LONDON • Jesse Lingard believes his good-natured competition with teammate Marcus Rashford, including goal and assist targets for each player, has helped bring the best out of them and drive Manchester United's bid to climb into the Premier League's top four.
Lingard and Rashford were reported to have feared their careers could stall due to Jose Mourinho's volatile temperament.
But, freed from their previous manager's shackles since Ole Gunnar Solskjaer took over as interim boss, the England internationals have been in fine form.
With nine goals between them since the Norwegian arrived, the good friends have given United's attack a more menacing look in recent weeks.
Rashford got the first goal of the Solskjaer reign, against Cardiff, and Lingard struck twice in that 5-1 rout.
Having netted the winner in United's 1-0 victory at Leicester last weekend, Rashford has now scored in six of his side's eight league games under Solskjaer.
"Marcus and me have been setting targets for each other to challenge ourselves," Lingard said. "Obviously it's different aims, maybe in certain games it's how many shots, or this many touches in a game.
"It's just different random things, just to make you think and it's to kind of push each other because you want your friend to be successful as well. I'm not going to go into the amount of numbers involved because then everyone will know."
FRIENDLY COMPETITION
It's just different random things, just to make you think and it's to kind of push each other because you want your friend to be successful as well.
JESSE LINGARD, Manchester United forward, on him and teammate Marcus Rashford setting various targets for each other.
Solskjaer has earned praise for inspiring his side's 10-match unbeaten run since replacing the sacked Mourinho in December.
With seven victories in eight league games, fifth-placed United have surged back into the race to qualify for next season's Champions League via a top-four finish.
United sit just two points behind Chelsea and can end this weekend in fourth place if they beat struggling Fulham at Craven Cottage today and Maurizio Sarri's team lose at Manchester City tomorrow.
The Red Devils also host Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 on Tuesday and face Chelsea in the FA Cup fifth round later this month.
If Solskjaer can lead United to silverware and finish in the top four, it might be hard for the Glazer family and executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward to ignore his credentials for the manager's post on a permanent basis.
Fulham manager Claudio Ranieri feels the former United striker has already proved he deserves the job.
"At the moment, he deserves it. He's shown all the players are with him. Manchester United's mentality has changed. Why not?" said Ranieri, whose side are second bottom after one win in their past five league games.
Another player who has flourished under Solskjaer's watch is Phil Jones. United rewarded the defender with a new deal that will keep him at Old Trafford until 2023.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS
FULHAM V MAN UNITED
Singtel TV Ch102 & StarHub Ch227, 8.30pm
Apr 20, 2016 · B arcelona bounced back from their worst run of La Liga defeats for 13 years in emphatic fashion as Luis Suarez scored four in an 8-0 thrashing of Deportivo la Coruna on Wednesday. Ivan Rakitic, Lionel Messi, Marc Bartra and Neymar were also on target as Barca reasserted their control on the Spanish title race.
Barça celebrates the 2018/19 LaLiga title at Camp Nou - YouTube
Hammers pack a punch: Klopp. Despite doubts over key West Ham players such as midfielder Samir Nasri, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is still expecting to face "a really good football team".
Hammers pack a punch: Klopp - theworldnews.net
Football: Qatar players cleared in eligibility row just before Asian Cup final against four-time champs Japan. Feb 1, 2019, 9:55 pm. Eligibility row no concern for Qatar. Feb 1, 2019, 5:00 am
Asian Cup 2019 UAE - worldfootball.net
Emery wary of Valencia's recovery potential in 2nd leg. Ex-Barca great Xavi to go into coaching. Landmark decision opens 'Pandora's box' premium. Semenya victimised, vilified for who she is.
Unai Emery insists Arsenal will attack Valencia in second leg
But with nine changes to the side that beat Newcastle United in midweek, United's fourth straight Premier League win since Solskjaer replaced sacked Jose Mourinho, it was an unconvincing display
Solskjaer unimpressed as United ease past Reading in Cup
Radojko "Raddy" Avramovic, former Singapore head coach, gave Baihakki his Lions debut "We brought in young lads in that squad… he was in that generation and we worked with them to prepare them for the national team. Some of them had earlier opportunities to play, some later but most of that generation played nearly ten years (or more).
'Time for a Singaporean to be The Lions' head coach'
WOLFSBURG, Germany (REUTERS) - Germany's new-look team made a promising return to the international stage with a 1-1 draw against Serbia in a friendly on Wednesday (March 20), showing signs of improvement following a disastrous 2018.
New-look Germany make promising start with Serbia draw
The 20-woman squad will be looking to edge a step closer to next year's tournament, with a win on June 8 moving the Lionesses to 16 points and put their destiny in their own hands. Arsenal's Beth Mead keeps her place in the squad, as does Fran Kirby, and Neville expects Russia to focus on England's attacking prowess.
Messi's motivation spurs on Barcelona, says Rakitic. BARCELONA: Ivan Rakitic has said Lionel Messi's desire to win the Champions League is proving an inspiration for Barcelona ahead of their Champions League semi-final first leg against Liverpool on Wednesday.
Messi's motivation spurs on Barcelona, says Rakitic
feb 27, 2019 football news Sadio Mane and Virgil van Dijk both scored twice as Liverpool returned to winning ways with a dominant performance against Watford to stay top of the Premier League. Jurgen Klopp's side were 2-0 up in 20 minutes at Anfield as Senegal forward Mane headed the first before doubling the lead with an outrageous backheel
Stylish Liverpool thrash Watford 5-0 to stay top of league
The hat-trick is a big-time return on Juventus's investment in Ronaldo with qualification for the last eight reportedly worth 105mn euros ($118mn). Ronaldo said he also hopes to play a role
0 comments:
Post a Comment