LE BRIS PRE MAN U

Regis Le Bris is ready for the trip to Old Trafford. He understands it's always a tough place to go, despite their poor form, and says he'll prepare for this one in the same way he prepares for every single football match.

KEEP PUSHING

“Absolutely, I think if we stagnate here then it is clear that the opponent will damage our team so we still have to upgrade. Is it the environment, the ambition, the energy, the consistency, everything is important. It is a long journey.”

AMAD RETURN

“His spell here was really important and the coaching staff like him both as a person and a player. Now, he plays with the opponents so he will be an opponent. It will be great at the end to say hello but during the game, he won’t be our friend!”

GOOD START FOR US

“I think the most important thing is the points. If we win points it means we are competitive in the league and this is our objective. After that it is clear that we started with a specific identity - we wanted to defend well as a unit, ready to suffer together because this league is really demanding even with new lads and a new culture. This is the key point for our squad. If these foundations are strong, after that you can express yourself with the ball. That wasn’t our best part, I definitely think we can improve this area of our game. But because we don’t concede goals, it is not easy to find a way to break this defence, we are still alive. After that, you can build confidence, build new patterns and help the players to get confidence across different games.”

ROEFS IS ON FIRE

“We don’t know (his potential) but it starts at a really high level. He is really balanced which means he can manage different events, different scenarios, different problems, he can get different opportunities with the ball as well. We are happy to have this goalkeeper in the squad.”

HEADING TO OLD TRAFFORD

“Maybe five, six, seven years ago thinking about this idea would have been a bit weird probably. The journey is always going on, so we don’t pay too much attention about this event - even if it is really huge to live this journey, especially in Sunderland with this club. So going to Manchester United, a huge club with huge history, it is an honour and it is not usual but at the same time we are so focused on our game and the way we want to develop the squad. It’s a new event. Let’s go, we’ll see!”

AMORIM CONTROVERSIAL SYSTEM

“I don’t know for him but for me I can speak about my ideas. I think consistency is very important for the players and if you change specifically at the beginning of a journey with the team, they need consistency to learn from different experiences. Positive, yes we can reinforce this area through the system, and also from mistakes. We won’t face the exact same situation twice, that is always the case in football, but it could be really similar. So if you change the system all the time then the unpredictability is even more important. For me especially, I like being consistent. I think now it is not just a question of 3-4-3 or 4-4-2. The systems are flexible through phases, but being consistent through these different phases is for me really important.”

THEIR REACTION

“They can have a strong reaction or maybe they still won’t be at their best. We don’t know, the only point we can focus on is our way of playing. Again, I still believe we have to upgrade our performance to be competitive at Old Trafford.”

SET PIECES ARE IMPORTANT

“I think in this league especially, it is so hard to break the opponent on set piece attack. In transition maybe it’s a bit easier, but set pieces are really crucial - especially for a promoted team to be competitive in this league.”