Victor Lindelof

[Andi Istiabudi]

HOPES FOR 2018: LINDELOF'S PROGRESS
Report by James Tuck

Like all Reds, the main thing I’m hoping for in 2018 is to see Manchester United continue on an upward trajectory under Jose Mourinho, entertaining us all and competing for trophies.

But if I were to pick out a specific wish, it would be to see Victor Lindelof realise his potential in a United shirt. While there’s no denying he’s ensured a challenging start to his career here, the mild-mannered Swede has still proferred several examples of his enormous talent in the first half of the season.

His composed, Man-of-the-Match display against Brighton & Hove Albion in November felt like a turning point and he really looked the part in our subsequent wins at Watford and Arsenal. And there’s no shortage of support for the former Benfica man – witness the reaction around Old Trafford to that thunderous tackle he made on the Seagulls’ Anthony Knockaert, and how much we’ve all referred to it since. We’re desperate for him to do well.

But it’s going to take time. Let’s not forget that other esteemed defenders made inconspicuous starts to their United careers. Jaap Stam and Nemanja Vidic took six months to find their feet in England, while Patrice Evra famously endured a nightmare debut in the Manchester derby; those three alone went on to rack up over 800 combined appearances and silverware galore.

Mourinho clearly saw something in Lindelof – a three-time league champion with Benfica – when he signed him from the Portuguese outfit in the summer. And the boss has a history of making astute defensive captures – think of Ricardo Carvalho at Chelsea, Lucio at Inter Milan and Raphael Varane at Real Madrid.

In my view, Victor has looked most at home when playing in a back three but he’ll doubtless be working hard behind the scenes to ensure he can slot into whichever defensive system Mourinho deploys, and to ultimately become a first-choice defender for the club.

On the face of it, the 23-year-old has all the attributes to succeed in the English Premier League: poise, positional awareness, distribution with both feet and a steely edge. And if he can complete his adaptation in the coming months, I see no reason why he can’t go on to join that long list of cultured centre-backs to grace the Old Trafford turf.

The opinions in this story are personal to the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Manchester United Football Club.

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[Andi Istiabudi]

Aksi terbaru Lindelof bermain hoki es bersama tim hoki Manchester Storm

[Riskur]

LINDELOF: I'VE ALREADY IMPROVED AT UNITED

Victor Lindelof feels he has become a better player during his first eight months as a Manchester United player.

The Swedish defender arrived at the club from Portuguese side Benfica last summer and, by his own admission, he took time to adapt to the rigours of English football.

However, he became a regular starter at centre-back in November, after Eric Bailly was sidelined with an ankle injury, and more recently he has partnered Chris Smalling in the last three games with United conceding just once during that period.

"I’m always happy to help the team," Lindelof told MUTV, ahead of what could be his 24th appearance for United in all competitions - Monday's Premier League trip to Crystal Palace.

"As a player, you always want to play games and that’s what I’ve been doing over the last few games and I’m very happy that I can help the team on the pitch."

When asked how the adaptation process has been for him over the last few months, Lindelof said: "I think it’s been good. I think everywhere you go, it’s always going to take some time to adapt but I feel good.

"Every day I work out and I work hard to try to help the team. I’m always trying to be myself on the pitch and trying to do what I think I can do well.

"Of course, I think I’ve become a better player since I came here. I’m basically still the same type of player as I was when I came here, so I’m just trying to improve on those things that I’m already good at. I think I develop every day."

Still relatively young in football terms at the age of 23, Lindelof puts his daily development down to a combination of playing with United's established stars and working with Jose Mourinho and the coaches.

“I think it’s a mixture,” he said. “We have a lot of good players here, we train every day with each other and you can learn from everyone in the team. Then of course, I have all the coaching staff who help me and the team every day.”

MUTV will show exclusive build-up to Monday's game from 18:00 GMT on the Match Day show.

http://www.manutd.com/en/News-And-Fe...er-United.aspx

[Andi Istiabudi]

CREDIT FOR DE GEA AFTER 16TH CLEAN SHEET

Manchester United defender Victor Lindelof insists David De Gea's incredible second-half double save proved the Spaniard's fantastic quality yet again as the Reds secured a comfortable 16th Premier League clean sheet in a 2-0 win over Swansea City at Old Trafford.

Lindelof played his part in the centre of defence as the Reds held firm for another shut-out, whilst first-half goals from Romelu Lukaku and Alexis Sanchez were enough to secure the three points.

The Swede paid credit to United’s no.1 after his brilliant double save from Tammy Abraham, the first of which could easily be added to our show-reel of his top Premier League saves, as the Reds secured a 16th clean sheet of 2017/18 – the most in the Premier League thus far.

“Swansea had two good opportunities in the second half, but we had David De Gea in goal and like I always say he is a fantastic goalkeeper,” Victor told MUTV. “I think [those two saves] prove his quality. The opponent might not have much [shots at goal], but he is always ready when shots do come and always there to save them. He is a fantastic player.

“We always want to keep a clean sheet, that’s very important for us because if we keep a clean sheet, we know our attacking players can score goals.“

Lindelof was pleased with the first-half showing and credited the front players for some brilliant link-up play.

“I think we started the game very good, we kept the ball very well and then we scored two very good goals," he reflected. "In the second half we came out and they had a few chances, but other than that we controlled the game very well.

“The front players had great movement and had a great buzz between them. They had a lot of freedom and I think they showed it out there – they had a lot of fun.”

Lukaku scored his 26th goal of the season and in the process bagged his 100th Premier League strike and Lindelof was full of praise for both he and United’s second goalscorer, Alexis.

“To score that many goals it is a great achievement and I am very, very happy for him and of course we are happy to have him on our team," added the defender. "I think Alexis also had a very good game and he showed his movement and quality with the ball is great so I am very happy for him as well.”

www.manutd.com

[Andi Istiabudi]

Pujian Lindelof Untuk Mourinho
Femi Diah, Femi Diah - detikSport



Manchester - Victor Lindelof puas dengan musim pertamanya di Manchester Unoted. Dia pun mengapresiasi sang manajer, Jose Mourino.

Musim lalu. MU mengikat kontrak Lindelof dari Bnefica. Uang yang terlibat cukup besar, mencapai 35 juta euro atau setara dengan Rp 574 miliar dengan potensi tambahan 10 juta euro (Rp 164,2 miliar).

Tapi, MU jarang menunjuk Lindelof turun ke lapangan. Pemain Swedia 23 tahun itu hanya tampil dalam 13 pertandingan di Premier League.

Kendati minim bermain, Lindelof cukup puas dengan kesempatan tampil di musim pertamanya itu. Dia optimistis bsia mengembangkan permainannya lagi di musim-musim mendatang.

"Saya belajar banyak hal, sudah menjadi musim yang bagus buat saya," kata Lindelof seperti dikutip Sports Mole.

"Saya bermain dengan pemain-pemain berkualitas dan belajar banyak dari pelatih saya, Jose Mourinho. Ya, sudah banyak hal yang saya pelajari," dia menambahkan.

[Andi Istiabudi]

LINDELOF TIPPED TO SHINE IN HIS SECOND YEAR AT UNITED

To mark the one-year anniversary of Victor Lindelof joining Manchester United from Benfica, we spoke to Swedish football expert and former Academy graduate Bojan Djordjic, gathering his unique analysis of his countryman’s first 12 months at Old Trafford…

Last June, was it a big deal in Sweden when Victor joined United?
Of course it was. It doesn’t matter which country you are from, going to Manchester United is huge news and especially with Victor because his career had taken him from the third tier of Swedish football to Benfica B, then into their first team, then the national team and next to United. His career was going up and up.

Had he been expected to join a big club and potentially in England?
Benfica is a huge club when you look at the silverware they’ve won and players they’ve produced. When you move from Sweden, fight your way into the first team and play alongside Luisao, like Victor did, then you know the player must have quality. Victor was relatively unknown when he went out there as well, but he played a lot of games, forced his way into the Swedish national team and then, of course, everybody except me realised this kid had something really special.

It is fair to say Victor experienced a challenging but promising first season at United. How do you assess it?
I would say that the media in England have been really tough on Victor, but I also expected that when he moved for big money and people expected him to start every game straight away. When he made the mistake at Huddersfield, I knew it would be tough for him because people still haven’t let that go. Was he the only one who made mistakes that season? He became a scapegoat. But I remember games when he was brilliant, like Brighton at home and Watford away, and supporters who watch football saw those positive sparks. But others who decided in October he was going to have a bad season were never going to change their minds. That’s what I sometimes don’t like in England – people are too quick to judge players and you have to give youngsters more time.

Is it a sign of Victor’s character that he seemingly wasn’t affected by that game at Huddersfield?
I always knew he was mentally strong. Two weeks after that mistake, he put the national jersey on and played two World Cup play-off games against Italy without conceding a goal, sending his country to Russia 2018. Even at 23, he is thinking about tomorrow and not yesterday. Those two games helped him. He was brilliant alongside Andreas Granqvist and we went through because of them.

Do you feel he got better as the season went on?
I think he progressed and he still needs time. It is a tough task at United and, of course, I want him to do well because he is my fellow countryman. For me, a big part of his development is having a leader alongside him. At Benfica, he had Luisao and with Sweden, he has the captain, Granqvist. I would love to see him with Eric Bailly at United. That combination would help his progress, massively.

It is clear that Jose Mourinho trusts him, particularly when teams allow us to play the ball out from the back…
Of course he does. Victor is good with his feet and in England you have to defend a lot more than you do in Portugal, where you have the ball all of the time. But he has shown for Sweden that he can do both. We had France and Holland in the qualifying group, finished second and then beat Italy to reach the World Cup. That means he didn’t make mistakes at the back, like people go on about at Huddersfield. Is he the only player to make a mistake? Bigger players have made bigger mistakes and have still come back. That makes you a winner and makes you a Manchester United player.

Many people point to the difficulties that Nemanja Vidic and Patrice Evra endured throughout their first seasons at United back in 2006/07. Could Victor’s future be similar to theirs?
Listen, we can only hope and speculate. But they were unique and special players, so I don’t think it is fair to speak about them when we discuss Victor. I just hope he has the opportunity to play with Eric Bailly, because injury meant they couldn’t last season. In my opinion, that’s a great combination, with somebody who is strong in the duals and another who brings the ball out, and reads the game well. Football has changed. Unfortunately, people always say ‘we want a proper defender’ but those have gone out of the game. You have to be a modern defender and Victor is exactly that.

Do you expect Victor and Sweden to have a positive World Cup?
The most important thing for Sweden was qualifying and the team also needs to perform well, but nobody expected us to progress in the first place because of the change in manager, the transition in the squad and Zlatan retiring. Expectations for the team are low in a way, but we have South Korea and Mexico in the fight to finish second behind Germany in the group. As for Victor, he is guaranteed to start at centre-back alongside Granqvist, who is the latest Golden Ball award winner here in Sweden. They always start together: Victor handles the ball and Andreas is strong in the tackle.

If Sweden finish second, then Brazil are probably next up in the last 16…
And then we pack our bags and go home [laughs]! But what a challenge that would be, especially when you have nothing to lose against what is arguably the best side in the world at the moment – not only with the starting XI, but the players on the bench as well. Some players never get an opportunity to play on a stage like that, so it should be embraced. Of course, Sweden also perform when everybody writes us off against bigger nations. Our problem is when the other team sits back and lets us have the ball. Our better games were against France, Holland and Italy, so you never know. I’m fascinated to see how it all unfolds.

Will Victor return to United with added confidence and momentum?
Definitely! Victor played a lot of games in his first season at United, he is happy at Old Trafford and, after the World Cup, he will come back for pre-season with a determination to be even better.

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[Andi Istiabudi]

Victor Lindelof says his experience of Tour 2017, presented by Aon, went a long way towards helping him settle into life as a Manchester United.

The Swedish international joined the Reds last summer from Portuguese outfit Benfica, and his first taste of playing for arguably the biggest club in the world came during the visit to the United States last July.

Jose Mourinho and his men will be travelling back across the pond next month and, before jetting off to represent his country at the World Cup, Lindelof reflected on the importance of going on tour.

“Being on tour is very important, especially when you’re new,” the defender told ManUtd.com. “It gives you a chance to get to know all the players, the staff and the manager, and learning about the system he wants to play. UCLA [the team base] was a brilliant place to train last year and the weather was good too, which is always a positive thing!”

Lindelof is currently away on international duty with Sweden in Russia. He was forced to sit out their opening 1-0 win over South Korea through illness but returned to action against Germany, making his World Cup debut in their agonising 2-1 defeat last weekend.

As the Scandinavians bid to prolong their stay at the tournament, the United man will remain focused on matters for his country for the foreseeable future, but when asked before he left for the World Cup what he most enjoyed about last year’s tour, he insisted: “Just the whole experience. Being in the States with the club, getting to know all my team-mates and seeing how big United is globally.

“It’s always great to travel with the team and experience new things, and, of course, meet all the fans around the world. I have great memories of the experience.

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[Andi Istiabudi]

All the best for you, Victor

[Andi Istiabudi]

WHY LINDELOF CAN SHINE FOR UNITED NEXT SEASON

The World Cup ended with a host of headlines in honour of Paul Pogba, but the imperious midfielder was far from the only United player to excel in Russia…

Our sizeable Belgian and English contingent reached the semi-finals, while Marcos Rojo gifted the thirsty Argentinian public with the greatest moment of their campaign, by rifling home a late winner against Nigeria in a must-win group-stage clash.

However, flying stealthily under the radar was Victor Lindelof, who was an essential component of the industrious Swedish side that made the last eight, and established himself as one of the tournament’s best defenders in the process.

Our no.2 endured a testing first term in M16, but the assuredness and steel he displayed on world football’s biggest stage this summer bodes well for his sophomore season. And Victor wouldn’t be the first Red to return from the World Cup with a renewed sense of conviction in his own abilities.

Could Lindelof use FIFA’s showpiece competition as a springboard to help establish himself at the heart of United’s defence?

The man known as ‘the Ice Man’ during his time at Benfica – presumably due to his cool demeanour, or the fact he hails from the chilly climes of Vasteras in central Sweden – turns 24 today (Tuesday).

Lindelof missed the 1-0 victory over South Korea that opened Sweden’s campaign due to illness, but was a towering presence alongside former Wigan Athletic centre-back Andreas Granqvist for their subsequent four matches. Against Switzerland in the last 16, BBC Sport viewers voted him as the Man of the Match.

“Victor has been the pick of the bunch,” remarked Lindelof’s compatriot and ex-United midfielder Bojan Djordjic. “People speak about our captain, Granqvist, because he’s been like a cult hero after Zlatan [Ibrahimovic] and all that, but Victor has been amazing.”

The relationship with 33-year-old Granqvist is not a new development. The two were also at the heart of Sweden’s surprise victory over Italy in the two-legged play-off last November that ultimately earned them a place at the finals in Russia.

At Benfica, Lindelof shone alongside another relative veteran, 37-year-old Brazilian stalwart Luisao, whom Jose Mourinho has long admired.

Both partnerships enjoyed the kind of consistency that United have been unable to regularly find at the back, largely due to injury issues. However, the hope is that in the 2018/19 season, Lindelof can find a similar rapport with one of his club colleagues and solidify a clear first-choice partnership.

Victor showed strong signs of his fierce personal determination last season, responding to a difficult afternoon at Huddersfield Town in October with strong performances against Brighton & Hove Albion and Watford the following month.

A crunching tackle on Anthony Knockaert in the former game had the Old Trafford crowd on their feet, roaring with approval, and was vital in creating the momentum that led to United’s opening goal, which proved decisive in the 1-0 victory, soon after.

During the 4-2 win at Watford three days later, he unfurled more of the cultured side to his game, starting several of United’s exhilarating counter-attacks by threading precise passes through to the midfielders and attackers.

“His technique, left and right foot, is great,” purred Jesse Lingard, when we spoke to him in December 2017. “He plays the ball forward and will always look for that forward pass, which is obviously good for us attackers.”

Other impressive matches followed, against Chelsea and Arsenal in the second half of the season, indicating that the Swede was adjusting nicely to the distinctive challenges sometimes posed by top-flight English football, after predominantly featuring in the Champions League during the season’s early stages.

Now a second term at Old Trafford beckons and, after a well-earned break, the hope is that Lindelof can deliver the form he produced at the World Cup on a weekly basis for United.

The tournament acted as a spur for David Beckham to produce his very best, after a turbulent France ’98, while Cristiano Ronaldo seemed to make his final leap to greatness after soaring at the 2006 edition in Germany.

Can Victor do the same? We’re about to find out.

www.manutd.com

[Andi Istiabudi]

LINDELOF'S ON A HIGH AND READY TO SHINE

Victor Lindelof is eager for more chances to show what he can do in a Manchester United shirt in 2018/19, after an unforgettable summer on and off the pitch.

In May, shortly after completing his first season at Old Trafford, Lindelof returned home to Sweden to marry his fiancée Maja, shortly before he linked up with his national team for the World Cup.

The 24-year-old centre-back impressed in Russia as Janne Andersson’s side progressed to the quarter-finals, before being knocked out by England.

And Lindelof was back in a United shirt on Friday, playing the full 90 minutes alongside Eric Bailly as the Reds began the new Premier League campaign with a 2-1 win over Leicester City.

“I feel great,” Victor told us last week. “I had a good summer: first, I got married and had an amazing time, then I played in the World Cup, which was also a great experience.

“And after a good rest, I’m back here and ready for what’s to come. It’s always nice to get a good start, as that gives you more confidence and you can be more relaxed.”

Lindelof, who made 29 appearances last season, knows the importance of building on Friday’s win to make an early statement of intent in the top flight.

“It’s a very tough, competitive league with a lot of great teams,” he said. “Every game matters and we’ll try our best to win them all.

“We have to get that winning mentality in every game, in every situation – we have to be 100 per cent in everything we do.”

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