Bournemouth are in confident mood ahead of Man Utd test, says Andrew Surman
Andrew Surman admits Bournemouth are brimming with confidence ahead of the visit of Manchester United.
The Cherries pulled off one of the most memorable results in their history when they beat Chelsea 1-0 at Stamford Bridge last weekend.
Next up is a visit from Louis van Gaal's United, who are just three points off top spot despite criticism of their playing style this season.
Midfielder Surman said at the pre-match press conference: "I think a result like that changes you mindset. It breeds confidence.
"We'd been playing pretty well in the couple of games before but just didn't get the results that maybe we thought we deserved.
"But anyone will tell you wins breed confidence and it was a massive three points as we hadn't won for a few games.
"The mindset now is that we have to work harder. We have another massive game against United, another huge team in football so it's going to be another difficult game.
"They are one of the elite, aren't they? They have been so successful over so many years and are still one of biggest clubs in world.
"It's an extra special one, you are playing against some of best players in the world, but we have to treat it like just another game and keep doing what we've been doing."
Boss Eddie Howe has been boosted by the news midfielder Marc Pugh and forward Lee Tomlin have returned to training after a month out injured.
And Howe is under no illusions about the size of the next task facing the Cherries.
"We will probably need to surpass last week's performance levels to have any chance of winning this game," he said.
"Manchester United are fourth, and very close to the top. They will consider themselves in very good position to win the league this season so we know how difficult the game will be.
"But if we can match those levels again it's in our hands as to what happens.
"That's the beauty of the game - when one game is done you're looking to achieve the next goal. We are proud to be hosting Manchester United, it's a huge game in this club's history."
Meanwhile, Louis van Gaal insists he is still the right man to win silverware at Manchester United despite the club's embarrassing exit from the Champions League.
United crashed out of Europe's biggest club competition - one they have won three times - on Tuesday when they lost 3-2 in Wolfsburg.
Van Gaal's critics again railed against the Dutchman in the wake of the defeat. Paul Scholes labelled United "average" while his former team-mate Rio Ferdinand said dropping into the Europa League was "an embarrassment".
But Van Gaal launched an impassioned defence of his management at his weekly press conference.
When asked if he doubted his ability to win trophies with United, Van Gaal said: "No. I don't have any doubts."
The United manager admitted his players were struggling to deal with the expectations on their shoulders, however.
He said: "You can lose and you can win in sport, and you have to accept that, as a player and as a manager, but you have to work very hard and I am working very hard and my players are working very hard and doing everything we can do.
"The problem is that we have to meet the expectations and the expectations at a club like Manchester United are very high, and that's our problem."
Van Gaal was visibly annoyed when asked if he would be happy if he just won the Europa League this season.
"Just? You think it's just? I'm not thinking like that," he snapped.
"I have already won the Europa League with Ajax in my first season, and I was very proud of that.
"For me, the Euro (Europa) League is a big competition."
Van Gaal received yet more bad news this week when Bastian Schweinsteiger was suspended for three matches for violent conduct following an elbow on Winston Reid in United's 0-0 draw against West Ham last weekend.
Morgan Schneiderlin returns for Saturday's game at Bournemouth after overcoming a hip injury, but Wayne Rooney, Marcos Rojo, Phil Jones, Ander Herrera, Luke Shaw and Antonio Valencia remain out.
Matteo Darmian and Chris Smalling are also unavailable after suffering hamstring and groin injuries respectively at Wolfsburg.
"It is not so good," Van Gaal said when asked about the fitness of his squad.
"We have eight injured players because Darmian and also Smalling we can add to this list, and Schweinsteiger is also suspended, so it's nine players who are not able to play.
"Schneiderlin is coming back, that's not a problem, but we have a list of eight players injured and Rojo has been operated on this week and it takes a long time."
Source: PAR
