Man United drew 0-0 at Aston Villa in round 7 of the Premier League. This is a pretty good result for the Red Devils in the context of their declining form. With 1 point, coach Erik ten Hag's seat is still temporarily safe.
"We hit the crossbar and had a good chance from Marcus Rashford. But the game was very even. We knew we were missing goals. Of course it wasn't a good start for the team. That's for sure.
We have to go forward. If we want to win games, Man United have to score goals. That's something we have to improve on. We are creating chances and we should do better. In the opponent's penalty area, we have to be more ruthless, more efficient, more aggressive...", said Erik ten Hag.
Since the beginning of the tournament, Man United have only scored 5 goals. The Old Trafford team created many scoring opportunities but their strikers all missed them regrettably, from Rashford, Garnacho, Bruno Fernandes to Zirkzee... This is part of the reason why they have only won 2/7 matches since the beginning of the season.
"But we kept four clean sheets. That's good because it shows we defended properly. It also shows our ability to organise our defence, organise our formation, deal with the transitions of the opponent," added the Man United coach.
Asked about Ratcliffe's presence at Villa Park amid speculation surrounding his future as manager, Ten Hag said: "We always talk, almost every week. Both Ratcliffe and I have the same mindset, the same goals. We know what we are aiming for.
“Manchester United are a long-term project and we have to continue to improve the process. We had two very difficult away games and the team showed solidarity and spirit, but the players also showed belief.”
Man United will play Brentford on October 19 in round 8 of the Premier League, after the national championships were temporarily suspended, giving way to matches of national teams.
