Daniel James admitted he lost his way at Manchester United late last season, but is convinced he has now returned to his best form.
The winger has netted three goals in his past three United games, including the vital second goal in Sunday night's 3-1 win over Newcastle — after Ole Gunnar Solskjaer called him back in from the cold.
James started with a bang at United in 2019 after his £15million move from Swansea, scoring three times in his first four games, but he lost his place to Mason Greenwood midway through last season.
And although the 23-year-old has still only made eight Premier League appearances this season, he believes his is approaching his best once again. He now has more United goals this season (five) than last term, and hopes to get more game-time under Solskjaer.
"People say I haven't played so much recently, but I've just been working as hard as I can," James told BT Sport after the Newcastle game. "I'm doing everything I can when I do play. It was nice to get minutes in on Thursday [scoring against Real Sociedad] and again today. I've got to do what I can when I do play, keep working on that."
James admitted there were times in the past year when he doubted himself, but explained his renaissance was the result of hard work in United training this season. He was touted for an exit, amid interest from Leeds, but vowed to stay at Old Trafford, fight for his place and turn his form back around.
"I'd say it was a turnaround," he added. "There was a moment last season when I wasn't performing as well as I wanted to. This season I've reflected on that as much as I can, reflect on the games and working on the training ground as hard as I can.
"I think I lost my way a bit. I wasn't playing the same as I did at the start of last season. That's when I had to look at analysis. I've had the right people around me to help me look at that, working with the coaches to get me back to myself and I'd like to think I've got there."
