Andreas Pereira admits the Manchester United players didn’t hit the heights they hoped to in the 2-1 victory over Watford, but says at this point in the season winning is the most important factor.
The Reds were made to battle right until the end by a dogged Watford side, but Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men held out to move back up to fourth and also draw level on points with third-placed Tottenham.
Pereira, who was involved in what turned out to be the winning goal from Anthony Martial after coming on as a second-half substitute, says the Reds know they can play better but maintaining momentum in the battle for the top four is vital.
“We didn’t start off well or play our best football but the most important thing is the three points. They all add up and we will keep fighting until the end of the season for the top-four place,”
he told MUTV.
“It was tense when they got the goal but we know in Phil Jones, Chris Smalling and Marcos Rojo we have quality at the back and we all stuck together.
“It’s been an incredible run [since Ole came in],” he added. “Even the players weren’t sure we would come so far but we’ve worked hard and stuck together and when Ole came in he did a fantastic job with us. Everyone at the club loves him and we’re delighted to work with him and continue doing our job.”
Pereira also praised the passage of play that led to United’s first goal following a sublime Luke Shaw pass for Marcus Rashford.
“It was a very good pass from Luke. He does that a lot in training and it was nice for him to do one in a game. Hopefully there will be more passes to see from him,”
said Andreas.
“Marcus is a great player, everyone knows that. The form he’s in, he’s clinical in front of goal, he only needs one chance and it’s a goal.”