Dalot: Players don’t deserve backing we get from our fans
United defender determined to repay ‘special’ supporters at Wembley and manager who took ‘the bullets’ this season
It is 2½ weeks since Manchester United capitulated at Crystal Palace, but one scene from Selhurst Park remains scorched in Diogo Dalot’s mind as he heads into tomorrow’s FA Cup final.
A shambolic 4-0 surrender brought up Premier League defeat No 13 of the campaign – there would still be a 14th to follow – but, as United’s players assembled sheepishly in front of the travelling fans, they were met not with boos and derision, but an extraordinary show of support.
Dalot stood at the front of the group alongside an almost embarrassed Casemiro, who had endured a particularly difficult night, as United supporters belted out chorus after chorus of “Oh United, we love you!” while applauding the players who had just let them down, again.
That stirring reaction in the face of such an abject performance has stayed with the Portugal defender and, as he looked ahead to a second successive Cup final against Manchester City, he pointed to it as just one example of why the players feel they owe the fans one at Wembley.
“Listen, I’m going to be really honest with you, after that game against Palace, the way the fans were supporting us, it was almost like a feeling that we didn’t deserve that,” Dalot said. “After you concede four goals against Palace, they were still there, pushing us, after the awful game we had. This is the type of thing that shows why these fans are special.
“They are always expecting something special so we’re going into the game on Saturday to try to give them a special afternoon.”
After a torrid season in which United slumped to their lowest league position – eighth – for 34 years, finished with a negative goal difference and were dumped out of the Champions League at the group stage, the Cup final offers the chance at least to end the campaign on a high. Whether it proves to be Erik ten Hag’s last game in charge remains to be seen, but Dalot says the squad are right behind a manager who has taken full responsibility for the struggles and continued to defend his players, even in the face of the most severe criticism.
“Yeah, obviously, we look to him as our leader,” Dalot said when asked if the players also felt an obligation to win for Ten Hag. “Normally this is what leaders do – they always take the bullets for everyone. But make no mistake about it, we take responsibility for what we do on the pitch.
“He tries to give his best, we try to give our best, but this is the type of connection we need to have, with players and with the manager, and we have a good connection with him.”
Dalot was an unused substitute at Wembley 12 months ago, when United were unable to halt City en route to their treble, but he will be one of the first names on the teamsheet this time around as they seek to exact some retribution and deny the Premier League champions an unprecedented double Double.
In a season in which United’s squad have routinely been decimated by injuries, no outfield player has made more starts than Dalot’s 47 across all competitions and he has just been named the players’ player of the year. For that, he says, he has to thank the 16 months he spent watching, studying and speaking with compatriot Cristiano Ronaldo at Old Trafford.
“I’ve become a bit more obsessed about being physically and mentally available for every game,” Dalot explains. “During the early stages of my career I had some problems with injuries so that was something that was consuming me.
“So I became a little bit more obsessed, especially after meeting Cristiano and spending a lot of time with him – having this obsession about being available.”
Dalot is wearing a Whoop band, which allows him to monitor his sleep, fitness, recovery and general health, and admits it would take a while to reel off his daily routines. “I think the secret is being consistent, doing it every day, which I think is the most difficult thing,” he said.
Dalot has routinely found himself switched between right and left-back this season and, while he will not use injuries as an excuse, he admits it has been difficult for the team to establish rhythms, patterns and understandings. “Obviously you are not going to play in a season with the same people every time, but I don’t remember having the same back four for three or four games in a row,” he said. “These are the kinds of routines and dynamics that I am talking about.”
It would be easy to think City already had one hand on the trophy such is the expectation of them winning at Wembley, but Dalot says that serves only as an extra source of motivation. “It gives me more energy,” he said. “You shouldn’t be the underdog when you’re at Manchester United, but at the same time we’re facing a team that has been dominating English football – whether we like it or not – and we want to be there. We want to be the team in the future that everyone thinks is going to win automatically. I don’t want to be in this position.”