LIAM COOPER: WHAT A GAME TO START - Leedsunited.com 13/8/21
Leeds United captain Liam Cooper spoke exclusively to LUTV ahead of Saturday’s Premier League opener with Manchester United.
The Whites travel to Old Trafford to renew rivalries with
the Red Devils and Leeds will be backed by 3,000 as fans return to stadiums
across the country.
Cooper admitted Saturday’s game can’t come soon enough for
him and the rest of the side.
“I’m raring to go and I can’t wait until the start of the
season,” said Cooper.
“The pressure starts coming now and the nerves start building
up a little bit, but we have to go and enjoy that.
“I’m so buzzing the fans are back, it’s going to be
unbelievable, they’ve waited so long for this and hopefully we can give them
something to smile about at the end of the day.
“I’m looking forward to the new players experiencing our
fans too, I can’t wait to have them back and what a game it is to start.
“We’re looking forward to going to prove ourselves in the
league again, we’ve got to be optimistic and we have to go for it.
“The lads are excited, you can feel it ramping up in
training this week and the place has been amazing, it’s a big, big game on
Saturday.
“I’d like to think teams will give us a lot more respect, we
were new to the Premier League last year and were learning on the job.
“We’ve got to go and challenge ourselves and show we belong
in this league again and aim as high as we can.
“To replicate last season would be unbelievable, but we
don’t get too carried away, we take things game by game and keep ticking little
milestones along the way.”
Robin Koch has spoken with the media prior to taking on
Manchester United this weekend.
The centre-back, who has also impressively operated at the
base of the midfield, is looking forward to the season getting back underway.
“I had a short summer break then a good preseason with the
team,” Koch explained.
“I think we are now ready for the season and we finally get
to play in front of the fans.
“It’s the first game of the season so it is difficult to say
we are prepared and Manchester United are prepared, but we had a good
pre-season and we worked really hard.
“Now, everyone is happy to play the first game and against
Manchester United as it’s a really special game for us, we are really happy to
start at the weekend.”
After finishing inside the top 10 on their first season back
at Premier League level, the Whites will now be looking to carry on that
impressive form from last year.
“I think in football or in the past of football, a lot of
times the second season is more difficult than the first one,” Koch stated.
“It’s only experience from other clubs, I hope we play a
better season than our first one, but we can be happy with our first season
because we played a really good year.
“Everyone is looking at Leeds and thinking we are a good
team last year, but we don’t have the surprise now from the first year.
“I think everyone here is ready for a big season.”