Owen Hargreaves was furious at the… Manchester United squad after their historic 4-0 defeat to Brentford, but defended goalkeeper David de Gea.
De Gea made two huge mistakes to give Brentford a 2-0 lead, and took the blame for the painful loss in a brutally honest post-match interview.
But Hargreaves thinks it is United’s outfielders who are to blame after the Red Devils fell to the bottom of the Premier League table for the first time in 30 years.
“They made some mistakes and the goals were bad,” Hargreaves said of United’s players. “There was no fight to get back in the game, no tackle, no aggression.
“Football at this level is about competition, that’s how you make it. Brentford won every fight today. You have to win the battles.
“They weren’t ready against Brighton and they weren’t ready again. Erik ten Hag is a super coach, he did a great job at Ajax, but these two matches did not go according to plan.
“I don’t know how to quickly turn this around. The trust is just gone.
“It is a privilege and an honor to wear that football shirt. We’ve all been there as players, had terrible games, but you get through it by fighting and competing.
“Forget the tactics, it’s about winning your individual battles.
‘I was hopeful’ [we would see a response after Brighton]. I’m tired of being critical and negative. But what can you say? There were no positives.’
Former United midfielder Hargreaves, questioned about De Gea, added: ‘Don’t blame it all [David de Gea].
“Yes, he made a big mistake, but there’s plenty of time to get back into the game and fight back.
“David has been on those teams where they do fight back, but he wasn’t there today.”
In the meantime, Cristiano Ronaldo declined a request from United No.2 Steve McClaren to acknowledge the club’s support after the loss to Brentford.
LAKE : Jamie Redknapp condemns two decisions by Erik ten Hag against Brentford
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