“It must be good to play in front of these fans – every weekend.”
It’s rare to find a man coming from a different country and still so intensely passionate about a club.
You’d think Ander Herrera grew up crying for Manchester United and then came through the ranks sweating for them, ready to bleed for them. You’d think he was steeped in this club’s tradition and history because the way he’s playing for them right now – like every single moment could be his last – is inspiring.
"I am very thankful to him" https://t.co/ad7u3dBLOR
— FootballJOE (@FootballJOE) April 18, 2017
Herrera is more and more looking like the replacement for Roy Keane that Manchester United were once looking for for years.
Nobody in the Premier League plays with as much intensity and drive as the Spaniard does. Nobody wants it more than he does.
That’s all coming from a love of the club. A club he’s only been at for three seasons now but one which he knew he was destined for when he fulfilled a dream to play at Old Trafford back in 2013 with Athletic Bilbao.
The image of Herrera on the bench during last season’s FA Cup final sums him up and how much United means to him.
This is a guy who was being completely screwed over for a couple of campaigns, not getting the chances he deserved and then not staying in the team when he took the few chances he was offered – and took them with pure aplomb.
Still, United’s success has always been first for Herrera – it’s never about himself.
That’s why he stuck at it. Gave more. Went at it harder.
This season, under Mourinho, he’s finally proving his true worth.
He has the most interceptions in the league, he’s man marking the once thought unmarkable likes of Philippe Coutinho and Eden Hazard and he’s dominating games with the class and aggression that’s dripping out of him.
In his last three games, he’s chipped in with three assists and a goal too. He’s a man who is absolutely wired, driven for United.
And, in a touching video, Herrera revealed that he knew as soon as he set foot in Old Trafford – even before he played against United – that he would one day be a red.
“That day… I didn’t say to anyone but I realised that one day that was going to happen – I was going to put the red shirt on and enjoy Old Trafford.
“The next time I played at Old Trafford was with the red badge playing for United as a United player.”
Now look at him go.
When I became a red… 🔴 pic.twitter.com/0qvQsRdsWM
— Ander Herrera (@AnderHerrera) April 25, 2017
