Luke Shaw has said that people will think he is “stupid” for believing Manchester United can win the Champions League.
It has been a difficult campaign for United, who sacked Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in November and replaced him with Ralf Rangnick on an interim basis.
The German will step into a consultancy role next season with the club poised to appoint a permanent manager in the summer.
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United have not won a trophy since their Europa League triumph under Jose Mourinho in 2017 and face another trophyless campaign unless they win this season’s Champions League.
The Red Devils crashed out of the FA Cup and Carabao Cup in the early rounds and are 20 points behind Premier League leaders Manchester City.
They play Spanish champions Atletico Madrid in the last 16 of the Champions League, in what will be a very tough test for Rangnick’s side.
And Shaw insists that United can win the competition this season, whilst saying that people will probably think he is “stupid” for believing so.
“This is the crunch time of the season and it is very important in the league to get some momentum,” Shaw said (quotes via the Mirror). “As a team we believe we can win the Champions League.
“Not many people on the outside will think it and some will think I’m stupid for saying that but we have that belief and confidence that we can win it.
“I’m sure everyone in this dressing room – the players the staff and the management – all have that belief that we can. Now we need to pick some momentum up, get results and keep playing well.”
Meanwhile, Rio Ferdinand reckons Cristiano Ronaldo gives Manchester United “a chance” of winning the Champions League this season.
Ferdinand said on BT Sport: “In this competition, you can not bet against him [Ronaldo] coming up trumps because he is the king of this competition in terms of goals and deciding big fixtures.
“So, with him in the team, you’re always going to be in with a chance.”