Alex Telles has addressed the competition between him and Luke Shaw at Manchester United, insisting "I've done everything I can to show that I deserve to be here".
United forked out £15 million ($21m) to bring Telles to Old Trafford from Porto last summer, leading to question marks over Shaw's future at left-back in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's starting XI.
Shaw has ultimately managed to defy his critics and hold onto that coveted role ahead of Telles, who claims to be happy with how his first season in Manchester is going despite a lack of regular starts.
What's been said?
“I've always said that, when you've got players of the highest quality in the team, then the thing that ends up benefiting is Manchester United; the team,” the Brazilian defender told United's official website.
“Since I've arrived here, I've worked as hard as I can and I've done everything I can to show that I deserve to be here, and I think I've done that.
“At the same time, I'm really happy for Luke Shaw, who has made great progress and has been playing really well. He trains really well and he's done excellently in the matches as well.”
Pressed on his relationship with Shaw, Telles added: “In terms of the two of us, we both motivate each other and push each other further forward and we help each other.
"That's really, really important throughout the team, independent of the positions we play.”
Shaw vs Telles
Shaw is currently enjoying the best campaign of his career at Old Trafford, having finally put the injury troubles which had plagued him following his move from Southampton in 2014 behind him.
The England international has already appeared in 36 games across all competitions for the Red Devils in 2020-21, contributing one goal and six assists.
Telles, meanwhile, has only featured in 21 games since his arrival from Porto, with just seven of those outings coming in the Premier League.
Most of the 28-year-old's starts have come in cup competitions, but he has still managed to score twice and set up a further five for his team-mates.
What's next?
Both men will be vying for a place in Solskjaer's line up once again when United welcome Brighton to the Theatre of Dreams on Sunday.
The Red Devils will then look ahead to the first leg of their Europa League quarter-final clash against Granada at the Estadio Nuevo Los Carmenes.
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