Man Utd midfielder makes Leicester City admission
Nemanja Matic has said Manchester United were always going to be faced with a tough task against Leicester City.
Leicester beat United 2-1 at Old Trafford on Tuesday evening to give their hopes of qualifying for the Champions League a big boost.
City were up against a much-changed United side as boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer made 10 changes to his starting line-up amid a late-season fixture pile-up.
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Matic captained the team while youngsters Anthony Elanga and Amad were handed their Premier League debuts.
Second-placed United had already secured a top-four finish but the defeat to Leicester saw Manchester City crowned champions.
“The young players who played did an amazing job and showed that the club can count on them in the future,” Matic told United’s official website.
“They showed that they will be very important for our club in the future. They played with personality, they showed the character, so I was very happy to see them on the pitch.
“The way they played was great, against a very good side in Leicester, it’s not easy to play.
“I remember when I was young, that I always watched the older players to see how they behave, how they play, how they train. I always try to be an example for the young players. I hope that I can help them.“
United had beaten Aston Villa 2-1 on Sunday and are now preparing for a rearranged fixture against Liverpool on Thursday.
“It was not easy to prepare for this game,” added Matic.
“I have to say that I’m very happy with the way we played, especially in the first half. Of course, in the second half, we should have created more opportunities to score that second goal to kill the game.
“We are not happy when we lose a game.
“As you saw, the manager had to make lots of changes to the team. Playing every second day is not easy, we don’t have enough time to prepare our game in the best way.
“We’ll try to recover as soon as possible and be ready for the Liverpool game.”