first goal for the club against Watford on Sunday, and also played a major role in the build-up to our second and third strikes, put away by Anthony Martial and Mason Greenwood.

Ole believes Bruno’s ability to quickly see the intricacies of a game and keep calm under pressure, as evidenced in the Hornets match, is a major reason behind our positive recent run of results.

“I think his imagination, or his overview, his picture, is a couple of seconds ahead of other players,” the Norwegian added.

“That’s one of his strengths: knowing what he wants to do when he gets it.

“He also can change his mind in a split second. If that picture doesn’t work as he thought, he’ll change it. I think that composure has been important for us as we

The impact the 19-cap international midfielder has had in his first month in England perhaps isn’t surprising to some, after a hugely productive spell at Sporting Lisbon.

The 25-year-old scored 63 goals and contributed 52 assists in 137 games at the Estadio Jose Alvalade, but Solskjaer thinks playing at a higher level will help Fernandes to get better and better.

“I think he’ll only improve by coming here to a stronger league, with stronger opponents, [and] stronger team-mates getting used to him.

“He’s got that bit of X-factor and that swagger and quality that we want to develop even more. He’s come in and impressed everyone, but we don’t want to put any limit on what he can do.”

UNITED V CLUB BRUGGE: OLE'S PRESS CONFERENCE

Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has held his press conference to preview Thursday night’s Europa League round of 32 second leg against Club Brugge at Old Trafford.

The boss, on the occasion of his 47th birthday, sat down in front of the media to provide an update on his squad and discuss the importance of this European competition this season. He also spoke in detail about Bruno Fernandes, Luke Shaw and our defensive improvement this campaign.

Here, you can read a full transcript of the manager’s media briefing at the Aon Training Complex…

Ole, you look like you have pretty much a full-strength squad, so was there anyone out there who won’t be available for tomorrow?
“We had a couple of knocks in training but hopefully they’ll be ok. But, we’ve got a strong and fit 25-man squad and it was a good session. We’re looking stronger.”

How are Tim Fosu-Mensah and Axel Tuanzebe recovering?
“They are getting close to a Reserve match or a behind-closed-doors match. We need them to play in that kind of game before we use them in the first team.”

You’ve got two routes to get into the Champions League next season. The way your side set up over a two-legged tie, is this the best way of getting into the Champions League?
“I think we need to just take one game at a time. Of course, both are possible, but in a cup competition you never know. It might be a bad day, you meet someone. We take one game at a time and hopefully take as many points in the league. As I said, in the cup you can’t predict. You can’t rely on ‘we’ll this’. They’re a good teams in it - Brugge, we’ve got to get past these - and we’re looking forward to the game.”

With the luck you’ve had with injuries this year, is it good to have more options? People like Luke have had to adapt to a new defensive system…
“I think the squad has coped really well with the amount of games. I’ve said it many times before, the attitude, character and personality of them is improving. Especially, December and January were two tough months. Now we’re getting some freshness back and I think we’re looking shaper for it. Luke was out for two months and he’s done really well in a new position. It’s mixing between left-back and the left side of centre-back… He runs forward more as a left centre-back than as a full-back. I’ve been very pleased with him there.”

Happy birthday, Ole. How will you celebrate and what’s your dream gift?
“My youngest is training in the Academy tonight, so I’ll spend a few hours watching him and there are some Champions League games, and preparing for tomorrow.”

With Anthony Martial scoring, Scott McTominay coming back and Bruno Fernandes playing well, this looks like a completely different team from a few months ago…
“Well, we feel we’ve added some X factor and quality with Bruno. I think Anthony coming back - he was out for a couple of months as well - getting used to the no.9 positions and the demands that means. Scotty has also developed and I think Nemanja has done brilliantly when he’s been away. Fred, as well. The addition of Bruno gives us that little bit of a different flavour. He’s a player who likes to play penetrative passes, forward passes. He likes to task risks, which a Man United player should do.”

With Bruno, the build-up before him was slow because players seemed to get the ball and were not be sure what to do. He seems to know what he’s going to do before he gets it…
“I think his imagination, or his overview, his picture, is a couple of seconds ahead of other players. That’s one of his strengths: knowing what he wants to do when he gets it. He also can change his mind in a split second. If that picture doesn’t work as he thought, he’ll change it. I think that composure has been important for us as well.”

What’s the ideal personality of your Manchester United team, is it to play with swagger and a bit of charisma?
“You need many attributes to play the perfect game of football, or to be the perfect team. We want the swagger and the confidence. We want players going onto the pitch believing in themselves. You still want your players to be humble, knowing that you’ve got to work harder and you’ve got to earn the right to win a game of football. I think that was one of strengths - I played with Becks, Giggsy, the graveyard shifts down the sides, that was one of the big compliments the gaffer used to give from other managers: ‘You’ve got a team full of quality but they work harder than others’. That was probably one of the first things I said when I came here, that I want my teams to be one of the hardest-working teams in the league. That’s only attitude, that’s what you’re supposed to do.”

Is personality something you can bring out of players?
“You can blossom more with confidence and speaking to them and managing them and making them be free. You want them to be free and play with courage and bravery. You want to have a bit of fear in you and that taste of ‘well I don’t want to lose this game’. There’s a bit of that edge but you still think ‘ok, I made a mistake, no worries, I’ll sort it out’. So, it’s a fine balance between arrogant, confident and humble. It’s difficult to say it all here in two minutes. We could have two or three hours on that.”

When you mention Bruno and you talk about X factor, is that what we say on Sunday? Will we see that now until the end of the season?
“I think he’ll only improve by coming here to a stronger league, with stronger opponents and stronger team-mates getting used to him. He’s got that bit of X factor and that swagger and quality that we want to develop even more. He’s come in and impressed everyone, but we don’t want to put any limit on what he can do

On Brugge, they’re missing three key players. Does that change your approach at all?
“Well, of course, we need to play against 11 players of Brugge, so it might change. If [Ruud] Vormer is injured and Dennis is injured, that does something to them. Vormer didn’t play in the last game and Dennis played well against us. I know [Krepin] Diatta, he’s come back. He’s probably their most exciting and best player. I watched him a few years ago in Norway. He’s fit, I understand, and he might be a handful for Luke [Shaw], you never know.”

Only PSG have more clean sheets than United in the top-five league leagues in Europe. What do you think that comes down to?
“Well, it’s the work we’ve been doing on the pitch and the quality of the players we’ve got and sometimes a bit of luck or margins. In the transfer market, we did sign Aaron and Harry for big sums of money, but they’re worth it because we wanted a foundation we can build form. We not happy winning games 1-0, we want to be an exciting and attacking team, but we’ll get to that. Defensively, the coaching from Kieran [McKenna] and Michael [Carrick] is absolutely fantastic. I think everyone knows what they’re doing defensively. The detail in what they’re doing is absolutely incredible and the application of the boys and adapting between a back four or five. There are many factors. It’s the work that’s been done.”

You spoke about Diatta from your time in Molde, so what is it you liked him? He hopes to have a career like Sadio Mane as well, so is that possible?
“I think he should have high hopes and high ambitions for his career. I saw him when he was 17 or 18. He was actually at Molde before I came to Molde. Someone turned him down, I don’t know who, but that was before I came there. He was fantastic. You know when you see players with that quality and he feels free on the pitch, he tries things and he’s got the ‘X Factor’. He’s got fantastic pace and balance; he’s similar to Sadio Mane, so I think that’s a fair ambition he should have.”

At a club like United there’s always a lot of talk about finances and there was an investors call with Ed Woodward yesterday. Are you conscious, not only in football terms, of being in the Champions League for the financial benefits?
“Well, as you said, we’re a big club and we had good finances. But the longer you’re out of it, the more you’ll suffer. It’s an ambition for us to get back into the Champions League for too ball reasons but also financially that will help the club. As Luke says, we’ve just to focus on this game and then it’s the league on Sunday, then the FA Cup on Thursday and then the league again, the hopefully more European games.”

EXCLUSIVE Q&A: MATA'S ADVICE TO UNITED'S NEW BOYS

After nearly 15 years in professional football, there aren’t many experiences or situations Juan Mata hasn’t faced.

As one of the elder statesmen in the Manchester United squad, Juan is now perfectly placed to pass on advice to his team-mates, and the Spaniard is more than happy to offer some tips to the younger members of the group.

In an interview for Sunday's edition of United Review, Mata also gave his thoughts on how players like Bruno Fernandes and Odion Ighalo can quickly adjust to the club after their January transfers, which is something Juan himself experienced when he joined the Reds in 2014.

As you can read in the exclusive Q&A below, our no.8 was also asked about his recent form and aims for the remainder of this season…

Juan, you’re one of the senior members in quite a young squad. How has it been having so much youthful exuberance coming into the squad this season?
“It’s always nice. They’re always fresh and full of energy and positivity. I remember when I was 18 or 19 and starting at Valencia and it felt that way. You’re there, you’ve got to where you want to be, but you want more. You want to play and you want to show that you’re good enough. We have now many young players, all of them with different qualities and personalities and overall they’re very nice guys and I’m happy to see them develop like they’re doing.”

Are you enjoying playing a role in helping them?
“They know that I am here for them, and I’m here for any of my team-mates. I have been in the same position that they are in now, which is at the front door of their professional careers, so from now it’s very important that they are ready for it and that they stay physically fit and mentally tough because there are some challenges ahead. And I hope they can find the consistency that is needed to be a professional football player. I think they have the qualities and hopefully they will also, during the process, learn the other things too.”

What have you made of Bruno Fernandes’ and Odion Ighalo’s starts to life here at United?
“We welcomed them both. Bruno is a very good player, we all know that, and a very nice guy also. We have been in contact a lot. He speaks Spanish mixed with Portuguese which is not very different. So he’s a good guy and I think he’s settling in very well. He’s found his place in Manchester [to live] and also with the help of Fred, Andreas and Diogo he’s enjoying it. They’ve helped him a lot. Hopefully he can help us in this second part of the season and I’m sure he will because he’s a quality player. Odion has experience of playing in the Premier League and hopefully he will score many goals for us from now until the end of the season, and, as the manager said, he’s a good character as well and he’s got a good personality which has fitted straight into the dressing room. The better he does, then the better for us – and I wish him all the best.”

You arrived at United in a January window, of course, back in 2014 – how hard was it to acclimatise halfway through a season?
“It’s probably not ideal because you don’t have a pre-season tour or the time to really get into the pattern of the team, but it depends. It takes time for a player to settle and we shouldn’t expect any miracles from anyone, but I’m sure that with the right mindset and the right qualities like Bruno and Odion have they will be a big help for us. Sometimes you have seen players arrive in January and they have been a great success for the clubs they’ve signed for, maybe even sometimes better than when players have arrived in the summer. So I don’t think it has a lot of impact in the long term. Maybe in the short term it’s not the easiest but in the long term it’s irrelevant.”

Is there anything that you did to try to speed up the settling-in process?
“You feel the need to try and show as much as you can [on the pitch] as soon as you can, but there is a moment when you have to let your football speak and just flow. That’s what I did when I arrived. The situation wasn’t great and I just tried to be myself and play the football that I was playing before in England and in Spain. Eventually you find yourself, you find your position in the team and your role to play. I think that’s the best way to do it.”

You’ve produced some of your best form of the season in the last month or so. Have you been pleased with how you’ve been playing?
“I’m enjoying my level now, that’s what I like to do, to try to help the team with my football and if I’m enjoying it on the pitch it means my level is good. Hopefully I can keep doing it until the end of the season. Of course, we didn’t have every single result as we wished but I think the performances have been better and personally I’ve been very happy to contribute.”

What would be the ideal ending to the season for you personally and for the team?
“Personally, being fit and ready to play every single game and hopefully playing a lot of games and helping the team with goals and assists and my way of playing. As a team, making the top four would be very good for us and trying to win the Europa League and the FA Cup. So let’s see… we are positive we can go forward in both cups and get closer to the top four in the Premier League and hopefully we can speak in a few weeks and we’ll be in an even better situation than now.”

This interview originally appeared in Sunday's United Review.

EARLY TEAM NEWS FOR CRUCIAL BRUGGE CLASH

Several Manchester United players could make their European comebacks on Thursday night, when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's men host Club Brugge in the second leg of our UEFA Europa League tie.

Scott McTominay, who hadn’t featured for almost two months and didn’t make it on last week’s trip to Belgium, came on as a substitute during our 3-0 win over Watford on Sunday.

Assuming he got through that 10-minute cameo unscathed, he could be in the manager’s thoughts for Thursday's game at Old Trafford.

Another player who missed our 1-1 first-leg draw at the Jan Breydel Stadium is Mason Greenwood. That was through illness, yet this time the Reds are waiting for news on the youngster’s fitness, after he limped off with cramp shortly after scoring our third goal against the Hornets.

Axel Tuanzebe, who hasn’t played since mid-December, was pictured in training last week, as he continues his recovery from a thigh problem.

Tuanzebe joined fellow defenders Tim Fosu-Mensah and Phil Jones in being left at home for the short trip to Brugge.

Angel Gomes, James Garner and Tahith Chong all featured for United during the Europa League group stages, but they took part in an Under-19s friendly against Brugge’s youngsters hours prior to the first-team match, and were therefore unavailable for the first leg.

Solskjaer could provide a more detailed update on some of the players mentioned above when he sits down in front of reporters at the Aon Training Complex for his pre-match press conference on Wednesday afternoon.

Three Reds will definitely be missing for Thursday’s clash. Marcus Rashford is expected to remain on the sidelines for another few months, after suffering a stress fracture to his back last month while Paul Pogba is still recovering from his January ankle operation.

Meanwhile, goalkeeper Lee Grant is out for the next two to three months, having undergone surgery in early February.

The good news is that none of United’s players are currently sitting on a Europa League suspension. The threshold for missing a game is three yellow cards, and none of our current side has picked up more than one so far.

CLUB BRUGGE TEAM NEWS

Brugge's goalscorer from the first leg Emmanuel Dennis hasn't travelled, while central midfielder and captain Ruud Vormer is also out for the visitors, with a knee injury.

The Belgians will be missing Colombian midfielder Eder Balanta, who picked up a one-match European suspension after being booked in the first leg.

Youssouph Badji and Ignace Van der Brempt missed the 1-1 draw with United at the Jan Breydel Stadium through injury and have not yet recovered, but Krepin Diatta is back in the travelling squad.

WOODWARD OUTLINES UNITED'S NUMBER ONE PRIORITY

Manchester United executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward has reaffirmed the club's number one priority is playing entertaining football and winning trophies.

Speaking on the quarterly update call for investors, Woodward detailed the progress being made on and off the pitch as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's Reds embark on the decisive spell of the 2019/20 season, competing for silverware at home and abroad.

He is also proud of the work being undertaken at Academy level with Old Trafford preparing to stage the quarter-final tie of the FA Youth Cup against Wigan Athletic on Friday night.

“I want to provide an overview of progress towards our number one priority - winning trophies with a team playing entertaining, attacking football,” said Woodward. “Since our last call in November, we have progressed to the knock-out stages of the Europa League; we are through to the fifth round in the FA Cup, and we remain in the mix to qualify for the Champions League.

“This season is one of rebuild, with many changes to the squad - in terms of players who have left or gone out on loan; new players who we have brought into the club; and Academy graduates that we have brought through to the first team. This process will continue as we implement our plan and our footballing vision under Ole and his coaching staff.

“Despite being linked in the media to 111 players in January, our acquisition of just one of them - Bruno Fernandes - is an important step in that direction, demonstrating our commitment to adding experienced, world-class recruits to the exciting crop of Academy graduates that are at the heart of this developing team,” he added.

“We will take the same planned, disciplined approach this coming summer. In addition to the first-team signings, somewhat under the radar, we have also made a number of exciting youth acquisitions in the past year, reflecting our commitment to bringing the best talent into our Academy. So far, our Academy graduates have contributed over a third of first-team playing minutes this season and over half of our goals, emphasising our Academy’s status as one of the most productive in elite-level European football.

“This is an important competitive advantage for us and represents an excellent return on the fourfold increase in investment that we have made in the Academy over recent years.“

Meanwhile, Old Trafford continues to be the subject of more investment to ensure it remains one of the most iconic venues in world sport.

Group managing director Richard Arnold explained: “As Old Trafford celebrates its 110th anniversary this year, these investments demonstrate our commitment to maintaining its status as one of the iconic football stadiums in Europe, whilst preserving the unique heritage and character which sets it apart from more recently built venues.

“We have worked with fan groups on measures to further enhance the matchday experience in general admission areas, including the successful trial of an atmosphere section in the Stretford End and an application with relevant safety authorities to trial rail-seating in an area of Old Trafford where fans persistently stand. These steps, together with the freeze in season-ticket prices for the past eight consecutive seasons and the cap on away ticket prices in the Premier League, reflect our commitment to engaging with our loyal match-going supporters to keep Old Trafford safe, full and atmospheric.”

BRUNO FERNANDES: UNITED'S PORTUGUESE MAGNIFICO

It’s been less than a month since Portuguese midfielder Bruno Fernandes completed his transfer from Sporting Lisbon to Manchester United, and already we’ve seen glimpses of just what a special talent we might have on our hands... and he’s already got his own song!

On his home bow against Wolves, the 25-year-old delivered a composed Man of-the-Match display and, last Monday, Fernandes produced his first assist – a vicious, precise corner-kick for Harry Maguire's header – to help seal a vital win over top-four rivals Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

An eye-catching cameo in the Europa League draw with Club Brugge in Belgium followed, before another award-winning performance against Watford at the weekend - which yielded his first goal for the club, as well as a big hand in the other two goals.

But how did Fernandes make his name in Lisbon? What kind of player is he? What is his personality like away from the pitch? We speak to fans, a journalist and a United legend to get some answers…

THE JOURNALIST
Tom Kundert, Portuguese football expert

“I’m always happy to talk about Bruno Fernandes. What a player! People will get to know him quickly, because he can do things very few players can. His long-range shooting is amazing, but his most outstanding asset is his passing – not only his execution but his vision. Sometimes you think ‘what... how did he even think about that pass?’ and you’re up in the stands! You’ve got a view of the whole pitch and even you can hardly see it. He sees it and pulls it off. In Portugal, you’ve got three teams that are so much better than the rest, so a lot of the time they’re facing massed defensive ranks. You need players who can do something a little bit different. They call them ‘a tin-opener’. He’s a perfect one. When there’s no way through he seems to find one, either with a spectacular goal or a fantastic pass.

“If you take a more holistic view, his attitude is absolutely first-class. Sporting have been playing in a pressure-cooker situation for the last few seasons. They’ve had a bad time, falling further and further behind Benfica and Porto. It’s a massive club, which brings a lot of pressure, and a lot of players can’t really handle that. Bruno was exactly the opposite. It didn’t seem to matter how poor Sporting were. He always maintained a very high level.

“He’s definitely a leader. Also, you have to factor in that he’s had a very interesting career already, because he took the very unusual step of going to Italy as a teenager. I think it’s fair to say he’s carried Sporting over the last couple of years. He’s played about 60-odd games a season, every minute of every game, the Nations League. He went to the World Cup. That’s a lot of high-intensity football for three years solid. So I don’t think going to a new country will faze him. I really do think he’s one of these players, a bit like Cristiano – he’s made it his mission to get the very utmost out of his career.”

THE SPORTING FAN
Ivo Costa, Núcleo do Sporting Club de Londres

“I was dreading the day he left! We knew that Man United and other teams were interested because of his goal average, which was phenomenal. For a guy in his position to score that many was just unbelievable. We just realised: ‘Let’s enjoy it while we have him’.

“I watched Bruno every week, and he was very influential. A couple of years ago, some supporters went to our Academy and tried to beat up the players. It was all politics. We had a great team, but lost seven or eight players, and Bruno threatened to leave. But he came back as co-captain with Nani, and, if it wasn’t for him, we would have been in dire straits. He has been the league’s best player for two years.

”He was always the one trying to motivate, trying to organise the players, putting his heart and soul into the club. He’s a very spontaneous guy. What makes him good is that he takes risks with the ball. Of course, that sometimes means it can be dangerous for the team, but Bruno is excellent.

“I actually have a bunch of friends involved in cinema and theatre in Portugal who are minor VIPs that are friends with him. They always say that he’s top-notch; a really nice guy, down to earth and always very friendly. I think he’s going to be great for Man United, though it’s not the best news for us.”

THE UNITED FAN
Steve Black, home-and-away Red

“When we signed him, my first reaction was to ask the gaming generation – ie my sons! They both rated Bruno, and kept telling me how great he was. I’m always sceptical, but there seemed to be a lot of positivity around this man, and he clearly offers something different.

“I think the whole team has missed a leader, and somebody who can create. Somebody who can find Martial, not with his back to goal, but in front of him. Someone to unlock things. It appears from the two games we’ve had, that we may have found it. He’s shown a lot of inventiveness and doesn’t have to get everything technically correct to make his pass. He knows where he wants to get the ball and does it quickly.

”He will have loved it at Chelsea. I saw spirit in the United side that night. Fred has been terrific recently, but now he’s got a foil that can do the bits he can’t do in a game. Matic can protect that back four. The players seemed to play better knowing they could find him, that he was always available. Maybe you couldn’t see it on telly, but he was everywhere and offering an option, which brings space. And the second goal was lovely to see. He knew exactly where he was going to put the corner-kick and leathered it on to Maguire’s head.

“I like him. I like his character.”

THE REDS LEGEND
Lou Macari, attacking midfielder (1973-84)

“The role of a midfield player has always been the same. You’ve got to get about the pitch, get a few tackles in, get forward, get back. And if you ask most players who play in midfield, they’ll tell you that they find it quite a difficult position to play in with the demands. You’ve got to be fit, you’ve got to be strong, you’ve got to want to do your little bit of defending as well for the team. I don’t think Bruno’s going to let us down in any of those departments.

“He looks confident. If you were at his first game at Old Trafford and someone said, ‘There’s a newcomer on that pitch’, you couldn’t have picked him out. He blended in as if he’d known the rest of them for the last 10 years. He looked to have a shoot-on-sight policy, and that should stand him in good stead and get him a few goals at United.

“They’ll have watched him probably every week this season, because we’ve got that many scouts. I’m just hoping that the big strength he’s got is putting the ball in the back of the net, because I’ve felt all season that’s something we’ve lacked from midfield – a natural goalscorer.

“But for someone who’s played most of his football in Portugal, first of all it takes a bit of time to find your feet, because the pace of the Premier League is probably twice as fast. He will find 90 minutes a lot tougher in our Premier League. I noticed that when he came off against Chelsea, he was puffing and blowing a little bit.

“But he had a good debut with promise and he looks like he’ll get a goal or two for us. He had that set-piece outside the box where he hit the post at Chelsea, which was good to see. It’s an added bonus when you’ve got somebody who can do that. But the early signs are good. Let’s hope it can continue.”

This feature first appeared in United Review, our official matchday programme at Old Trafford.

OPINION: DANGEROUS DAN SHINES IN WATFORD WIN

There’s been plenty of praise for three of Manchester United’s attacking quartet after Sunday’s 3-0 Premier League win over Watford.

Bruno Fernandes scored his first goal for the Reds, with Anthony Martial and Mason Greenwood adding their own stunning efforts to seal the game in the second half.

But Daniel James’s contribution shouldn’t go unnoticed.

The Wales winger produced arguably his best individual display of 2020 so far, troubling Watford right-back Craig Dawson with his direct runs and perhaps being unlucky not to register on the scoresheet himself, with his shot in the 65th minute flying just wide of Ben Foster’s goal.

James also cut in from the left – after spending much of the campaign on the opposite flank – to provide good chances for Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Fred in the first half, as well as playing the measured through-ball which Fernandes latched on to before being brought down for his spot-kick.

The benefits of the winter break have been much discussed in recent weeks, and the 16-day hiatus the Reds enjoyed between the Wolves and Chelsea games appears to have particularly refreshed the 22-year-old, who recorded more sprints (18) and shots (four) than any other United player, according to Opta data.

Sunday’s performance was reminiscent of Dan’s irresistible August.

The summer signing from Swansea City experienced an exhilarating start to life at Old Trafford, netting three goals in his first four appearances.

As the campaign progressed, he provided memorable assists for Marcus Rashford for his goals against Liverpool, Norwich City and Sheffield United, as well as setting up Martial and Greenwood for their efforts versus Manchester City and Everton respectively.

James’s output diminished slightly after the festive period, but perhaps that’s no great surprise for such a young and inexperienced player.

Prior to his big move, the Hull-born speedster had made just 39 senior appearances at club level, a total he’s only five games away from matching this season, against higher calibre levels of opposition, at home and in Europe.

With the Reds playing a game every three days for much of December and January, and James involved in all bar a handful, it’s no wonder tiredness started to creep in, something the wide man admitted during our recent trip to Marbella.

“Obviously, these warm-weather camps always help and always benefit us when we get back home,” James told us.

“I think it is good to get out here. It is obviously a little bit warmer than it is at home. It is good to get here and get the last few weeks out of our legs, which will really benefit us when we go back.”

After a quiet game as one of two ‘split strikers’ at Stamford Bridge last week, James was an unused substitute in Belgium for our Europa League clash with Club Brugge.

That meant the 73,347 people packed into Old Trafford got to see Daniel replicate his dangerous early-season form, for which he later received praise from his manager.

“Yeah, he’s had a couple of games where he’s not played,” Ole Gunnar Solskjaer told MUTV’s Stewart Gardner after the final whistle at Old Trafford.

“He’s had a break now and we want him on the touchline taking people on, running in behind, mixing up his football and today was Dan, more or less, at his best.”

With key games to come in three competitions, let's hope that the 22-year-old can continue to be a menace to opposition defences, whether on the right, left or in a more advanced position.

The opinions expressed in this article are personal to the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Manchester United.

OLE: GREENWOOD WILL BE THE COMPLETE NO.9

Mason Greenwood can grow into one of Manchester United’s most complete hitmen.

That was the opinion of Reds' boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, after the teenager scored his 11th goal of the season in United’s 3-0 Premier League win against Watford at Old Trafford.

Greenwood's 75th-minute piledriver was his fifth league strike of the campaign, and no United player has reached that landmark at a younger age.

“He’s the best finisher we have and he’s one of the best I’ve seen,” Ole enthused in his post-match press conference.

“Right foot, left foot, it doesn’t matter. He’s just so sharp in and around the goal. He’ll never lose that goalscoring knack.”

The 18-year-old made a handful of appearances towards the end of the 2018/19 campaign, but has really made his breakthrough in the first team this season, playing 33 times.

Mason did come off shortly after scoring, apparently with cramp, and Ole believes it's worth reminding people that the youngster is still growing into his body.

“The whole season he’s had says a lot for him. He’s just going to get better and better,” Solskjaer added.

“He’s only 18, we’ve got to remember that. He’s still not fully grown in his body, he’s not like Wayne Rooney at 18. He still has a young body and in a few years' time he’ll be more or less the complete No.9.

“He’ll still fill out more but it will take a couple of years. Give him time because it’ll be natural. He’s 18 now and he’ll still fill out more: his upper body, his legs.

“He’s now starting to get a man’s body but it will take a couple of years because you can’t do that too early.”

THE WEEK AHEAD FOR UNITED

This week, the Europa League round of 32 comes to a conclusion, while Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men also face a tough test on Merseyside.

With an FA Youth Cup quarter-final and several birthdays also on the horizon, there’s plenty to jot down in your diary as February ends and March begins.

Here is what’s in store over the next seven days…

MONDAY

As well as continuing to provide reaction to Sunday’s excellent 3-0 win over Watford in the Premier League, we’ll also be celebrating the 80th birthday of one of United’s greatest-ever players. Denis Law hit 237 goals in 404 appearances during his decade-long spell at Old Trafford, placing him third on our all-time list of scorers. Many happy returns, Denis!

TUESDAY

With first-team fixtures once again coming thick and fast, attention will turn to Thursday’s Europa League last 32 second leg against Club Brugge. Before that, we’ll be wishing our former midfielder Ji-Sung Park a happy 39th birthday. The South Korean won four Premier League titles, three League Cups and a Champions League trophy during a productive seven-year period in Manchester.

WEDNESDAY

Manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer turns 47! After he blows the candles out on his cake, he'll hold his pre-match press conference, ahead of the Club Brugge match, at the Aon Training Complex, at a time to be confirmed. Happy birthday Ole!

THURSDAY

The first-team are back in European action, as Belgian league leaders Club Brugge travel to Old Trafford for a 20:00 GMT kick-off. The tie remains in the balance, after a 1-1 draw at the Jan Breydel Stadium last week, with Anthony Martial’s 36th-minute equaliser providing us with a potentially pivotal away goal. You can follow all the action and reaction from our last-32 second leg on MUTV from 18:55 GMT, on our Official App and through ManUtd.com.

FRIDAY

Should everything go to plan on Thursday night, we'll be in the hat when the draw for the last 16 of the Europa League takes place in Nyon, Switzerland from 12:00 GMT. Voting for our February Player of the Month will also open in our Official App. Fred took home the January award, and we're sure this month's gong will be hotly contested after a largely positive few weeks on the pitch.

It’s a crunch day for our Under-18s, as we host Wigan Athletic at Old Trafford in the quarter-finals of the FA Youth Cup (19:00 GMT kick-off). Neil Ryan’s side have reached this stage of the competition, which we have won on a record 10 occasions, for the first time since 2012, and tickets for the match at the Theatre of Dreams are free.

SATURDAY

We’ll be previewing Sunday’s Premier League match at Everton, as the Reds aim to continue our good recent form in domestic competition. Solskjaer’s men have kept five clean sheets in succession on English soil and are aiming to win three league games in a row for the first time this season.

Our Under-18s were due to travel to Merseyside to take on Everton's youngsters at Finch Farm on Saturday, but due to our involvement in the FA Youth Cup, this match has been put back to Tuesday 10 March 2020 (kick off 19:00 GMT).

SUNDAY

United are back on the road, as we make the short trip down the M62 to take on Carlo Ancelotti’s Everton at Goodison Park, at 14:00 GMT. The Reds will be keen to put last season’s 4-0 loss to the Toffees well and truly behind us, although the Blues have been revitalised since the experienced Italian replaced Marco Silva as manager in December and will, as ever, pose a tough test. However, they were beaten 3-2 by Arsenal on Sunday.

We’ll be on the ground in Merseyside from 12:55 GMT to provide you with all the build-up, with live in-game commentary on MUTV and updates on the Official App to take you through another important 90 minutes.

ACADEMY CREATES EMERGING TALENT PROGRAMME

Manchester United is introducing a new Emerging Talent Programme to increase engagement with local schools and grassroots clubs across Manchester and the North West.

The programme will be a bridge between the community and curriculum-based charitable work undertaken in over 50 local schools by Manchester United Foundation, and the club’s elite youth academy, which is fed by the club’s industry-leading scouting network and brings in the best talent from around the world.

The Emerging Talent Programme will deliver a range of projects in order to identify talented footballers across the region and support them further by offering them the opportunity to potentially attend a structured development programme at the club’s Emerging Talent Centre, based at the Aon Training Complex.

Over the next three years, the club aims to engage with over 20,000 children and young people through a range of positive activities that will aim to increase their enjoyment of football and assist them with further opportunities to continue playing the game.

The Emerging Talent Programme will be led by Jen Mildenhall as the Programme Manager and is staffed by a new, bespoke coaching and delivery staff. The club’s existing Football in the Community group will also operate as part this new team.

The Emerging Talent Programme will operate under the overall Academy structure and will focus on three main areas, divided by age group:

Schools activity
Over the next three years, every Primary School (approx. 900 in total) and Secondary/High School (approx. 400 in total) across Greater Manchester will be offered the opportunity to participate in a tournament or football festival event hosted by the Emerging Talent Department. There will be a range of formats for different age groups, identified through the Foundation Phase (Under 9’s – Under 11’s) and Youth Development Phase (Under 12’s – Under 14’s)

Grassroots clubs and coaches
In parallel to schools activity, the Emerging Talent Programme will increase proactive engagement and strengthen relationships with grass roots clubs at every level from Manchester, Cheshire, Merseyside, Lancashire and Yorkshire, in order to support recruitment coverage and bridge the gap between grassroots and elite football.

This will see a minimum of 300 grassroots teams attending tournaments/festivals per year, while a minimum of 50 grassroots clubs will receive on site visits per year. To bring the wider coaching community together with the academy and create a wider ecosystem, at least 500 grassroots coaches will attend CPD workshops per year.

Emerging Talent Centre
Alongside activations based in schools grassroots clubs, United will run an Emerging Talent Centre for 44 weeks of the year, based at the Aon Training Complex, which will offer a high quality development programme for identified talented footballers.

This will complement the coaching and development work done within schools and clubs, and will focus on under 9’s–under 14’s age groups, with a structured Games Programme embedded into the centre for all age groups. It will run alongside the main Elite Academy Programme and feed into this for the most talented players.

Nick Cox, Head of Academy for Manchester United, comments: “Involving and engaging with a core of local talent is fundamental to everything we do at The Academy and in order to do this we are committed to our presence and activity within our local community in Manchester and beyond. The new Emerging Talent programme enables us to radically increase the number of schools, grassroots clubs and communities that we interact with across Manchester and the North West, allowing us to create a wider coaching network with better exposure to local footballing talent.

“As well as identifying talent, our aim is to give young people that are passionate about football an opportunity to have an experience of Manchester United. We’re aware of our responsibility to enrich the local football community by sharing resources and knowledge. Over the next three years, we aim to engage with over 20,000 children and young people (boys and girls) through a range of positive activities via schools and grassroots clubs. The aim is to increase their love of football and give them further opportunities to continue playing the game.”

CADBURY AND UNITED HIGHLIGHT ISSUE OF LONELINESS

Today (Sunday February 23, 2020) Cadbury and Manchester United teamed up to promote Cadbury’s ‘Donate your words’ campaign, which highlights the issues of loneliness amongst Britain’s older generation. Eleven ‘Guests of Honour’ were invited to stand on the iconic Old Trafford pitch and shake hands with the Manchester United first team ahead of our match against Watford.

The Guests of Honour are all local people aged 65 and over and are dedicated Manchester United fans, who have experienced loneliness. The touching moment, which saw the guests step out in front of an expected crowd of 73, 346 people, serves as a reminder of the issue of loneliness which affects hundreds of thousands of older people living within Britain’s communities, and aims to inspire people to ‘Donate your words’ to those who need them the most.

Cadbury believe there is a glass and half of generosity and kindness in everyone and Manchester United share this belief. As a result, the club has joined Cadbury on their ‘Donate your words’ campaign in a bid to encourage the fans and nation to ‘Donate your words’ and make a difference to the lives of older people.

The campaign comes following recent research, conducted by Cadbury and Age UK, which revealed that in a typical week, almost 2.6 million people aged 65 and over speak to three or fewer others, with more than 225,000 often going a week without speaking to anyone.

The survey found that simple, small gestures can play a part in helping to tackle loneliness as over six million older people claimed a few minutes of conversation would make a huge difference to their week. Older people said they’d feel more confident to go outside their home, if they knew someone was smiling when in a queue, or if anyone had asked how their day was going.

Colin O’Toole, Associate Marketing Director at Cadbury said: “We’re proud to announce this partnership with Manchester United and to continue supporting Age UK with our ‘Donate your words’ campaign. Loneliness is such a huge problem amongst the older generation, and we are encouraging Manchester United fans and the wider nation to engage with this cause by donating their words at every opportunity to lonely, older people in their communities. We are also looking forward to working with Manchester United in the future on further collaborations of this nature.”

Sean Jefferson, Director of Partnerships for Manchester United said: “We’re pleased to start our partnership with Cadbury by supporting their ‘Donate your words’ campaign. The Club is encouraging all fans to give a few moments of their time to speak to older people around them who might welcome a thoughtful conversation. Any small gesture and interaction can play a part in helping to help tackle loneliness amongst our older generation.”

WHAT BRUNO'S FIRST GOAL MEANT TO HIM

Bruno Fernandes described his first goal for Manchester United as a 'dream come true' as he scored the opener in a 3-0 victory against Watford at Old Trafford.

The Portuguese midfielder got off the mark for his new club after winning and converting a penalty for the Reds, shortly before half-time. But Bruno's involvement in the match wasn't done there, as he helped set Anthony Martial on his way for our second and assisted Mason Greenwood's rocket of a strike to secure all three points.

This performance adds to his assist in last Monday's Premier League match against Chelsea, which saw Bruno provide the corner for Harry Maguire to head home.

“It feels so good,” he said to MUTV after the game. “For me, it’s another dream come true. These last few weeks have been amazing for me and the team. We drew against Wolves, but, after that, we had good games, away against Chelsea and home against Watford today, but I’m really happy about the three points and we are [moving] up in the table.”

“I feel happy,” he added. “My family arrived on Friday, they arrived just in time to see me score.”

There was plenty of confidence behind the technique used by Fernandes to take his spot-kick. The midfielder has now scored each of his last 13 penalties in top-flight football, stretching back to his time with Udinese in 2016.

Bruno produced an elaborate jump before sending Ben Foster the wrong way to ensure the Reds went into the break with the lead.

“Normally, I shoot in this way, but I also change sometimes. Today, I felt confident to shoot like this and the goal was good,” he said.

Fernandes has been a popular arrival since his move from Sporting Lisbon was confirmed in January, with plenty of chants of “Bruno, Bruno” when he was brought down in the 40th minute.

“I feel good about this. The fans are amazing and they give me more confidence to play and be happy when I play, but also part of this is from my team-mates. They help me a lot, they give me a lot of confidence, they trust in me and that is the most important for me.”

In the latter stages of the game, Fernandes also turned provider for Greenwood, who rocketed a shot in off the crossbar and into the top corner with 15 minutes to go. When asked about the promising 18-year old, Bruno believes he has what it takes to be a good player.

“Mason has a lot of qualities. He’s short and he needs to grow up more, but with the confidence he has, the trust we pass to him and the quality he has, he can be such a good player.”

OLE FULL OF PRAISE AFTER CONVINCING VICTORY

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was enthusiastic about his Manchester United side's performance after goals by Bruno Fernandes, Anthony Martial and Mason Greenwood completed a 3-0 success against Watford at Old Trafford.

Speaking to MUTV, BBC Sport and at his post-match press conference, the boss was clearly happy to move up to fifth spot in the Premier League and close the gap on fourth-placed Chelsea to three points.

REASONS TO BE CHEERFUL

“It was a very good win. That's two good wins and two clean sheets [in the league since the winter break], plus some goals to celebrate. I thought, in the first half, we started by gifting them some good opportunities but, gradually, we created more and more chances.

“It's been a very good week, overall. We also got an away goal and score-draw in Europe so I'm very pleased with everyone after the good break we had. That was an important week in Marbella; building team spirit, camaraderie and some understanding between players. It's working. Now we want to kick on.”

BRILLIANT BRUNO

“He’s a footballer. He loves playing football, he wants the ball, he’s got the personality and character to demand it all the time, wanting to take the penalty. He takes it the way he does it to show he is a Man United character – not just a very, very good footballer.”

MARTIAL MASTERCLASS NO SURPRISE

“He’s so skilful, is Anthony. I thought he’d ran offside, but the timing from Bruno’s pass was perfect and the skill there is just incredible. He does that in training, so you’re not that surprised. I’m delighted with the week Anthony has had. He has his critics - I’m probably the biggest. He scored a great header against Chelsea, did everything to score against Brugge and today was more classic Anthony. But I want more from him.”

ANOTHER GOAL FOR GREENWOOD

“He’s young kid learning his trade. He is learning to play against men, but he’s always been a goalscorer and he’ll never lose that, because that is in the moment and the most difficult thing in football. But he’s got it. You just know when he’s got chances, he’s going to create half a yard to get a finish and he’s going to hit the target and I’m very pleased with his performance.

JAMES BACK TO HIS BEST
”He’s had a couple of games where he’s not played. He’s had a break now and we want him on the touchline; taking people on, running in behind, mixing up his football and today was Dan, more or less, at his best.“

CRUCIAL SPELL UPCOMING

“There are loads of important games to go. Next week, of course, is Everton [after Club Brugge in the Europa League], then you’ve got [Manchester] City, then you’ve got Tottenham, so the next three league games are very important for us.

“So we’ve got to keep our feet on the ground and focus on the games, but then there’s Europe as well. We want to go through, so all eyes on Thursday now.”

SHAW UNDERLINES GOALSCORERS' QUALITIES

Manchester United’s three goal amigos against Watford have got Luke Shaw buzzing.

Bruno Fernandes broke the Hornets' resistance in the 3-0 win with a penalty just before half-time and breathtaking Goal-of-the-Month contenders from Anthony Martial and Mason Greenwood sealed the three points.

Shaw has pats on the back for the threesome who helped lift the Reds into fifth spot in the league and just three short of Chelsea in the top four.

“Bruno has had a massive impact. He has only been here such a short time but it feels like he has been here for a while,” Luke told MUTV.

“You can tell he was a leader at Sporting Lisbon and I think he wants to bring those sort of leadership skills here and help the team as much as he can, off the pitch as much as on the pitch, as he is doing now.

“Hopefully, he can keep that up. He is already shining for us and it is great to see.”

Fernandes impudently opened his United goal account from the spot and then Martial, equally audaciously, grabbed his 15th of the season with a daring finish.

“The quality Anthony has got is unbelievable. If he keeps working hard and keeps believing in himself, he can be one of the best,” said Shaw.

“He has got that ability to be able to do special things that not many can, but he is definitely one that can do it. I’m happy for him, hopefully he can keep scoring goals because we need them.”

The Old Trafford win was crowned with a sensational run and hit by Greenwood who made it 11 goals for the campaign.

“The confidence Mason has at such a young age is what you need to thrive here,” said our full-back.

“I don’t think he is arrogant one bit but he has that confidence at the right sort of level. He just wants to play football and he is not bothered about what is around him.

“He is not bothered about any pressure at all, he is just enjoying his football. All the lads are happy he can contribute with a goal and it is great for him. He was brilliant.”

Shaw himself has been in confident mood and thriving either as a traditional left-back and left centre-half when manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has employed a back three.

“Whenever you are on the pitch, you have to enjoy it as much as possible. I have been playing in a different position which I am enjoying,” Luke said.

“It is great to be playing and you always have to have a smile on your face.

“It is nice for the manager to be able to play me in two different positions. It is also great for the manager that he has Brandon Williams. He has been doing amazing when he’s played and he is a wonderful talent.

“The manager could play me and him at the same time, which I have enjoyed doing. Whenever and wherever the manager wants me to play, I will play for him and the team.“

WHERE OLE PLANS TO PLAY FERNANDES

Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer feels Bruno Fernandes is similar to his former team-mates Paul Scholes and Juan Sebastian Veron in the way that he performs on the pitch.

The boss believes his new recruit will make a huge difference to the way United operate as other players will be encouraged to make runs, knowing he will deliver the right passes.

Although he has already switched positions in midfield, it is likely that the Portugal international will primarily be used in the no.10 slot in order to attack defences.

“Now we’ve got the no.10 or attacking midfielder nailed down,“ said Solskjaer. “Hopefully, he’ll keep fit and keep producing performances.

“He’s a box-to-box midfielder and can do everything a midfielder can. He’s similar, as I said, to Veron and Scholes. Sone games he’ll play in a two, and some games he’ll play attacking midfielder or a 10. He’s played every position in midfield.”

The forwards will benefit from Fernandes's promptings and the early signs are looking positive after his passes led to goals for both Anthony Martial and Mason Greenwood. The former Sporting Lisbon star also floated a ball on to Harry Maguire's head but the big defender planted it wide in the second half.

“Bruno has come in to be a very important player,” added Ole. “We’ve needed that type of player. He knows he’s here to play. One of the good things about him is he takes risks with the ball, like Veron did.

“I used to love playing with Seba because you’d run and you’d get the ball. If he doesn’t hit you, at least he’s looking for you and that’s what Bruno does. That will encourage players to make more runs, I hope, because there aren’t enough of them still.”

Bruno was a clear Man of the Match in the Official App, registering a whopping 81 per cent of the vote, well clear of Martial and Greenwood.

He made five crosses, drew the most fouls and was second only to Nemanja Matic in terms of distance covered from a United perspective, third overall behind Watford's Will Hughes.

MAN-OF-THE-MATCH VOTING

1. Bruno Fernandes - 81%
2. Anthony Martial - 5%
3. Mason Greenwood - 4%

GREEDY GREENWOOD WANTS MORE GOALS FOR UNITED

Mason Greenwood is greedy for goals and is determined to swell his Manchester United senior account.

The 18-year-old Reds Academy product crashed in his 11th goal of the campaign against Watford in our 3-0 Premier League win at Old Trafford.

Greenwood scored his opening first team goal back in September when he struck the winner in a 1-0 Europa league win against FC Astana.

He’s been bagging them at a pretty steady rate since, and our Bradford-born striker admits he wouldn’t have believed anyone who’d told him he’d have this many in February but doesn’t want to stop here.

“It was an amazing feeling scoring,“ Mason told MUTV after the full-time whistle. “I am just working hard for the team and I’m happy with my goals and I will carry on working hard to get more goals.”

“To have 11 goals is amazing and I want more and more. I will just carry on working hard.”

Whilst his own was a eye-catching hit, Greenwood also had praise for United’s other scorers in the victory.

Bruno Fernandes scored an impudent penalty to open his own Reds account and Anthony Martial scored his third in less than a week with a superb, audacious finish.

The Portuguese international midfielder has made a great impact since joining the club last month in the transfer window and provided the much-needed breakthrough in a tough opening 45 minutes for the Reds against the Hornets.

“We played well and it could have been more but we got the win. Getting three points was the most important thing,” added Greenwood.

“It was important to go in at half time ahead because it was an end to end game. So when Bruno went through and got the penalty, and then getting the goal it was a feeling of relief. It gave us a boost for the second half.

“Bruno’s a top person. He helps the team in every way possible both attacking and defending. It is great to have him at the club. It is great to see him playing at Old Trafford and score his first goal. I am sure there is going to be more of that.

“It looks like he has been here for years and he’s settled in nice and sweet. He is part of the group now and part of the team.

“Anthony’s goal was brilliant. What can you say? It is Anthony Martial. He did what he does in front of goal. Well done to him.”