Erik ten Hag responds to Man Utd sacking after Crystal Palace defeat

Erik ten Hag is adamant he remains the right manager for Manchester United following Monday night’s 4-0 Premier League defeat by Crystal Palace.

United put in a scrappy display at Selhurst Park as first-half goals from Michael Olise and Jean-Philippe Mateta gave Palace a deserved half-time lead.

Palace extended their lead further in the 58th minute
Tyrick Mitchell before Olise scored his second of the game to complete an impressive performance from the home side.

The defeat left United eighth in the Premier League table and with just one win in their last seven Premier League games.

Speculation will no doubt increase over the Ten Hag’s future at Old Trafford, but the Dutchman is adamant he can improve United’s performances on the pitch.

Asked if he thought he was still the right man to manage United, Ten Hag said after the Palace defeat: “Absolutely.

“If the right players are there, so available, then we have a good team.

“But we almost miss the back line, then we’re in trouble.”

Ten Hag also said: “I will keep fighting. We prepared the team in the best possible way.

“It wasn’t good enough, I have to take responsibility for that, but I will find energy and prepare them for Sunday’s game.

“It’s clear, it’s obvious, this is underperforming. We didn’t perform the way we wanted and that’s not good enough. We are very disappointed.

“Our fans were behind us and we should have kept fighting like the fans did.

“There are always reasons, everyone sees our backline, we have huge problems. At the end of the day, we have to do and we should have done better.

In a separate interview with BBC Sport about his future, Ten Hag said: “I’m not thinking about it.

“I am preparing the team in the best possible way. We have many problems. The only goal I have is to perform better with my team.

“I’m just thinking about making my team better.”

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