The Scotland international led the Red Devils in a 1-0 FA Cup win over Watford and considers the move ‘a test’
Scott McTominay has revealed how he learned of the decision to hand over the Manchester United captaincy to him, with the midfielder considering the call to be “a test”.
A product of the Red Devils famous academy system received the armband for an FA Cup third round clash with Watford.
Having been asked to lead from the front, McTominay ended up grabbing the only goal of the game in this contest.
The 24-year-old hopes he has shown he can be a leader as questions have been asked this season whether Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has enough of these players at his disposal.
Asked by United review of how his manager informed him he was going to be skipping the side against the Hornets, McTominay said, “He hasn’t really said much. He just said “captain tomorrow” and looked at me. I just smiled; I didn’t want to leave too many emotions but I was so, so happy.
“For the manager, I assume that every decision he makes with me and the other players is a test. It’s not just “oh I’m gonna give him the captain’s job for no reason,” it’s a test. Everything in life is a test and you must pass these tests.
“It’s important to really show people that you can be an example in this football club and not let things go to your head.
“With something like the harbor master’s office it would be easy to start doing things a different way and yelling and yelling and not playing like you normally would, but that didn’t make a difference to me.
“Whenever I’m on the field with H [Harry Maguire] I have the impression that there are 11 captains on the field who must also be heard and be leaders.
McTominay has passed the 100-appearance mark for United in the current campaign and is hoping his game can reach even higher heights in the months and years to come as he seeks to prove his worth in the brightest spotlight. .
“I think every game is a chance to improve. Every game at this football club is thoroughly scrutinized down to the last detail, ”added the Scotland international.
“For me it’s about doing my best every time I play and wanting to improve all the time and working with the manager and coaches.
“That’s about it for me, I don’t really dive too much into form and things like that. If the team wins and you’re consistently playing to the best of your ability and always looking to improve, then it’s a good season for me in terms of numbers and stats.
“I find people getting too caught up in ‘oh he made that many tackles, or he made that many interceptions.’ As a player you know when you are playing well and you know when others are playing well.
“This ‘visual’ test is the best way to judge football players and just forget about the statistics.
“I don’t remember a lot of games where there weren’t 11 players who didn’t play well and it’s all about improving.”
United, who have scored just one win and five points in their last four Premier League games, will be back in action on Tuesday when they host Southampton.
