“It was a great honour to be named Manchester United captain.” -Photo by Reuters

MANCHESTER: Park Ji-Sung has revealed his pride at being asked to captain Manchester United but is firmly focused on the Red Devils' pursuit of Manchester City at the top of the Premier League.

The former South Korean international captain was handed the armband by Sir Alex Ferguson for Thursday's Europa League clash against Ajax at Old Trafford.

The occasion was spoiled for Park however after United lost 2-1 on the night yet progressed on 3-2 aggregate.

“It was a great honour to be named Manchester United captain,” Park said.

“It is not something I ever thought about doing, but I would have preferred the result to be better.”

Park meanwhile is keen for United to keep up the pressure on leaders City with victory over Norwich on Sunday.

“From now on, every match in the Premier League is important,” he said.

“We have to keep pressing Manchester City.

“We have experienced this kind of pressure before. It is a big advantage for us that we have that kind of experience.

“That is the biggest difference between Manchester City and us and we have to see how they deal with it.”