Manchester United midfielder Ander Herrera was one of the team’s most valuable players last season, and certainly one of the best, most consistent performers. He’s a good gauge of where the team is at as a whole, as the Spaniard has adopted a leadership role with the club. In public speaking opportunities, he often voices his opinion on what level he thinks the team is at, and how far they need to go.
Following the 3-0 preseason friendly win over Valerenga in Oslo, Norway on Sunday, the stellar midfielder said: “I know we have to improve in the Premier League, but we were the only team to win three pieces of silverware last season so we have to say that as well.”
“In the Premier League we have to improve, we want to fight for the title, but we know it’s not going to be easy to repeat the three titles.”
The three pieces of silverware he’s referring to are of course the Community Shield victory over Leicester City, the League Cup title in which they beat Southampton in the final, and the UEFA Europa League triumph (the first in club history) against Ajax in Stockholm. The last one is the only win which had a lot of lasting deeper significance, as it got them back into the UEFA Champions League. Overall, you could call the triad a bit of a “plastic treble,” as they are mostly minor trophies.
Since Sir Alex Ferguson guided the club to their 20th league title in 2013, United have not finished higher than fourth in 2015 under Louis van Gaal.
Although Jose Mourinho became the first manager in United history to win a trophy in his first year on the job last season, the stakes are much higher this year. For Ander Herrera and company, it’s now about competing for the league title.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net and TheBank.News, partnered with FOX Sports Engage Network and News Now. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, currently contributes regularly to WGN CLTV.
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