Bastian Schweinsteiger believes Manchester United lack “the killer instinct” in front of goal at the moment and thinks the Reds cannot dream of silverware until they start finding the back of the net on a regular basis.
The Reds had 21 shots at goal against West Ham on Saturday but failed to put the ball in the back of the net as they were held to another goalless draw by the Hammers. That made it five goalless draws in the last nine matches and dropped United to fourth in the Premier League table.
And the German feels his team-mates may be lacking a bit of self-belief and confidence in the final third, but has backed them to rectify that in the coming weeks.
Speaking to the official Manchester United website, he said:
It is a lot of things. First of all, you have to create the chance with the last pass. The guy who has the opportunity, they have to feel they want to score a goal and are going to score. It is a mix of everything. If you miss a chance you have to be unhappy. When you are a big striker like Ronaldo, Messi, and Thomas Muller, they are all the same. It is about attitude. They want to score goals. They have quality, but they want to score goals. You need the attitude that you want to score.
Of course, we have chances and we had the chances to win the match but we have to score. With luck or whatever, you have to score. The feeling that the players want to score, we need to have more of this. We are trying, we are creating and that is a good thing. We need a goal otherwise you cannot talk about winning a trophy because we should be winning at home to West Ham. It is a pity, but we are still in the [title] race. We are not seventh, eighth or ninth. I hope we can improve.
The players are not scared in front of goal, no. It is all about the killer instinct. We have players who have the abilities, but we need it in every game. Every match is like this against West Ham. It is not as if every game is 4-0 at half time, so you have to score your goals. An early goal would be really good and would make a difference because when opponents play deep it is not easy.
United now face a crucial game against Wolfsburg on Tuesday that will determine their Champions League fate, and Schweinsteiger believes the side have all the motivation they need to secure all three points at the Volkswagen Arena:
The motivation is there for Tuesday. It is a very important match for us and I know how difficult it is at Wolfsburg. They have won a lot of matches at home. It is not easy. We have to find the right tactic and I am sure the team will be ready for the big night.
I remember we [Bayern] lost there once when Wolfsburg won 5-1, the year they won the Bundesliga. But we also won there 6-1. It is a mix of memories, but they are very strong. I am looking forward to it. They will come at us more as they are at home. Maybe that will be better for us.
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