Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag is unsure about how to feel about his team’s performance following Manchester United’s draw with Liverpool in the Premier League on Sunday.
The Reds travelled to Old Trafford, a ground that has been their nemesis in the past. They hoped to channel the October 2021 spirit which helped them defeat the Red Devils by a whopping 5 – 0 scoreline.
This match was just as important as the October 2021 one because of the title race. Liverpool ended up drawing against Man United to scupper their chances of going above Arsenal. United fans, meanwhile, will take this as a win in their rivalry with the Reds’ fans.
Liverpool have now failed to beat Manchester United in three meetings this season. One of those meetings was in the FA Cup quarter-finals, which United won 4 – 3 after extra time to snatch the semi-final ticket.
Erik ten Hag hoped for a repeat of that performance in their latest meeting with the Reds, whose manager Jürgen Klopp was taking charge of his last game against United as Liverpool manager before leaving the club for good. His team showed grit to come back to a 2 – 1 lead after the Reds’ went ahead through Luis Diaz, but dropped the ball in the latter stages of the game, allowing their nemesis, Mohamed Salah, to get another goal on their heads.
Speaking about his real feelings after the game, ten Hag said: “Maybe you heard or you were in the dressing room but that’s what I told the players – mixed emotions.
“On one side, very disappointed. Again, we give a certain win out of our hands by making, let’s say, not a very clever mistake there, like on Thursday and like last Saturday. And we lose seven points in one week, where we should have had nine points. That makes a huge difference.
“On the other side, I’m very proud of this team and we have young players coming in and then give this performance and can play on this level and it shows the future for Man United is very bright.”
He also admitted that Liverpool pushed his team and applauded them for their resilience at Old Trafford while promising the club’s fans that they would keep fighting to finish in the top four for guaranteed Champions League football next season.
United travel to Bournemouth next week as they continue to fight for a Champions League spot. They will be wary of West Ham United and Newcastle United, who are their threats to going further up the table.
