Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer says Sunday's clash against Leeds United is a like a cup final as he looks to stress the magnitude of the bitter rivalry to his squad.
Solskjaer needs no introduction to the clash, given that he faced Leeds ten times as Manchester United player, including the two club's last Premier League encounter back in February 2004.
With the fixture having been missing from the Premier League slate for 16 years, last year's pre-season 'friendly' clash in Australia is the only first-hand experience that players from the two squads will have had about the fixture.
Solskjaer, therefore, sees it as his job to ensure his players know what they will be up against when Marcelo Bielsa's side come calling on Sunday afternoon.
“We treat every game as a cup final, we have to," the Red Devils boss said after his side's 3-2 win over Sheffield United on Thursday evening.
"We have to treat every single game this season as the last game we’re going to play for Man United. Just approach it like you do and don’t worry about the next game, we can’t.
"Sunday is a big game, massive game. A game that all our supporters and players will really want us to win and let's hammer in for these boys what it means, because I don’t think any of them were born even when I played in these type of fixtures so we’ll make sure we’re ready."
The two sides take on each other in a 4.30pm kick-off at what will again be an empty Old Trafford after the government confirmed that Manchester will be remaining under Tier 3 coronavirus restrictions in this week's review.
