Erik ten Hag has described Sunday afternoon's game against Southampton as 'the second part of our rehabilitation' following last Sunday's damaging 7-0 defeat at Liverpool.
United host Southampton at Old Trafford looking to further cement their place in the top four and continue their recovery from last weekend's humiliating defeat at Anfield. The Reds enjoyed a comfortable 4-1 win over Real Betis in their Europa League last-16 first-leg on Sunday, taking a three-goal lead to Seville for next week's return clash.
And a return to domestic action this afternoon can set United back on track to what looks set to be an excellent campaign. Progression into the FA Cup quarter-finals has set up a tie with Fulham next weekend, and with an international break to follow, Sunday's welcoming of Southampton is the only league game before April.
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“Definitely. That is the pressure," Ten Hag told United's in-house media when asked that meant added importance to the game. "We have to deal with it so we have more motivations. Already, I have said it has to be the second part of our rehabilitation.
"Yeah, it’s the last Premier League fixture before we go to the international break. So we need the three points and that’s quite clear. But we have to play our best because we play good opponents. Also, the matter that in the bottom of the Premier League, it’s also really close. They will fight for every yard on the pitch. So we have to be ready to face them and to challenge them.”
Southampton go into the game bottom of the league, following wins on Saturday for Bournemouth and Everton, but the appointment of Ruben Selles has brought with it an air of optimism on the south coast. The young manager took his side to Stamford Bridge and won in his opening game courtesy of a trademark James Ward-Prowse free-kick.
Results like that haven't gone unnoticed at United, and Ten Hag is under no illusions that Sunday's clash will demand a top performance - and the Dutchman has hinted at focus on stopping Ward-Prowse.
“There are no easy games," he added. "We have seen. We have to bring the performance, we have to play to our levels, so it’s all about us. When we play a good opponent, and there are no easy games, when you don’t bring the level, you get punished. Either you lose or you lose strong. We have to avoid that. We have to be ready so we have to recover now and go for part two of our rehabilitation.
“Yeah, he is always an issue when you play against Southampton and you play Ward-Prowse. Don’t give the easy free-kicks because he has the capabilities to net. So don’t bring them in that position because he can. We also have a good goalie to deal with such situations but you don’t want to take that risk.”
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