Jesse Lingard has joined Wayne Rooney to form a very small group of Manchester United forwards asking fans and media to place accountability for the Red Devils woes on the players themselves, instead of on Manager Louis van Gaal.
“With the results, it’s not the manager’s fault, we’ve been on the pitch playing,” Lingard said, echoing the statements of Rooney.
“You’ve seen that we can get results we need if we put our mind to it.”
Both Lingard and Rooney scored yesterday (along with Anthony Martial) as United routed Stoke City 3-0. The victory gave the Red Devils three wins in their last four, and 5/7 for the calendar year 2016.
However, 2015 ended with a disastrous stretch as the team went winless in eight matches. It led calls for Van Gaal to be sacked, and deservedly so.
Lingard admits all the Van Gaal sack watch has had an adverse effect on the team.
“It has been difficult, but most of us have shown great character to get through the tough stages and as long as we’ve got the fans behind us we’ll come through the storm”
“It’s hard, but we have to concentrate on the game,” Lingard said. “We can’t let the fans influence how we play. We are on the pitch.”
Paul M. Banks owns, operates and sometimes writes The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with FOX Sports Engage Network. The website is also featured on News Now.
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