Erik ten Hag's team produced a vastly improved performance in a 2-1 win at Old Trafford
Manchester United lifted the gloom at Old Trafford with a rousing win over bitter rivals Liverpool on Monday night, with manager Erik ten Hag saying the performance proved his team can “f**king play good football.”
A composed finish from Jadon Sancho gave the hosts the lead after 16 minutes, before Marcus Rashford slotted past Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson when racing clear eight minutes into the second half to double their advantage.
Mo Salah turned in a header to halve the deficit inside the last ten minutes to make for a nervy finish at Old Trafford, but United saw out the game to earn a first Premier League win of the season after humiliating losses to Brighton and Brentford.
The United faithful went home in contrasting spirits to how the night had begun, with large numbers of fans continuing their protests against widely reviled US owners the Glazer family before kick-off.
There was, however, the positive sight of new signing Casemiro being presented to supporters before the match after the midfield enforcer completed a £60 million ($70 million) move from Real Madrid.
That deal wasn’t done in time for the Brazilian to make the line-up against Liverpool, while United’s Dutch boss Ten Hag left out club captain Harry Maguire and wantaway forward Cristiano Ronaldo from his starting XI – with Ronaldo only emerging for a brief late cameo.
But the team which Ten Hag did select was full of energy and verve, and a far cry from the tame performances in the 2-1 home defeat to Brighton and a 4-0 humiliation at Brentford.
The Dutchman was evidently impressed – so much so that he turned the air blue in a post-match interview with Sky Sports.
“We can talk about tactics, but it's all about attitude,” Ten Hag said.
“We can see that attitude on the pitch. There was communication, fighting spirit, and especially there was team(work), you can see what they can achieve because and they can f**king play good football.”
Erik ten Hag is so happy with Man United's first win he swears during his post-match interview
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