Bailly happy with Manchester United’s improvement ahead of Everton clash

Eric Bailly has acknowledged Manchester United’s improvement across all competitions and he thinks they have a chance to beat Everton in Wednesday’s Carabao Cup quarter-final fixture.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side, currently on an impressive seven-game unbeaten streak in the Premier League, travel to Merseyside with the aim of advancing to the last-four stage.

Aside from their disappointing Champions League exit in the group stage, the Ivory Coast international thinks they have an advantage over Carlo Ancelotti’s side who sit behind them in the league table with a lesser goal difference despite being level on points.

“It’s very important to see the team improve,” Bailly told the club website. “We have some young players who are learning from Ole and the staff and it’s very important that the team is improving and, game-by-game, we have the chances to get important points.

“I’m very happy when I watch the games, the team is ready and that is important for the future.

“You always need to be positive. As I said, the team has improved game-by-game and that is very important for the future.

“We are in a good position in the league, we have the Carabao Cup, the FA Cup and the Europa League as well, so we have a lot of trophies to fight for.”

Bailly has only played four games in all competitions this season and he recently recovered from a knock which he kept him out of action for over two months.

Wednesday’s outing at Goodison Park could be a chance for the 26-year-old to return to Solskjaer’s starting XI having featured in United’s previous League Cup games against Luton Town and Brighton & Hove Albion earlier this season.

“I’ve been going step by step and have been training well and I feel good. I’m very happy to be back with the team,” the former Villarreal defender added.

“In football, this [injuries] can happen sometimes. It’s time to forget now. I’m fit, I’m so happy with how the team is doing and I’m training well. I feel strong and I am ready for my chance to help my team-mates.

“For me, when you come back from injury and you’re in the squad, you know the manager has confidence in you.

“Now I keep training well to get my body ready to start. I know I am ready to start, but I will wait to take my chance and enjoy being back out on the pitch.”