Victor Lindelof insists he feels ‘confident’ after an assured debut in Manchester United’s 3-0 defeat of Basel in the Champions League.
The 23-year-old defender joined United with a big reputation from Benfica in June but struggled for the Red Devils in pre-season and faced early criticism for his below-par performances.
However, Lindelof claimed a clean sheet alongside Chris Smalling in the Red Devils’ opening clash in Europe and is ignoring negative talk off the back of his £31million transfer.
‘I have noticed what’s been written, but it’s not something that I have focused on. I try to focus on my game and add as much as I can to the team,’ the Sweden centre-back stated.
‘I think it was a very good debut. To play my first match at Old Trafford is something I have really waited for. It felt really good.
‘I played my own game and did what I was told to do at the pitch. Now I’m going to leave the match for a while and then watch the replay to see if there is anything that I could have done better.
‘I feel pretty confident and know what I’m able to do. That’s what I was trying to do on the pitch.’
Jose Mourinho hailed Lindelof’s ‘quality’ following his competitive debut in Europe and believes the Swede is ready for the Premier League.
He said: ‘If Lindelof has to play in the Premier League I have no problem with that,’ said Mourinho.
‘Can he make a mistake that comes with adapting to the nature of the Premier League? I think he can.
But the nature of the Premier League is also changing and we need defenders who can play, who can come into the midfield bringing the ball because it’s becoming really defensive and we’re going to face many teams with five in the back and two or three in front.’
‘Victor of all our defenders is probably the one to bring more quality when he attacks the midfield.’
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