United Briefing: Leave a legacy and make history

The popular midfielder reached that landmark during last weekend’s Premier League match at West Bromwich Albion and, for him, it represents a significant milestone in his professional career. 

Fred was signed from Shakhtar Donetsk during the summer of 2018 and it is no secret that his first season in England was tough, as he adjusted to a new environment both on and off the pitch. 

But as we all know by now, the tenacious 27-year-old does not give up easily and he has worked tirelessly to become a mainstay of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s midfield plans at Old Trafford.

Universally loved by his team-mates and respected by the supporters, Fred is now perfectly placed to enjoy a long career at United and, in his own words, he hopes to make history as a Red. 

“I’m really happy,” Fred explains in the March edition of Inside United magazine, which is available to order online now. “It represents a great landmark for me, it’s what everyone aims for. 

“Ah man, I wasn’t even expecting this. It took me by surprise when you just told me now. I’m really pleased. It’s a great landmark, and as I said I hope I can play many more games for United. 

“I’d like to leave a legacy here. It’s somewhere all players want to be, so I look to do my best, play in many more games and make history here.”

Fred could make his 101st United appearance during Thursday’s Europa League match against Real Sociedad, which has notably been moved to Italy because of Spanish government restrictions on travellers entering the country from England, due to the new COVID-19 variant.

The trip to Turin and neutral ground puts an unusual spin on our game against a Sociedad team that is performing well this season. In his wide-ranging interview for Inside United, Fred looks forward to the occasion and admits he is desperate to go all the way in the competition this season. 

“I think it’s going to be a great game against Real Sociedad, they’ve been having a great season in Spain,” he says. “We know to expect a difficult game, but we’re going for the win. 

“We want to win the Europa League. We know how important it is to us, so we’ll do our best in the game and have our best season in the Europa League so we can lift the trophy.”

Order your copy of Inside United magazine to read the full interview with Fred.

WHAT IS HAPPENING TODAY?

Solskjaer will hold a session at the Aon Training Complex in the morning and the first 15 minutes will be seen by the media, as per UEFA rules in European competition. This window of exposure often provides clues about who might be involved on matchday, so make sure you return for our coverage.

Ole and a player will then hold a press conference with journalists, which you can watch live via our Official App, ManUtd.com and MUTV from 13:00 GMT.

The Reds will then fly from Manchester Airport to Turin, Italy, in plenty of time for Thursday's 17:55 GMT kick-off.

WHAT HAPPENED YESTERDAY?

The big news was Mason Greenwood signing a long-term contract that commits him to United until 2025, with the option for a further year. 

Our exclusive interview with the homegrown hero is essential viewing, just like this compilation of his 21 first-team goals so far. We also collected five of his 'forgotten' goals from the Academy and that's a brilliant watch. 

Elsewhere, the great Paul Scholes offered his thoughts on Adnan Januzaj as part of a fascinating appearance on MUTV Group Chat.