Nemanja Matic insists Manchester United will head into their crucial week of fixtures full of confidence after kicking-off with a win over Huddersfield.
United face Sevilla in the Champions League on Wednesday and Chelsea in the Premier League on Sunday. Jose Mourinho’s team started the run with a 2-0 win at the John Smith’s Stadium in the FA Cup fifth round on Saturday, and Matic is hoping to make it three wins out of three.
He said: “It was important to get the win for our confidence.
“We have the Champions League now against a very good side.
“It’s important for us, we have to recover well because this game was very hard for us and we have to give our best, play good football if we are going to win.”
The margin of victory over Huddersfield might have been greater had the video assistant referee (VAR) not chalked off a Juan Mata goal in the first half.
The Spaniard was offside but on-field referee Kevin Friend took more than two minutes to give the decision. Matic says he is in favour of the system but has called on the authorities to speed up the process.
He said: “They have to do it quick, they have to do it in 30 seconds, so after two minutes we are cold and this is the only problem. Other than that I like it.
“We are not sure it was offside but OK, the referee has made a decision, they saw it on TV.
“It was a little bit strange because you have to wait two minutes to see what happened, but it’s OK. It’s good.
“I like it. I think it will be better for football, they just have to do it a little bit quicker because we waited so long for the decision.
“Two minutes is a long time on the pitch but I think overall it will be good for football.
“It’s normal that referees make mistakes every game and they can refer it to TV but it needs to be quicker.”
Matic faced Huddersfield without usual midfield partner Paul Pogba, who was ruled out with illness.
The Frenchman is a doubt for the trip to Sevilla this week, although sources have told ESPN FC he trained at Carrington on Sunday to boost his chances.
Matic added: “He is an important player for us, this club, but he is ill.
“I am not sure what has happened, I think he was ill and didn’t feel very in the morning so I hope he will be ready for the next game.”
Rob is ESPN FC’s Manchester United correspondent. Follow him on Twitter @RobDawsonESPN.
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