Man Utd boss Erik ten Hag shuts down reporter for ‘ridiculous’ comment after Chelsea loss | Football | Sport
Erik ten Hag shut down a TV interviewer over a ‘ridiculous’ suggestion after watching Manchester United collapse to a shocking late 4-3 defeat against Chelsea. The United manager wasn’t in a bright mood after his side squandered a lead in the dying embers of stoppage time for the second consecutive match.
Ten Hag looked to have picked up a crucial victory at Stamford Bridge after Alejandro Garnacho’s brace on either side of Bruno Fernandes’ header completed a stunning comeback.
Conor Gallagher and Cole Palmer fired Chelsea into a two-goal lead after 19 minutes, but United drew level before the break.
Garnacho profited from Antony’s dazzling trivela assist for the visitors’ go-ahead goal, and they held onto the lead until the sixth minute of eight added onto the end of the game.
Then Diogo Dalot felled Noni Madueke inside the box, and Palmer scored his second penalty of the game to level the score in the 100th minute, much to the delight of the Stamford Bridge crowd.
Shortly after, United fell asleep at a Chelsea corner, allowing the 21-year-old to complete his hat trick and snatch all three points in unbelievable scenes in west London.
Ten Hag has been criticised for how prone his set-up has been to shots this season. It was no different against Chelsea, who recorded 28, 10 of which were on target.
But after a TV interviewer suggested that Ten Hag’s approach wasn’t sustainable, the Dutchman hit back, labelling the comment ‘ridiculous’ before defending United’s defensive record.
He said on TNT Sports: “It is ridiculous [to claim it’s unsustainable]. We showed that we ranked fourth [best] for goals conceded before tonight, and everyone is talking to each other [about the shots] after.
“We are good, and we have good defending as a team and a good goalkeeper so I cannot do nothing.”
United had conceded 40 league goals in 29 games before the 4-3 defeat against Chelsea, a record only bettered by title contenders Arsenal (24), Liverpool (28) and Manchester City (29).
Ten Hag added that he thought the Red Devils deserved to win the game at Stamford Bridge. However, he was once again left ruining his side’s late-game management.
“Yes, we started poor, kicking the ball away and defending poorly. But you saw we were dominating the game and it was brilliant how we played – we deserved to win the game,” Ten Hag explained.
“But, you cannot give it away like we did, and we have to manage this game better. It is a team performance, you can point to one of the players but it is about team performance.
“When it gets chaotic you have to deal with it as a team and we made the wrong decisions and we didn’t help out as a team.
“Out of possession, we made a bad decision – a lack of concentration. Also, I think lucky at the end with the penalty situation, questionable and very soft but we have to do better.”
