Antonio Valencia: "Defeats have focused our minds"

Manchester United midfielder Antonio Valencia has admitted that the club are driven by their failures this season.

The Reds crashed out of the Champions League and Carling Cup earlier in the campaign, but Valencia has insisted that the disappointments will inspire the club.

"Those defeats have really focused our minds. I suppose both results were unexpected, certainly the defeat in the Carling Cup was a huge shock," Valencia told The Sun.

"The biggest blow is the Champions League because we're a big club and we're expected to be fighting to win the competition, not just qualify from the group.

"The group now tries harder in training and we're going into games with a determined attitude because we've got to win something."

United could move to the top of the Premier League table with victory over Blackburn Rovers on Saturday afternoon.