Luke Shaw has vowed to ‘fight to the last’ to show Jose Mourinho that he deserves to stay at Manchester United beyond this season.
The England left back also thanked United fans for not turning against him in the wake of sustained criticism from Mourinho that has left his future at Old Trafford hanging in the balance.
It came to a head at the weekend when the United manager said that Shaw did not even deserve a place on the bench because he lacks the same commitment, focus and ambition of his team-mates.
The 21-year-old defender was recalled to the squad after seeking clear-the-air talks with Mourinho at Carrington on Monday, and came on as a second half substitute against Everton on Tuesday night to help win the injury-time penalty that rescued United from defeat.
Even then, Mourinho claimed that he had to tell Shaw what to do from the touchline, suggesting the left back was playing with ‘his body with my brain’.
The former Southampton defender admitted that the criticism has been ‘hard to take’ but promised to fight even harder to change Mourinho’s view of him and forge a future at United under a manager he still respects.
‘I am keeping my head up and I am going to fight to the last – I’m not going to give up,’ said Shaw after making only his third appearance in more than four months.
‘I love this club and I will give everything to be here. I am working really hard at the moment, especially now more than ever.
‘I am going through a phase where everything is sort of going against me, but I want this so badly. I want to prove everyone wrong.
‘Sometimes I tend to keep it on the low, but obviously with the stuff that has been going on it is hard for me to take because deep down that is not me as a person.
‘Like Jose said, he wants to see me fighting. And I will fight to the last second because I want to be here for the club. I want to play for the manager and I want to help this team get back to the top.
‘I have missed it so much, being on the pitch. I really do love football and I love to play.’
Shaw was given a warm reception by United fans when he replaced Ashley Young in the 65th minute against Everton, and almost scored his first goal in professional football in added time.
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