00:00Hi Michael, I think when we saw you, when we were seeing you for a pre-match, we thought this
00:04contract thing would have been sorted out once and for all, so for the millionth time, can you tell us
00:08where we're at with things?
00:10Yeah, it was said end of the season pretty much, so we're not far away, a couple of days away,
00:16so yeah, I said to you the other day, but Cloutier is pretty much around the corner and it is
00:23going to be now, but at this stage, I can't really give you any more.
00:28This isn't directly related to Manchester United, obviously, but as a former Middlesbrough manager, you'll be paying as close attention
00:34as anyone to the biggest story in football right now. What have you made of Spygate, the situation and the
00:41outcome?
00:43Yeah, I mean, I'm not close enough to it to understand all the details, to be honest with you, so
00:47the only thing I can say, I mean, it's unfortunate for a lot of people and, you know, a lot
00:56of people were involved in all the football clubs that I've ended up being involved in, all Southampton and Middlesbrough,
01:00so the whole situation is a little bit unfortunate.
01:04But all I can say is that I wish Middlesbrough were all the best, obviously, I've had great times there,
01:10got a lot of friends there and I'd love to see, especially the players and seeing them do well, you
01:16know, they gave everything for me when I was there, the ones that were there, so to see them have
01:20success and end up in the Premier League, I take a lot of pride in that.
01:26Looking ahead to this weekend, first of all, start with the team news, see if there's anything new.
01:32No, not really, no.
01:36We all know, obviously, what's on the line for Brighton, they're chasing a European spot.
01:40For you and this group, what matters to Manchester United, what can you get from this game?
01:46We're certainly conscious of the situation of the game and what's at stake.
01:52I think we've certainly got a responsibility for that, you know, we've managed to put ourselves in a position where
01:57we kind of are the position that we are in the league.
02:03And I've said about we wanted to finish strong and for ourselves as much as anything, so we're approaching the
02:10game as we would any other game.
02:13You know, there's a lot to play for, for Brighton, for Bournemouth, for all the other clubs surrounding that, so
02:18we're well aware of that.
02:21Michael, Casemiro obviously has his big farewell, is he going to be included at Brighton?
02:27And also, you mentioned last week about youngsters and young players, clearly their season's now finished, so will there be
02:35an opportunity for younger players this weekend?
02:39First of all, on Casemiro, I've always kind of decided that last week would be his last game, so I
02:46think that went well, as well as we all could have hoped, to be honest.
02:50And he's been fantastic and I've said a lot of things about Cassie and how well he's done for me
02:55since I've been here and for the whole club.
02:56But, yeah, it was decided that it was a good time for him to finish, really.
03:03So, I think that, again, just saying what the question I've just had about, this club's about bringing young players
03:09through and academy players and younger players, giving them opportunity.
03:13There's a real responsibility that we feel towards the game as well and getting the balance right at certain times
03:18going into games like this.
03:21But, yes, of course, it's an opportunity, depending on how the game goes, to try and make the most of
03:26that because I think it's, you know, we've got some really good young players that we want to try and
03:32take the next steps with, really, and give them the opportunity.
03:35So, hopefully that pans out in a positive way for us.
03:40Michael, just looking a bit further ahead, what do you think the most important factors will be to kind of
03:46build on the positive end to the season over the summer and what do you feel should be the priority
03:51for the club?
03:53As I've said before, I think just keep moving forward in so many ways, you know, it's never finished, it's
03:59never the finished article, it's definitely not in terms of where we want to be as a football club.
04:04I think we're moving in a good direction, I think momentum, positivity and improvements is always, whether that's, sometimes it's
04:12staff, sometimes it's playing squads, sometimes it's new ideas, and just keep evolving as much as we possibly can as
04:18a club.
04:20Hi, Michael.
04:21I've learned a few other scenes outside Arsenal when they won the league on Tuesday.
04:25I'm just wondering, as someone who's in charge at Manchester United, what you made of that?
04:29And it's five different clubs now that have won the league since United last won it, is that kind of
04:33painful for this club and is you in charge for this club to take?
04:37First of all, I'd like to say a huge congratulations to Arsenal and Mikel and the players and all the
04:42staff.
04:42I think when you win the league, you win the league because you deserve it.
04:47So much over such a long period of time needs to be done so well in order to win it,
04:54so they've been really consistent over a number of years now and the patience and the improvement that they've had
04:59have taken steps.
05:01I think they're at a stage now where they deserve to win it.
05:05So, as a football club, of course, that's where we want to be.
05:11We've been there in the past and it doesn't mean necessarily you will always be there again, but that's certainly
05:18as a football club what we're striving for as soon as possible, really.
05:22Hi, Michael.
05:23You're obviously going to finish third and if you're looking above, you're looking at City and Arsenal.
05:27Have you got areas of improvement that you can see that are in your head as where you can possibly
05:32make up ground on those two teams?
05:35There's always improvement, I think, within the squad, of course.
05:41Certain things you want to tweak, certain things, which we have done as we've progressed, really.
05:46So just because it's the end of the season, it doesn't change what we've said from the start.
05:50We came in to try and put things in place and improve for the longer term.
05:54So it's not just because the season's coming to an end that that gets cleared up and whatever happens goes
06:00in a certain direction.
06:01I think we've got a really good foundation of the squad and a good mixture of age in different stages
06:08of the career.
06:10I think we've proved that we're really dangerous and we can score goals, which is exciting and encouraging moving forward,
06:19for sure.
06:21Hi, Michael.
06:22Just on Casemiro, in terms of the pedigree that he came into the club with, is that why, when you
06:27have these discussions about his exit,
06:29that feels like the right thing in terms of an Old Trafford send-off, a nice way for him to
06:32go?
06:32And also, in terms of the Brighton game, gives you an indication as to what the midfield might need, given
06:38he is going to not be here next season?
06:40It just felt the right time, I think, for Cassie, and it was decided, he's part of that as well.
06:47So it was the right time.
06:50There is an element of a balance, like I've just said, about the last game.
06:55It's not, we're not done, you know, the season's not done for us.
06:59So we're really, really conscious of that.
07:04So there's a real balance between trying new things, moving forward, keep evolving.
07:08There's always games that we've tried different things in that some might notice, some people might not notice others.
07:13So I think the biggest thing is that we're really conscious to respect this last game and what it stands
07:17for.
07:18And obviously try and make the best of it for us, you know, we want to go down there and
07:21put in a good performance and try and win the game.
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