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Leeds United’s Kalvin Phillips has revealed that he’s been going around his club’s changing room in the past couple of days motivating his teammates ahead of this weekend’s Premier League fixture against Manchester United.

Leeds visit Old Trafford on Sunday afternoon in a league fixture, as an old historical rivalry is finally renewed.

The Whites last faced Man United in a league match back in 2004, with the only meetings between them since coming once in the FA Cup in 2010 and another in the League Cup a year later.

Marcelo Bielsa’s team now have the chance once again to compete against the elite clubs in England and have made a great attempt so far on their return to the top-flight.

The Yorkshire club are currently 13th in the league table and their goal for survival in their first year back in the Premier League certainly looks achievable, especially after hammering Newcastle United 5-2 in their midweek fixture.

Phillips has stressed how much this weekend’s fixture in Manchester means.

The Leeds-born central midfielder will have grown up hearing all the stories about the previous classics between his boyhood club and Man United, so it’s great to have someone like that in the current squad to get the rest of the team fired up.

“I know what it means to everyone. I’ve been walking around the changing rooms telling everyone make sure you are ready. Get ready because this is the biggest game of the season,” Phillips told BBC 5 Live Sport.

TBR’s View:

If there is one game that Leeds fans would have loved to be in attendance for on their return to the Premier League, it’s most likely that the majority would pick the trip to Old Trafford.

There may not be a crowd at the ground to cheer on the players, but it’s a match that promises so much with the talent on show and it sounds like the Leeds players will go into the match looking to make it fierce like a derby.

Phillips is so often the heartbeat of his team on the pitch and it sounds like he’s also playing a big role off it.