Krishnan Sreekumar
Manchester United defender Alex Telles believes derby match with rivals Liverpool will be decided by fine margins
Speaking exclusively to MUTV ahead of tonight’s trip to Anfield, as quoted by the club’s official website, Manchester United defender Alex Telles believes that the derby against Liverpool will be decided by fine margins.
United are set to take on the Reds tonight in a crucial Premier League game for both teams. While Liverpool are looking to mount the pressure on table-toppers Manchester City until the end of the season, the Red Devils are looking to stay on course to snatch fourth place in the league table.
Telles said that everyone was highly motivated for a ‘clasico’ of such nature, saying that from his experience of playing in derbies, it will be important to concentrate and focus on the fine details, as those margins decide the result in such games.
“You’re already highly motivated for a ‘clasico’ by the nature of such a big game. We don’t need any additional motivation given the atmosphere and emotion. “From my previous experience [of playing in derbies] I think it’s important to concentrate. Derbies are decided by details and the team that focuses more on the fine details will win.”
The 29-year-old previously played for Porto in the Primeira Liga, facing off against Portuguese giants Benfica in one of the most hostile football derbies in Europe. Now, he has his chance to make his mark against Liverpool and win the hearts of United fans all over.
“It will be a difficult game”
Telles has been playing understudy to Luke Shaw this term, but with the Englishman consistently being hampered by injury issues and lack of form at times, the left-back has played a lot more games than expected. With Shaw still unavailable for tonight’s game, Telles is expected to start in defence.
The Brazilian said that no additional motivation was required for the team to have a good game at a tough away ground, saying that representing Manchester United made sure they were motivated and were aware of their duty.
“I don’t think any additional motivation is required to have a good game at a tough away ground. We’re representing Manchester United, we are all motivated and aware of our duty. It will be a difficult game, though we’re preparing for the game to win it.”
Although a defender, Telles is known for his bombarding runs forward and his ability to whip in crosses from the flanks to create scoring opportunities for his forwards. He did exactly that over the weekend, providing an assist for Cristiano Ronaldo from a corner as United ran out 3-2 winners at home.
However, this same attacking nature of his has seen him chase behind opposition strikers and be dragged out from his position to give them chances to score. This weakness of his too was seen on display against the Canaries, as Teemu Pukki ran in behind him to score a goal.
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Telles will need to mix up his strengths and cover up his weaknesses against Liverpool tonight, who will be ruthless in attack against the Red Devils. They managed to put five goals past a hapless United defence at Old Trafford earlier in the season, and they will look to repeat that feat once again against their arch-rivals.
Like the Brazil international said, derbies of this magnitude are decided by the fine details, and Telles will need to use all his focus on sticking to his tasks and responsibilities throughout the game. A top-four finish is in the balance at the moment, and we need to be at our very best against the Reds to continue our climb up the Premier League table.
