Manchester United’s Ashley Young has suggested the team are focused on a Premier League title challenge after topping the table due to Manchester City slipping up at Tottenham Hotspur.
It was a great weekend for the Red Devils with a 3-0 win over Sunderland ensuring they maintain a strong start. Also, City and Chelsea dropped points meaning Louis van Gaal’s side remain confident for a busy October.
It’s been a couple years since United last won silverware, namely the league title in 2013 during Sir Alex Ferguson’s last year before retirement. Under David Moyes, United bowed out of the Champions League against Bayern Munich whereas in Louis van Gaal’s first season, the team lost to Arsenal in the quarterfinals of the FA Cup after the infamous Angel di Maria red card. They also lost to MK Dons in their first match of the Capital One Cup so improvement has been on the agenda for a while.
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As such, Ashley Young and the rest of the squad are determined to win a competition this year and when Talking with MUTV, the Englishman says the team is aiming to fight for every trophy this campaign:
"“We came into the season saying we wanted to fight for the title. A club like United wants to fight for everything we’re involved in – the league, the Champions League and both the cup competitions. We want to get ourselves back to winning silverware.”"
United got off to a good start in the League Cup, beating Ipswich Town 3-0. Unfortunately, the Champions League began on a negative note with a 2-1 loss away to PSV Eindhoven and they have a chance to correct that on Wednesday this week. The bigger loss of the match, however, was the injury to Luke Shaw.
Commenting on the young left-back’s progression following his horrific injury, Young echoed his manager’s sentiments of Shaw’s positive attitude:
"“Everyone has been in touch with him. I have personally spoken to him quite a bit. As the manager said he’s very positive,. He’s got to stay that way because obviously it’s a long road to recovery. But he’ll have the medical department looking after and knowing exactly what he needs to do to come back.”"
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"“Even the day after it happened he was positive and upbeat which I think for a lot of the players and staff was surprising after such a horrific injury, and when he returns to the training ground everyone will be there for him.”"
In the full-back’s absence, Young had to step in to fill the void against Ipswich due to injuries to Marcos Rojo and Paddy McNair. Last season, the 30-year-old performed well in the left-wing-back position, giving him the confidence to do so again this year in order to contribute to the title push:
"“I’m a versatile player who can play there as well as on the wing,” Ashley said. “I played there during the week in the cup and if the manager calls upon me to play there again I’ll go out there and give 110 per cent as I always do.“I feel comfortable at left-back and playing wing-back. It’s a different role for me compared to left wing or left midfield, there’s more of the defensive side to think about but I’m capable of doing that. I felt comfortable and, as I said, if the manager picks me to play there I’ll do everything I need to do.”"
If Young’s message of putting the team first resonates throughout the squad, United could have the talent and the mentality to vie for the Premier League crown. It may be extremely early on in the season, but the team has shown signs of being champion contenders.