Thursday 7 February 2019 13:58, UK
Claudio Ranieri called on his players to be soldiers as Fulham battle to avoid relegation from the Premier League.
Fulham welcome Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's Manchester United to Craven Cottage on Saturday, with Ranieri's side seven points from safety with 13 games remaining.
"We know where we are, we know it's a very tough moment," said Ranieri. "We need soldiers who will fight until the end; that is my opinion, my philosophy.
"We know we are playing a very big team. They are fighting for the Champions League and also to achieve the Champions League for next year, but we are ready to fight in every moment."
Solskjaer has won nine of his ten games as United manager, the only blemish on his report card a 2-2 home draw with Burnley.
Ranieri was full of praise for the Norwegian, saying he was impressed with the way Solskjaer has turned the club's fortunes.
"The results speak for him," said Ranieri. "The players changed their mind, they are more involved and are fighting together.
"At the moment he deserves the job, he has shown the players are with him, Manchester United has changed its mentality."
Fulham face a challenging run of home fixtures, with their next four games at Craven Cottage against sides in the top six, as they welcome Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City following the United visit.
But Ranieri said that this would not stop his player going for points, saying results against the top teams are crucial.
"We know these teams are very strong, but I think it's much better to play at home than away and in these matches we have to get some points," Ranieri said. "It's very important to get points against these teams.
"Big teams are used to playing match by match. They are very focused on the match against us and afterwards they will think about PSG [in the Champions League].
"I had to motivate the players, be positive to give positivity to my players. I hope also our fans at home give us something more to be solid and concentrate until the end."
The Italian was largely upbeat about his side's chances, but admitted that as United have such a vast array of talented players to draw upon, getting a result will be a challenge.
Ranieri brought Anthony Martial to Monaco when he was managing in France, before the player was snapped up by Manchester United.
"I signed Martial for £5m - I think for Monaco it was good business," said Ranieri. "He was a fantastic player, I watched him in an U21s match against Monaco U21s.
"I was so impressed with him and when there was a chance to by him, I said 'take this guy'.
"He's a very good player, he can dribble, he is a strong character, he can score goals, he is fast, but there are so many good players there - Pogba, Rashford, Lukaku, Mata, Sanchez, so many.
"We must be concentrated, strong and positive to show our personality during the whole match."
