Erik ten Hag is keen to quickly bounce back from Manchester United’s dismal defeat at Anfield last weekend.
Whilst the loss still feels sore, it’s important to remember that the team are in contention in the remaining three competitions this season, and more silverware could well be on the cards for Ten Hag and his players.
The Red Devils now have a chance to dust themselves off and try and regain form ahead of their forthcoming fixtures. They take on Real Betis in a Europa League Round-of-16 clash, with the first leg taking place at Old Trafford before United will make the trip to Spain next week.
Premier League action will then resume on Sunday for United; a home match against 19th-placed Southampton awaits them in their bid to catch up with the top two, Arsenal and Manchester City.
Ten Hag speaks out after Liverpool defeat
The manager has highlighted the importance of starting a new ‘winning run’ whilst speaking to MUTV (via the club website).
“Erik, how do you summarise the last few days at Carrington after Sunday’s result?”
“[It was a] big defeat and we are all disappointed – we were mad. Now we have to reset and bounce back.”
“Everybody is looking for a reaction tomorrow night. What does the right reaction look like for you?”
“We need a win, but we play a very good opponent. We have to be ready for that. We are aware that when we play our best we have a good chance to win.”
“How important has it been to keep sight of the fact that one result, however bad, is still only game in the campaign and there’s still a lot to play for?”
“That is obviously the truth but we can’t lose 7-0 against Liverpool. We have to take that, but for the rest you are right. It’s one loss and we are in the right position – don’t forget that – right position in the league and still playing in three [competitions] and we can still win a lot. We have to take the lessons and move forward.”
“There is a lot of experience in this squad, so how important is that going to be as we look to get back on another winning run?”
“We all know [how important it is] and even we have a [lot of] experience with a lot of players who win a lot of trophies, [and] we know in seasons you always have setbacks. We know we have won a lot of games in a row and we had a really good run and we know losing is also a part of it. But you don’t want to lose; we hate losing. And now we have to take the lessons and [start] a new run.”
“How important is the reaction of the supporters going forward as we look to get back on track?”
“It’s about unity but we let them down on Sunday and we don’t want to. We are disappointed in that, we are disappointed in ourselves but we have seen the whole season we have a really strong bond and we have to keep that but the team has to give the first energy. Give the first action and then the crowd will be behind us.”
