“We gave the game away” — Ten Hag on Chelsea defeat

Manchester United’s manager Erik ten Hag expressed his frustration as his team suffered a 4-3 defeat against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in a thrilling Premier League encounter.

The Blues swiftly established a two-goal advantage with strikes from Conor Gallagher and Cole Palmer. However, United showcased their resilience by pulling level before halftime, courtesy of goals from Alejandro Garnacho and Bruno Fernandes.

United seemed poised for a remarkable comeback victory when Garnacho capitalized on a superb outside-of-the-foot pass from Antony to put them 3-2 ahead.

Yet, in a dramatic turn of events, Chelsea was awarded a penalty deep into injury time after Diogo Dalot was deemed to have fouled Noni Madueke. Palmer converted the spot-kick to equalize before sealing the win with another goal in virtually the final moments of the game.

Reflecting on the outcome, Ten Hag lamented his team’s inability to manage the closing stages effectively, acknowledging their dominance throughout the match.

“We started poor by giving the ball away, defending poorly on the first two occasions. But by that moment already, you saw we were dominating the game and we returned in the game.”

He emphasized the disappointment of conceding late goals, asserting that such lapses cannot be afforded at this level of competition.

“It was brilliant how we played and we deserved to win this game. But you can’t give it away like we did.”