“When will they understand your place is always on the pitch” – Johan Djourou delivers vote of confidence to Manchester United star

Manchester United centre-back Eric Bailly has enjoyed a fair share of attention following his impressive display in the 2-2 draw with Atalanta on Tuesday (November 2). Former Arsenal defender Johan Djourou has delivered a vote of confidence to the Ivorian who has found opportunities hard to come by at Old Trafford in recent months.

Following the Atalanta clash, Bailly took to social media to mark his return to Champions League action after several months. The Ivorian wrote on his Instagram page:

"It's great to be back. Always hungry to be successful. Learn and go again. That's what we do."

Johan Djourou used the comment section under the post to send a huge message to Manchester United, noting that Bailly deserves more involvement.

He wrote:

"My brother... When will they understand that your place is always on the pitch."

The post earned a lot of comments and reactions from fans and fellow footballers, reaching an unbelievable 14,706 comments in just 17 hours.

Notably, Manchester United defender Harry Maguire also used the opportunity to offer his support to Eric Bailly. The Englishman reacted with a simple strength and handshake emoji directly under Djorou's comment.

Meanwhile, Manchester United put up an average performance during their Champions League clash with Atalanta on Tuesday night. The Red Devils entered the game slowly and conceded an early goal in the 12th minute.

Cristiano Ronaldo leveled matters just before the referee blew the whistle for half-time. However, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's men fell behind once again shortly after the restart. Thanks to CR7's injury-time effort in the second half, Manchester United managed to secure a 2-2 draw in Italy to keep their qualification hopes alive.

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Manchester United in the midst of an intense schedule

Against Atalanta, Eric Bailly played his first Champions League game for Manchester Unied since 2018-19.

Manchester United have been on a tough run of fixtures over the last couple of weeks. Before their Champions League clash with Atalanta on Tuesday night, the Red Devils faced Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool in the Premier League.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's men will continue with their intense schedule this weekend when they take on Manchester City at Old Trafford on Saturday (November 6). They will then face Watford before clashing with Villareal and Arsenal respectively in their subsequent three games. It remains to be seen how they'll fare amid the tough schedule.