Football 
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Horse Racing Talking Football With…. Mikael Silvestre: United Would Rather have Ronaldo than Not. He Shouldn’t Leave in January
There was plenty to discuss in the latest of out series of interviews with the former Manchester United and Arsenal defender. We quizzed Mikael on the future of his former teammate, Cristiano Ronaldo and whether United should sell the forward in January. We also discussed Arsenal’s title chances after that disappointing 1-1 draw with Southampton at the weekend.
A decent result for United on the weekend, a late equaliser against Chelsea to get a point. They’re now on an unbeaten streak of six matches. What do you think they can achieve this season after this run?
I still believe that the team is capable of finishing in the Top 4 and getting back to the Champions League. I think that should be the objective and realistically, based on what they’ve been producing, I think this should be the aim. It’s important to be able to play in that competition.
It means a lot for the players, first and foremost, but it’s also hugely important for the fans, for the club and for the players you would like to attract, when you play Champions League. It’s a big plus when you are looking at international players if you can offer the Champions League. It’s something that means more than the Europa League.
What’s impressed you the most about recent performances under ten Hag and where do you see room for improvement?
I think in all departments, we can see that the players are getting to know each other better. The movement off the ball is getting better so the confidence is growing. There are a lot of positives in the last few games.
Is there any room for improvement? What’s still left to improve on?
It will be consistency. There are going to be more tests this season. That’s been lacking over the last few years, consistency. We’ve had great games, especially against top teams, and then some games where the team wasn’t able to find a break.
The game against Newcastle at home, they need to find a way to score. It can be a set piece or something like that. Games will be tight, so in those moments, the top teams find a way to impose themselves. This is going to come, but right now it’s pretty good.
The goals have been drying up a little bit, they haven’t scored too many in the last few games. What do you make of Marcus Rashford? He’s made a lot of chances, he hasn’t really been able to convert that into goals. Is that going to continue? Is it a concern?
I’m not concerned about Marcus. Firstly, there have been some amazing saves. We have to give credit to the goalkeepers. Perhaps on his side, he’s going for power more than he should. Maybe that’s one of the areas that he could change his decision on whether he’s going to place the ball or go for power.
But, it’s good because he’s getting those chances. It’s just a matter of time before the goal conversion will be higher.
Antony has had a good start to his life in England. Do you think he’s proven some people wrong and silenced some critics? Has he proven he’s worth the money so far?
When you go and when you buy a player from outside of the top five leagues, people are sceptical. Usually, it is because they don’t know what the player is capable of. With his trickery and his speed, he’s showing why the club paid top dollar for him. So far he’s been delivering whether it was goals or creating chances for others.
A lot of the underlying data suggests that United are winning more games, covering more distance, and averaging more points with Cristiano Ronaldo out of the team. Do you think that Erik ten Hag has been proven right with his handling of Ronaldo?
I think Cristiano can add to the team. Whether it’s Premier League, Europa League, or when the cups start. When you score 20-plus goals from one season to another. He hasn’t aged five years.
He might be less mobile than others, than Marcus Rashford for example, but top clubs need top strikers. It’s important that he plays as much as possible and that he’s available for the team. After that, the manager needs to find the balance to keep everybody fit, focused and happy. And that’s why it’s complicated because being on the bench, nobody likes it, that’s for sure.
It’s not a good situation really right now for anyone. They’re reportedly willing to let him go on a free transfer in January. Do you think that’s the best solution for everybody at this stage?
There is a lot of speculation but in football everything changes very quickly. There will be a break, there will be the World Cup, then there will be games during the Christmas and New Year period. So, there are many things that can happen in that period of time, injuries to players.
You would rather have Cristiano with you than against you, I can tell you that. All the defenders in the Premier League will tell you this, for sure. He still remains a threat, so we will see. I think it’s early to call out for the next window’s decision.
United are expecting a quiet January transfer window, do you think they made a mistake by not addressing the problem of the centre-forward in the summer or do you think they were right to stick with what they have now?
No, I don’t think it was a main concern. Yes, there wasn’t any major recruitment but the global market for strikers is a very thin market. You’d rather wait and stick with what you have which isn’t bad when you have Martial, Rashford, and Ronaldo.
I don’t think the manager is complaining, rather wait and make the smart move, the right one. That’s what he said in the first place, we’re not going to buy players just for the sake of buying players. It’s been done in the past too many times at United, so better to be patient and wait. I think he has enough quality to score goals in the squad right now.
Moving on to Arsenal. They’re still top of the league but dropped points to Southampton at the weekend. Do you think that is a blip for them or is it a sign that they are going to be dropping off the title race?
They had chances in that game. They had opportunities to kill the game. They didn’t take it, so I think they’ve been a bit wasteful. But nevertheless, they remain like they’ve been from day one in the Premier League. So confident going forward, very strong in possession and creating chances.
I think they’re going to remain there for some time. I would see them being there when the title race is in motion in March, April. I think they will still be at the top. Not maybe in 1st place, but they will be there and thereabouts.
There were a couple of contentious penalty decisions in the Arsenal and the Man United games that have divided people. One was given, and one wasn’t. What do you make of the two decisions?
It doesn’t make sense. Everybody who was watching the games doesn’t understand. It is a lack of consistency. You try to read the situation, then you look at the referee, then you wait for VAR, then you look at the book to see the rules and then still you are frustrated when it’s against you.
It’s supposed to be an easier job for the referees but again, for a lot of games we are talking about the referee decisions. So, they need to work on this, because teams are dropping points, players are getting frustrated, managers are losing their heads. You want to talk about the game, not about the referee. When you don’t talk about the referee, that’s when there’s been a good game.
So the goal are drying up for Arsenal a bit. They’ve only scored four in four matches. Gabriel Jesus hasn’t scored since the North London Derby and missed a couple of chances against Southampton. Are you seeing anything worrying in his performances or is it only a matter of time until he starts scoring?
I feel a little bit of frustration. Of course, when you are a striker and there are a series of games when you don’t score, you start being irritated. You force decisions and the effort when it’s not going your way.
My impression is that he’s showing a little bit of frustration. But strikers go through phases like this. With Arsenal creating so many chances he will get back on the score sheet very soon.
A word on the defence. Kieran Tierney hasn’t started a Premier League match since the middle of September. Is it time to bring him back into the team? Tomiyasu has been playing at left-back instead of him.
What is the situation with Zinchenko?
He’s been injured for a while. I think he’s due back in training this week.
Tierney played in the Europa League. It’s true that the manager is using options that we wouldn’t guess at the beginning of the season. You know, Ben White at right-back and Tomiyasu at left-back against Salah, for instance, and again he played there at the weekend.
There’s a lot of competition. Tierney is a good player so again, it’s not easy to deal with these situations. But he also has a very good mentality, he just needs to keep patient and wait for opportunities. There will be a lot of games to play.
Granit Xhaka is probably enjoying his best spell since joining Arsenal, playing a lot higher on the pitch, scoring some really good goals from the midfield. Do you think that Arsenal have missed out on five or six years of this version of Granit Xhaka by not doing this sooner or have they not had the players to allow him to do this? What’s the problem?
No, I don’t think it’s a case of missing out, it’s just the development of the player, of knowing himself. There is also the environment. He was captain, there were some issues. It wasn’t the best version of Arsenal when he joined, and when everything is clicking around you, it’s easier to express yourself. You feel confident.
And now he’s extremely mature and he knows how to deal with different situations in the game and he’s proving that going forward, whether it’s in the box or outside of the box, he’s capable of finding the back of the net. So, he’s a very good asset for Arsenal. It’s good that he’s got that freedom to go forward and do that. It’s coming at the right time with a good-looking Arsenal side.
It’s quite strange, quite unique for a player that’s 30 years of age to look completely different in a new role, to develop this way.
It’s not really a new role, it’s more that he has the team. The one that really sits is Thomas Partey. When he plays, Xhaka can go. But you have a lot of players who peak sometimes a bit later. Again, it depends on themselves but also the surrounding, the team they play for, the dynamic around them.
That’s probably the best few months, few weeks for him at Arsenal. It would be nice if it could continue. I think he is coming to the right age and it’s a big benefit for Arteta at the moment.
A word on Bukayo Saka. He scored three match-winning goals last week. Do you think he has what it takes to become a world-class player in the future? What is missing for him?
At the beginning of the season, I remember we spoke about his lack of goals. Now he has responded to that. I don’t think he necessarily put pressure on himself, but you can see that he is eager to do well. To perform every time he plays.
The tricky part is that now, a lot of teams are doubling up on him to defend. And so he had to move, and be more mobile to change his position on the pitch, and play less on the touchline.
He has got the natural qualities. The way he moves with the ball, the way he dribbles. I think when you reach that level, it is sort of a mentality. He could potentially make the step to that category if he applies himself. And it looks like he is. He has that in him, so, let’s see.
He is playing a lot of football. He is playing in the Premier League, he is playing in the Europa League. Eight of Arsenal’s players have started in every Premier League game this season. And a lot of them have played in the Europa League as well. Arteta spoke last week, he said, “look at the top players in the world, they play 70 matches every three days, and they make a difference to win the game.” Do you agree with this approach? Or do you think it is forced because Arsenal have a bit of a smaller squad?
I think it is a little bit of both. I think it is hard to rest all your top players if you want to get the points. Or if you want to advance in the competition, some of the players will play all the games. And that is the way it is.
What’s important is the downtime, the time to rest. You have to balance this time. I think that is what Arsenal have to do, and that is what they are doing with Xhaka, Bukayo Saka, and some other players then they can manage.
It is true you are exposed physically, you can get injured. But that is why it is the highest level. That’s what it is. Players will get tired, maybe they will get injured, but for Arsenal, it is important to keep winning. To build a foundation and go forward.
Just moving onto the French national team. Raphaël Varane got injured, looks like he’s a doubt for a lot, if not all, of the World Cup. How big of a blow is that to the national team?
I’ve read different reports where it wasn’t that bad. So, I don’t know, hopefully, he will recover. He is a key element for the French national team. He missed out on the Euro in France in 2016 already, through injury.
So that would be a massive blow again, if he was to miss on a personal level, and then on the collective level. With Lloris, Pogba, and Benzema, they are the core of the team. So, hopefully, he can be that, and take part in this competition again.
Do you think the injury opens the door for William Saliba a bit, is it pushing him even closer?
I think Saliba – whether Varane is in the squad or not – should be in the squad. He should be going to the World Cup because of the big step up he took this year and what he has achieved so far with Arsenal.
He is an asset for Arsenal. When you are top of the Premier League, it is hard for the national team to question whether or not to take. Whether or not he is going to start, I don’t know, but he should be close.
You mentioned Hugo Lloris. There is an injury to the AC Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan. Would you be pushing Lloris to a starting spot, he hasn’t been in the best form for Tottenham this season.
When you have such experience and the number of caps he has got. It is like David de Gea, you can’t really contest their supremacy and the position in the squad. He is the captain. So no, I think you have to stick with him, and give him full confidence, because he is in top shape, top form. Ok, he has made one or two mistakes, but it is not going to affect his confidence. Which is the most important thing, going into a big competition.
So, Karim Benzema lifted the Ballon d’Or last week. Won it by a big majority. Do you think we are seeing the best version of him now as a player? And what do you think has led to that?
Yeah, he has been working extremely hard for the last 10 years to reach his goal. And when you start playing for a club such as Real Madrid, as a striker, you have got to think about the Ballon d’Or. Once you think about it, you have to work harder if you want to be in the race.
He has had to wait for Messi and Christiano to drop, to be able to be there, and to be a contender. And his record last season, last year, for Real Madrid, and for the French national team, has been tremendous.
It was an obvious choice. He has been reaching his peak for the last three years. He has been extremely important for Real Madrid. Hopefully, he can continue a few more years for Real Madrid and for France.
So, less than a month until the World Cup now. It is still early, but who do you think is the favourite, who would you fancy?
I think Brazil and Argentina should perform better than in the previous World Cup. One, because they had less travel, and two, less games overseas in the middle of the season. Their top players will be in better shape. The entire squad will be in better shape.
It has been a long time since they lifted a trophy. So I am going for these two, with France, and Spain. Maybe Belgium, but these are the teams that I am going for.
Last question, which players do you think will stand out looking at the top goalscorer? Who do you think is going to get the Golden Boot?
We could go for Benzema. I am looking at the strikers for those teams. Right now, the one that is on top of his form would be Benzema. I would go for him.
