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Manchester United face Manchester City in the FA Cup final on Saturday, with the Red side looking to add a second trophy to their season’s cabinet while also stopping their closest rivals from having the potential to secure a historic treble.
United midfielder Fred is relishing the opportunity of facing City at Wembley, not least because he’ll treat himself to a meal he has to avoid during the season in order to stay at the top of his game.
When asked by FourFourTwo what meal he would celebrate with if Manchester United beat the Premier League champions in the final, Fred deliberates before settling on one option.
“There are so many [meals he loves but has to avoid during the season],” Fred tells FFT. “But I know now to look after myself, especially when the season comes to its final stages and we have to play a match every three days.
“I must eat and rest well, otherwise it will affect what I do on the pitch. I’m a huge hamburger lover, though. I go crazy for it when I can, except during the season. That’s one of my main pleasures during the holidays.
“I’ll be free again to eat as many hamburgers as I want [if Man United beat Man City], thank God!”
The Brazilian’s diet has ensured he has stayed fully fit all season, proving his dedication to performing on the pitch for Manchester United. While Fred hasn’t been injured in the 2022/23 campaign, though, he does admit he wishes he got more game time.
Despite making 55 appearances, only 22 of those came as starts, while on a further six occasions he was an unused substitute. In the Premier League, Erik ten Hag only selected Fred from the start 12 times, something of a slight dampener on an otherwise excellent campaign.
“The club’s performance has been good, but as players we dream big and always aspire to win important trophies,” Fred explains. “We know that last season our results were far from what we wanted. This season has been much better: we won the League Cup, we’re in the FA Cup final and we’ve been fighting for the top four in the Premier League.
“We’re conscious that we could have gone further in the Europa League [United lost 5-2 on aggregate to Sevilla in the quarter-finals] but, all things considered, I’ve been happy with our season. I was over the moon with my first trophy at the club, which shows that our team is on the right path after years of reconstruction.
“In terms of my own performance, I believe I’ve played well, although I wish I’d had more minutes on the pitch. Whenever I was on the field, I think I delivered what was expected from me to help the team succeed.”
