Ashley Young Interview

OK, we’ll admit it. We’ve been feeling a bit down in the dumps about United’s results recently. The recent 2-2 draw against Fulham, defeat against Stoke… it can get you down, right?

That’s not to say we’ll ever stop cheering the lads on, or chanting their names, but we need a pick-me-up, someone who can see past the doom and gloom, put a reassuring arm around our shoulders and tell us everything is going to be alright.

Step forward Ashley Young, who’s packed full of optimism. Here, the winger talks about team morale, how important the fans are and even — lucky underpants!

RR: Since we spoke to you a couple of years ago, we’ve got a new manager and new coaching staff. What’s the biggest difference you’ve noticed? There are a lot of stories about how the amount of running has increased…

From the time the manager came in, it was preseason time, so obviously there’s always going to be running. There’s always that work ethic, though, wanting to work hard. Obviously you need to work hard in preseason, but it’s always tough no matter who you are under. Tony Strudwick works us hard and the aim is to get fit for the new season.

RR: You’ve been getting a few starts at the moment, and a couple of great goals, especially the one against Cardiff. You must be pleased with that?

As a player you always want to be involved, and I’ve been starting of late and it’s nice to get the added bonus of getting on the score sheet. Hopefully one of the goals that I’ve scored will be goal of the season (laughs)! But it’s more so the performance and getting the three points that matters. It’s been tough of late, with different things not going our way, but we just want to get back to winning ways and get that winning feeling back at the club.

RR: At United, results are always in the spotlight. How is morale at the moment?

It’s always good. The morale and the team spirit is always high. The characters in the squad help that. We’re disappointed when we lose and when things don’t go our way. You feel down, of course. But the team and the squad comes together and we take that bond that we’ve got with each other out on the pitch. United is the biggest club in the world and always in the spotlight for people to comment on. But we know what we are as a club, and as a whole. It’s just the way you bounce back. There have been times when we’ve bounced back and had another thing happen, and we’ve had to dust ourselves off and go again. But the morale and team spirit has always been high.

RR: Against Stoke, we were bossing the game, in control. Then we get Jonny Evans injured, Phil Jones injured, Michael Carrick had to play centre half, we get a mad deflected goal against us and it felt as if the team bus had run over a black cat on the way to the stadium, so many things went wrong.

That’s exactly the same as we felt. We were totally dominating that game and their goal was their first shot. We’d got everyone back fit for that game and thought that this is the time to really have a go at Stoke. Then we get Jonny injured, and not long after that Phil goes up for a header and he’s injured and you have to reshuffle. Even when we came out for the second half and we got our goal and it was back to 1-1 we looked like we were the only team that was going to go on and win it, until they scored that great goal. But the way they got that second goal, one of their lads miss-kicked the ball which then went to Charlie Adam who scored.

RR: The Old Trafford faithful are being very supportive, considering what’s happening results-wise at the moment. How much does it affect you on the pitch when the fans get behind you?

The support we’ve had at Old Trafford has been fantastic. Things haven’t been going as well as in previous years, but the fans have been like a 12th man. When you’ve got the fans behind you from the first whistle you want to go out there and do your best for them. You want to hear the fans singing all of the time and they’ve really been doing that, home and away. They’ve been fantastic.

RR: When you’re actually playing, are you conscious of the singing, or are you more focussed on the match?

You’re more focussed on the game but you do hear the singing and especially when you hear that roar at Old Trafford. When you hear that, and 70-odd thousand singing, it’s fantastic.

RR: Do you have any match day superstitions?

Ha, not any lucky underpants or anything like that! But I do put everything on starting from the left, so I’ll put my left arm through my top first when I’m putting that on, my left leg in my shorts and my left boot on first. I’m not too sure why, but it’s something I’ve always done.

RR: The Champions League starts again
soon, are you looking forward to that, because it can be a bit of a change from the league?

Yes. The Champions League games are amazing, it’s a different vibe. Even just the Champions League anthem! With the game coming up over two legs, it’s not going to be easy but having the second leg back at Old Trafford is vitally important for us. Everybody affiliated to the club is looking forward to it. The players are definitely excited.

RR: The away leg against Olympiakos will be in a partially closed stadium. Could it be in United’s favour that Olympiakos will have a reduced crowd?

I think so, yes. When you’re playing at home you want all of your fans there. When you’re playing with part of the stadium closed off, that takes away part of the crowd. We’re going to have fantastic support, our allocation is great and I’m sure they’ll get right behind us.

RR: United’s away support is amazing, wherever you are in the world…

Oh yes. I’ve said that from the moment I joined. When I played in Europe that first season I kept saying that it was unbelievable. I couldn’t believe how many fans travel away in Europe and how much noise they make. Even coming through the airports and all the fans are there. It’s amazing support and it’s a credit to them that they want to travel and support their team.

RR: Some of the big clubs could knock each other out in this round. Assuming we get through, are there any clubs you’d like to avoid?

There are always times when you can say we don’t want this team, or we don’t fancy facing that team. But you do have to beat the best to win this competition and at some point you’re going to come up against a very good team. I don’t think we should hope to avoid anyone. You want to be tested against the best.

RR: What effect has Juan Mata had on the team? Apart from his skill, he seems like a really nice, balanced chap…

From the first day he came in and was introduced to everybody, you could tell that he was going to fit straight into the squad. I think that’s the same with every player here, though. When you come to Man United, the team, the boys welcome you with open arms. I had that when I came from Villa and I think you need that when you’re trying to settle into a team. The quicker you settle in the better and Juan is one of those guys who has settled in straight away. He’s not been here long, and he’s settled on the pitch. He’s still learning the way we play, but he’s a fantastic player. When you see world-class players coming through the door and starting that competition for places in the first team, it’s exciting times. When you play at a club like United you’ve always got to be on your toes.

RR: What sort of pressure, if any, do you feel when you see players like Adnan Januzaj coming into the team?

When you see youngsters coming up and you’re starting to get a bit older, you want to see the youngsters coming in and doing well. Adnan is a level-headed kid, a fantastic player. He’s definitely one, if not now, for the future. He’s going to be one of the greats here. The media sometimes hype young players up so much, to the point where it can make them crack. But with Adnan, I can’t see it happening. He just wants to go out and play, he has that love and hunger for football.

RR: He seems to have a good temperament?

He just wants to do well. He’s exciting to watch in games, and in training.

RR: We had another disappointing result against Fulham at home, but you’ve got to be seeing this month as a chance to string results together?

Yes, definitely. This is our chance to go on a bit of a run. There are no easy games, but we’ve got to get ourselves back to winning ways from now until the end of the season. We still have every chance of getting into the top four, and into those Champions League places, and I think winning every game from now until the end of the season is where we’ve got to set our stall out.

RR: I’ve definitely noticed over the past two or three years, the quality seems to have got better and all of the clubs are trying to play good football, such as West Brom earlier in the season and Sunderland now. There really are no easy games…

That’s what everyone is saying nowadays. The old Wimbledon days are gone. They all want to try to play. The coaches are now teaching everyone how to play and the kids from an early age are learning how to play out from the back.