Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
Shaw just wants Mourinho to trust him again
MANCHESTER UNITED left-back Luke Shaw didn’t even merit a place on the bench as his side were crushed 4-0 by Chelsea on Sunday but he hopes an injury to Eric Bailly will give him the chance to regain manager Jose Mourinho’s trust.
Centre-back Bailly could be out of action for up to two months after picking up a knee injury against Chelsea, which could see Daley Blind shifted from the left to replace him and open up a spot for Shaw.
Shaw has had a mixed start to the campaign and lost his place in the starting XI after Mourinho publicly criticised the 21-year-old following United’s loss at Watford last month.
“It’s normal you’re frustrated on Sunday because I would have loved to play in that game (against Chelsea),” Shaw said. “But it obviously wasn’t meant to be and at the end of the day it is the manager’s decision.
“Obviously with the injury with Eric now it might be my time to step up and show the manager what I can do and that he can trust me.”
Shaw started at left- back on Wednesday in United’s 1-0 win over Manchester City in the League Cup. United, who are seventh in the table, host 14th-placed Burnley in the Premier League at Old Trafford today.
● Tottenham Hotspur take on league champions Leicester City at White Hart Lane today as genuine title contenders, says Spurs’ former captain Ledley King.
Having gone toe-to-toe with the Foxes last season before finishing third, Tottenham are unbeaten in the league this term and sit fifth, just one point behind leaders City.
“Everyone wanted to see how Spurs would bounce back after the end of last season and I think they’ve shown they are a team that have to be taken seriously as title contenders,” King said.
“I’ve been very impressed with them so far this season. Even when the team haven’t played to their best they’ve still managed to find a way to get a result, and that’s what you need to do if you want to be a team that tries to win the league.”
By contrast, Leicester have struggled to repeat the form that won them the title for the first time in their history, losing four of their nine league games so far, one more than in the entire 2015-16 campaign.
King, whose career was interrupted and eventually finished by recurring knee injuries, expects Spurs to ignore any temptation to see today’s match as a chance to settle a score. “The team won’t be looking at this game as an opportunity to get one over on them, said the 36-yearold, who is now an ambassador for the club.
“They’ll be very focused on the agenda and that is winning games no matter who they are playing against.
“It’s going to be a difficult game. Leicester don’t need much of the ball but they’re dangerous on the counter so it’s not a game we can take lightly.”
King doesn’t believe either side will be affected by their respective Champions League matches which follow next week. “On Saturday, the players will be focused on the 90 minutes in front of them,” he added. “Obviously involvement in the Champions League is great for both clubs, but this is the bread and butter.
“If you want the opportunity to play in those big games then you’ve got to do well in the league, so it’s important their focus is on this game.”
King, who retired in July 2012 having made 268 appearances for the London club, admitted watching Mauricio Pochettino’s Tottenham team leaves him envious at times.
“This is a Spurs side I would have loved to play in, for sure. They’re very defensively solid but this team has a great work ethic,” he said.
“When you’re a defender and you see the players in front of you working hard to make sure you don’t con- cede, it makes everyone’s job easier.”
● Liverpool have found their identity under manager Jurgen Klopp, who has transformed the Reds into genuine title contenders this season, former United boss Alex Ferguson has said.
Liverpool have won nine of their 12 games in all competitions this season and are third in the league.
“He has done a really good job and revived Liverpool’s enthusiasm,” Ferguson, who won the league 13 times, said. “It can happen that big clubs lose it. For two decades, Liverpool changed managers without building their own identity.
“You can now well and truly sense that you have to count them in this year. You can see Klopp’s dedication on the sideline, I’m convinced his work in training is similar. He’s a strong personality. That’s absolutely vital at a big club.
“I’m worried about him because the one thing United don’t want is Liverpool to get above us.” – Reuters