Brentford boss Keith Andrews is relishing a tough-looking run-in with the Bees still in contention for a European spot.
The west London club visit Manchester United tomorrow night, a trip that is followed by away days at Manchester City and Liverpool before the season draws to a close. Their home games are also difficult, London derbies against relegation-threatened West Ham and Crystal Palace.
Victory at Old Trafford would move Brentford up to sixth in the table and Andrews is determined to face the challenges head on.
He said: “We want to approach this game in a very similar way to how we approach every game.
“We’re very aware of their strengths… they’ve got some magnificent players that we need to try and keep quiet. It’s an amazing game for us. I said this to the players: we’ve got three brilliant away games – United, City and Liverpool – and two London derbies at home against West Ham and Crystal Palace.
“We’ve put ourselves in a good position, but we’re not content with where we are and we want to keep pushing.”
United are third and still needing points to be absolutely certain of clinching a Champions League spot for next season. Their fortunes have been transformed since the appointment of Michael Carrick as interim boss and Andrews accepts it is a difficult test for his players.
He added: “[Old Trafford] is a special place to play football, with the history of the stadium and the football club.
“You want to go there and test yourself as a player. And it’s a really tough test for us, against a team that’s playing well. Michael [Carrick] has got them playing some really good football. It’s a game for us that we should attack and embrace the challenge of it.”
Carrick will enhance his chances of getting the job on a permanent basis if he can secure a top-five finish but is putting that on the back burner for now.
He said: ”I’ve said it many times, I enjoy being here and I enjoy the role I’m in. We’ve had some good results and are in decent shape. We want to keep improving. I’ll see. There’s only so much I can say, but I enjoy being here. I love being here. It’s a real privilege to be in the position I am.
“There’s all sorts of what-ifs in the world. I like to live my life in a positive way. It’s some success for us from now until the end of the season and let’s see what happens after that. I don’t think about what could go wrong, it’s what can be achieved.”
Team news for Manchester United v Brentford
United are hoping Leny Yoro will be fit to return to the heart of the defence. Lisandro Martinez and Harry Maguire are suspended and Matthijs de Ligt still not available.
Brentford trio Rico Henry, Vitaly Janelt and Jordan Henderson are back in training but not yet ready to return. Josh Dasilva (knee) and Kaye Furo (groin) also remain out. Fábio Carvalho and Antoni Milambo will miss the rest of the campaign due to ACL injuries.
