pr rep a blibli o sujet de quinton
uinton Fortune will bear witness to how transient a place in United’s starting line-up can be.
In a matter of weeks, a player can be a first-team regular and then find himself on the sidelines and at the back of an impatient queue waiting for another chance.
The 26-year-old looked to be building on 35 appearances last term by beginning this campaign in the left-back berth of Fergie’s side. A thigh injury sustained at Chelsea on the opening day of the season has set Quinton back.
The team will no doubt share his frustrations at the way the season has started. But, when we caught up with the South African midfielder, he was clear about the unassailable team spirit in United´s dressing room…
Have you set yourself any targets for what you want to achieve at United?
" I just want to play well, contribute to the team and hopefully be offered a new contract. At the moment, I’m just concentrating on each day as it goes, each season as it comes. I’ve learnt that anything can happen. Obviously you want to get as many matches as you possibly can, but that isn’t in my hands."
Do you have that outlook because you’ve seen, first hand, with injuries, that the level of your involvement in the first team can change so rapidly?
" Absolutely. But then, even without the injuries, my outlook when I wake up in the morning is to see if I can get through the day and look forward to each day and try and get the most out of it."
You’ve been at the club for five years now, what do you make to the current set of players - how they are as a group and their quality on the pitch?
" I think we all have a very good relationship with each other. And that is the same when we are on the pitch. We have a good vibe as a team. I don’t think there has ever been a problem in that sense. The standards of the players here is always very high and I think that’s the case with this squad."
People said that when Nicky Butt left you might lose some of the camaraderie that bonded the team so well. Have you noticed it is quieter or is the atmosphere still the same?
" It is quieter without Butty because he was such a big personality in the changing room. But I think it would be the same if any of the home-grown players left because people like Ryan, Gary and Phil have been here for so long. The atmosphere has changed because Butty was such a character in the dressing room but, like I said, the players have all got a really relationship with each other."
New players coming into the club, like Alan Smith for instance, seem to settle very quickly. Is that because of the good atmosphere among the players?
" We try to help new players settle in as quickly as possible. It’s very welcoming here and it makes sense because if a player is happier and comfortable at the club then you can see his performances improve. We don’t try to make any player who comes to the club feel uncomfortable. It’s not for our benefit. It’s the same with Gabriel [Heinze] who has not long arrived at the club."
Have you been able to speak with Gabriel to give him any advice?
" I think just talking to him in his own language helps. I’ve spoken to him [in Spanish] and there are other Spanish speakers at the club. But he can also speak French to Louis and Mikael. You can tell immediately that he is a good person."
Is there an element of frustration among the players that, because of injuries, suspension and internationals, the team hasn’t been able to give a true account of the quality that is so obviously in squad?
" Yes. Speaking for myself, I want to get fit as soon as possible. I want to be able to help the lads. It’s frustrating for me to see us get criticised and that there is a lot of negativity directed at the team. I still believe that the players, like the team that played against Bolton last week, are good enough to win these games. And I can definitely tell from the desire at the club and how the players have been doing in training that things will get better."
Is it difficult to block out that negativity?
" It’s professional football and you are going to get criticised for your performances. You just have to take it and deal with it. There is always going to be criticism and that is good for the club because it keeps the expectations and the standards high and, as much as anything, it gives us the strength to push ourselves even harder. And besides, players like Roy Keane, Ryan Giggs and Gary Neville have been here for many years and have seen this situation so many times."
You got called up to the South Africa squad recently after a two-year absence. It was suggested there was some sort of stand-off between yourself and the former coach…
" The strange thing is, I had never said anything. The period where I wasn’t selected, I simply wasn’t selected. I never said " I´m not going", or anything like that. I can say, sitting right here in front of you, that there was no disagreement at all. I just didn’t get the phone call to get in the squad. I can’t pick up the phone and say " put me in the team"! Though, now that I have been called up, I am delighted to be involved. I have met the new coach [former England U19 coach Stuart Baxter]. I didn’t go at all when I was called up recently because I have an injury [a thigh injury sustained against Chelsea]."
So, hopefully you’ll have the World Cup to look forward to in 2006?
" Well, first of all we have got to qualify in a tough group. And at the moment I am concentrating on getting fit for United because I want to try to help us get back to winning ways. The most important thing now for me is to play for my club and be out on the pitch with the team. We need everyone together and I want to contribute to that."
