EXCLUSIVE: SCOTT REACTS TO NEW UNITED CONTRACT

Scott McTominay has spoken of his delight at signing a new long-term contract with Manchester United and the midfielder insists he’s focused on achieving success for the team, while showing budding youngsters that anything is possible with hard work.

The 23-year-old has committed his future to the club for at least another five years, with an option to extend for a further 12 months thereafter. During this interview with club reporter Mark Sullivan, McTominay explains how he wants to be a role model for others…

Scott, firstly congratulations on signing a new long-term contract with Manchester United – how does it feel?
“Thank you very much. Obviously it’s an amazing feeling to commit my future for many more years to come and hopefully they’ll be brilliant years for myself and the team and everybody involved so I’m made up.”

The contract lasts until 2025 with an option to extend for a further year, what does that say about Ole’s and the club’s faith and confidence in you?
“Obviously for me every time I train and step out on the pitch I give my best for the manager and the coaching staff and the players around me, and I’ll continue to do that throughout the duration I’m here and long may it be as many years as possible.”

You’re only 23 with 75 games already under your belt for United, scoring six goals and you’re a full international for Scotland – how much are you enjoying your football and all the hard work you’ve put in to get to this stage?
“Obviously it’s a huge credit to my family, they’re the reason behind me getting to the position I’m in today. All the years they took me back and forth to Manchester, it’s a real credit to them and now is a great chance for them to see me go on and hopefully do really well for this football club. In general I want to thank the fans and everybody involved, including the coaches from the past who have had a tremendous influence on my career and hopefully with the manager and coaching staff we’ve got now we can go on to do really well and win some trophies as well.”

Ole has said that the Academy is the bedrock of our club – you’ve come through it and know the system and have known the club from a young age – how much has that helped you with your integration into the first team?
“The manager is not wrong and has hit the nail on the head! [Smiles] You see other boys in the same situation to myself like Marcus [Rashford] and Jesse [Lingard] and Axel [Tuanzebe], boys who are doing tremendously well, and I want to be a role model for younger kids growing up and show them how you can get to a certain level with the first team. That’s by maintaining hard work throughout a number of years and for me that hard work doesn’t stop, it continues, and that’s the way I’ve been brought up through the football club. There are obviously a lot of other things going on in the world right now which are far more important than what’s happening with me, but it’s a real pleasure to be involved with this football club and hopefully going forward we’ll do really well.”

It’s still a young team isn’t it with plenty of room for growth – how excited are you about the future for Ole and this side?
“Very excited. You see the team we’ve got now and it’s amazing. For everybody from the outside looking in they should be saying that we’ve got a real chance to go and do really well. For us we have to keep our feet on the ground, keep training well every day and listen to the coaching staff and the ideas they’re portraying to us and put that into practice on the pitch. It’s strange with no fans at the minute but hopefully in time we’ll be able to get back to normal and resume where we left off after the last game.”

Finally, what would you say to the United fans worldwide who give you so much support?
“I’d say to them it’s an absolute honour to play for you and play in front of you every week. I’m somebody who gives absolutely everything for this football club and the badge that I’m wearing. Their support means more than they could ever imagine and I just want to keep doing well, keep trying to score goals and stay in the team. It’s been a pleasure so far but we’re not done yet.”