“He's really down to earth,” the vice-captain explained. “He's quite quiet at the moment, but he might come out of his shell after this! I was talking to him in the changing room and he was talking about the atmosphere, what it means to him and seeing the fans respond, and all that type of thing. “It's a breath of fresh air, you know, and something that you take for granted in many ways, so to see what it means to the young lads and how they responded, is incredible really.” Morgan Schneiderlin has also paid tribute to United’s latest Player of the Month and tipped the youngster for a bright future at the club. “He didn’t train many times with us, but when he did we could see straight away he had quality,” Morgan revealed earlier this week. “Against Midtjylland he showed it, and he showed it again on Sunday. I hope he continues like that, because he is an exciting prospect for the football club.” Rashford’s emergence came as a result of Wayne Rooney, Anthony Martial and Will Keane all being out injured, prompting his promotion from the youth ranks at the 11th hour. Club legend Paddy Crerand has watched his progress within the Academy and has always been confident in his ability. “I’ve known about Marcus for years from watching the Academy games and he’s always stood out like a sore thumb, for both his ability and physique. His name has rightly been splashed across the headlines of late because it’s so rare to score twice on your debut for this club.”
“I am very happy for him as he has been playing well,” Marcos Rojo explained in an interview with MUTV. “It’s not too long since we met and we’ve become mates - he’s also my chauffeur! He takes me to all the matches as we live close by, so he’s been doing all the driving which is fine by me. “In the last few months we have spent a lot of time together and we have become really good mates. He’s a really good guy, a great person and a big player for United.” Juan Mata has also struck up a companionship with young Varela and the Spaniard is impressed by the way he has performed on the flank for United. “I'm very pleased and I'm very happy for him because he is doing very good on the right side,” Juan told MUTV. “He's going forward, he's defending very well, he's being aggressive and he's performing like he has been playing for 10 years before. “That is very difficult when you are young and in a stadium such as Old Trafford. He's a very competitive guy, he's very good for the team and the dressing room so we are very happy for him.” During another interview with MUTV on Friday, Varela was asked how it feels to be praised by Rojo and the 22-year-old prospect was humble in his response, paying tribute to the Argentina international and also explaining why he is not getting carried away with his recent ascension. “Of course, when a team-mate of Rojo’s stature praises you, it gives you great satisfaction – it makes me very happy and I’m really pleased,” Varela told us. “We’re friends beyond the pitch as well, we go to matches together and it’s good to have that relationship inside and outside of the team. “I feel enormous pride in being able to play for a club like Manchester United. I think the important thing is that we keep working, and I want to keep working to keep a regular place in the team so that in time I can reach 50, 100 or 200 games in the shirt.”
Hi everyone, After almost 500 games as a professional player, this Sunday I was sent off for the first time in my career. As you can imagine, it’s not easy for me to write these lines. The truth is this is a new and strange situation for me, not easy to assimilate, but we learn from everything. I know that, in football, we see things like this every week, but obviously what hurts more is that my team-mates had to fight with ten men for a long time. I have the feeling that both decisions were rigorous; that, in many occasions, we see more serious fouls that are not penalised in such a way, but at the same time I could have avoided them and I take responsibility. It also leaves me with a bad taste for the supporters who travelled to the stadium, and for those who were watching the game from home. I must carry on as always and from now on I’m already focused on the next game, the derby against Liverpool in the Europa League. In this sport there’s no time for celebrations or moaning, and after last Wednesday’s joy for the win and the goal against Watford, now I have to go through a more bitter experience. That’s the way it is. What matters is to move forward and to always learn from each situation. And so I will. Juan
