Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag has called for his players to play with anger after their midweek disappointment at Stamford Bridge dealt the Red Devils’ Champions League hopes another blow.
United lead 3-2 going into injury time, but Cole Palmer’s late double secured the win for Chelsea. Now, Ten Hag has said that his players will be “mad” and angry” in their hotly-contested encounter with Liverpool on Sunday.
Now, United’s manager has called on his players to channel that disappointment into their crunch encounter against Liverpool, with his side still looking to secure a place in Europe next season, and halt their bitter rivals from winning the league title.
United sit sixth in the table, nine points off Tottenham Hotspur in fifth, while Liverpool will move back to the summit should they beat their opponents at Old Trafford, after Arsenal leapfrogged them on Saturday evening with a 3-0 win over Brighton.
“We have to step up and make better decisions,” Ten Hag said.
“We can play to a very high standard. We can compete with the best and beat the best in the Premier League. When you can do that, you can also do it across Europe.
“We need to learn how to bring big games over the line.
“We have to recover very quick[ly]. We have to turn this around. We will be in a positive mood and we will be looking forward [to it].
“We have to take energy but we will be mad, angry. From anger you can take a lot of energy and that is how we have to do it.”
United’s hopes of finishing in a UEFA Champions League place are slim with eight games to play, as they are 12 points adrift of Aston Villa in fourth, while they are level on points with seventh-placed West Ham.
