00:00Hi Michael, team news if you don't mind, Mattias Cunha, Luke Shaw, De Ligt, is there any other
00:06people that we need to be wary of?
00:08No, we're in good shape really, Mattias has done a little bit of work so we're hopeful,
00:16we're not sure but we're hopeful, so obviously it matters still a little bit further, he's
00:21not involved in the game but other than that, they're in good shape.
00:27Obviously yesterday the club announced Cobby Main who signed his new deal until 2031, how
00:32big a boost is that to the club and I saw Jason Wilcox describing him as one of the most
00:35naturally
00:36gifted young footballers in the world, what's your take on him?
00:41Yeah, I've been hugely impressed with Cobby since I've been here, I think I've known him
00:46quite some time in different capacities but I've certainly been aware of him for a long
00:52time and he epitomises this football club, young players coming through the academy, living
01:02and breathing the club and coming through with real talent and showing what he's doing.
01:09I think the last couple of games particularly I think he's been fantastic and a natural thing
01:13and the evolution is to obviously sign a new contract so everyone's over the moon with that
01:18including me because I think he deserves it.
01:23Michael, when we spoke to you a couple of weeks ago about Leeds, obviously we spoke about
01:27the rivalry and you've not played that often against them, clearly you've played quite often
01:33against Liverpool, would you still regard it as the biggest game for Manchester United no
01:39matter where the clubs are in the league?
01:43Certainly one of my favourite games, yeah, without doubt, I think it's a standout game, you know,
01:50I think there's obviously big games and big rivalries that we have with other teams but certainly
01:56this one is right up there and the history, the ups and downs that Past has produced in these
02:04types of games and the excitement and entertainment I think it's, and the emotion which is a huge
02:09part of it, it makes it a really special game.
02:11If you think about the game, what thing do you think of first?
02:19I think it's just that edge and that competition really and irrespective of league positions over
02:26the years, of who's been on top at certain times or whatever, it's never really changed
02:32the feeling of the game and the emotion and the supporters and I think it's, and really
02:37appreciating what it means to the supporters, I think we have to do that, it's just a special
02:44game, you know, to be part of and obviously to come out on top is one of the best feelings
02:48you'll get.
02:50Afternoon Michael, to go back to Cobby, he hadn't started a Premier League game until
02:55your return, I just wondered putting football aside though, what was it like to first talk
03:00to him when you came back, because I imagine he probably wasn't full of confidence having
03:03not played a lot of football and maybe having that first maybe dip of the early part of his
03:08career, so what was that like with Cobby the person rather than Cobby as a footballer?
03:14I like all the players, I think, trying to get that connection and their understanding
03:17and building relationships, certainly understanding what it had looked like for Cobby over the
03:23last two, three years and then the ups and the downs and the big highs in some challenging
03:28times and letting him thrive, you know, just giving him that platform to go and be himself
03:34and I think he's evolved, he's improving all the time, I think he can see that, the more
03:39responsibility, the more confidence, the more belief, he keeps adding to his game and
03:43he's certainly done that, but yeah, just giving him that platform and that opportunity
03:48to go and be the best version and he's, as I just said, he's done fantastic with it,
03:54there's more to come, there's loads more to come, I keep saying that for some time because
03:58he's such a young man, you know, but he's in a great spot at the moment.
04:02Stu?
04:04Michael, you said there's loads more to come, by the end of this contract it'll be sort
04:09of his 20s, what do you think he could achieve here, beyond that time?
04:16Well, hopefully he's here for a long time and he's part of successful teams that win
04:21things, win trophies, that has to be the aim, it's not going to be easy, it's not going
04:27to be straightforward, but that's got to be the challenge and that's got to be the aim
04:30of Cobby, is to be the best version of himself and keep pushing, keep improving and certainly
04:36having a platform of a team and the football club that's in a good place to keep pushing
04:40forward as well and we want to be competing for the biggest of trophies and we've done
04:47it in the past and we need to do it again.
04:50Ty?
04:51Hi, Michael.
04:52You've had a very settled team since you've come back and obviously the schedule has helped
04:55with that, but do you think the squad is deep enough or big enough to compete on maybe four
04:59fronts next year and play 60 games rather than 40?
05:02Well, it's certainly a different challenge to what we've had over the last three or four
05:06months, it's a natural one, I think it's where we want to be, so it's a real positive
05:10if that is the case, if we get in the position that we want to finish in the league to
05:16be able
05:16to do that. And obviously evolving all the time, you know, I think always trying to improve,
05:23always trying to be stronger, whether that's quality, whether that's depth, whether that's
05:27the make-up of the squad, the balance of the squad, the balance of the team, constantly
05:31pushing to move forward really.
05:33Jamie?
05:34Hi, Michael.
05:34You played central midfield for this club until you were 36-37, Casemiro's now 33-34, what's
05:40the key to doing it as you get a little bit older, you know, why has Casemiro been so
05:44good this year? And also, do you actually give him any advice or you just don't need
05:47to because he is sort of like quite an accomplished player?
05:50Yeah, I think it's quite interesting in terms of how much you give certain players, even younger
05:57players, you think sometimes you need to help them a lot and give them a lot, other times
06:00you're actually a little bit like Cobby scenario really of knowing when to come off and just
06:05let them develop and let them thrive, there's a little bit, certain players want more than
06:10others and then there's the stage when, you know, there's a lot of experience and you're
06:16kind of crossing the 30 mark and you're in them stages, players are a lot of the time
06:21with a little bit what they are and trusting them to know themselves as well and speaking
06:27to them on a level really where there's an understanding there and certainly with Cassie
06:31that's been the case of knowing what he's good at, what he can bring to the team, trying
06:35to play to his strengths if anything and having a real trust in his experience and the level
06:42that he has and to play for so long at such a level, it takes a lot, it takes a
06:47lot of
06:47sacrifice, it takes a lot of work, it's not easy I think, that was something I was personally
06:52proud of, of sustaining it for a period of time and certain players have different types
06:56of careers, there's big spikes and maybe you have a dip, some players a bit more steady
07:00but to do what he's done over such a long period of time takes a lot of credit, well
07:05it takes a lot of work and a lot of credit for everyone for doing what he has.
07:11Richard?
07:12Hi Michael, you said that Liverpool and United are big game irrespective of league position
07:17but this year there's the chance to finish ahead of them whereas obviously last year
07:22there was a big difference in the table between the clubs and what would it mean this year
07:26if you can?
07:28Yeah, I just think this probably shows the improvements of the group really and getting
07:31stronger and to be coming into this game in such a good position on the back of good results
07:38and trying to achieve and moving forward so fully aware of the situation in the league
07:44and how close it is between us but that's not something really we've focused on going into
07:50this game, I think it's a one-off game, I think they've got some terrific players, they're
07:53a good team, they won the league last year and obviously we respect everything that goes
07:58into the game so we're treating it as that, it's a one-off game, the league position is
08:03what it is but Sunday is a whole different ball game.
08:07David?
08:08Just following on from Simon's question which I was going to ask, what does it say about
08:13the respective standings of yourselves and Liverpool and the kind of enduring global appeal
08:18of both clubs that even though you're not going for the title, even though it's between City
08:21and Arsenal, this is still the standout game, the biggest game and it'll be watched around
08:25the world by tens of millions of fans.
08:27What does that say about the two clubs?
08:32Yeah, first of all it's a real privilege for all of us to be involved in it, in whatever
08:37capacity and I think that's the beauty of football though in the end, we all get wound
08:44up with times in different ways about what's going on week to week, from club to club and
08:49the ups and downs but talking about a career as an individual of sustaining a career but
08:55to sustain a level of performance over a period of time for each football club and then I
09:03think there's a way of how you do it as well and what the standards look like, what it means,
09:08what the behaviours and what you stand for as a football club and I think it's two incredible
09:13football clubs and to be so close together in so many ways, titles and geographical, not
09:23far away, I think to have such an impact for us over such a period of time is quite special
09:29and I think we all appreciate that.
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