'The players gave everything' - Ten Hag reacts to Man United's defeat in the Champions League

Erik Ten Hag has stirred an intense debate on social media following his assessment of how his side, Man United had played in the Champions League fixture against Bayern Munich.

Man United had lost the game to Bayern Munich by one goal to nil but the dominance of Bayern in a fixture viewed to be more important for the Red Devils compared to the German champions was one that was highly talked about.

It however came as a shock to many when Erik Ten Hag in his post-match press conference spoke about how his side had played well but their best was not good enough.

He said, "The team did very good, we were very good defensively and in the pressing. We had many ball regains, especially second half. But then we didn't take enough benefit from it - we were playing against a strong side. Bayern always, even when they are not in the game, have enough individual class to produce one moment - and that's what happened. We know we want to be more consistent. Me as a manager, I have to improve the team, help the team progress, guide them, and the players have to take responsibility. We have to do that together. The players gave everything, we saw the spirit. I have to pay a big compliment for the way they worked together as a team against a good Bayern side. You need energy when the game is going, and especially in forward positions the options [on the bench] were limited. I don't look with regret [at the campaign]. We want to be in the Champions League, the target was always to qualify for the knock-outs, but we have to learn from it, and accept we played some good football. Rasmus Hojlund scored five times, we had some very good performances, and we have to take that into the Premier League. We want to be back in the Champions League again and so we have to qualify again."

The statement made by the Dutch coach has sparked an intense debate on social media with many expressing concerns as to if the direction of the club and the coach was even clear in the first place as statements made by ETH emphasized the absence of quality in his side to get the best result on the pitch.

This is a concern taking into consideration that United like every other side made key signings in the 2023 summer transfer window.

Things are far from over for the Premier League side as they take on Liverpool in the league this weekend.

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