London (dpa)
Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has hit out at the Premier League for holding his team’s matches at lunchtime, describing it as unfair to the team’s fans and negatively affecting his players.
Manchester United, under their much-criticised manager, were at Southampton after a painful home defeat to Liverpool before the international break, and a late defeat to Brighton in a lunchtime match.
But Ten Hag’s side managed to win with three goals scored by Matthijs de Ligt, Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho, while goalkeeper Andre Onana saved a penalty kick taken by Southampton’s Cameron Archer.
“First of all, holding the match at this time is unfair to our fans and is the wrong move,” Ten Hag said in statements highlighted by the British news agency (PA Media).
The Dutch coach added, “But our fans are always there, and I am proud of them. They support the team no matter what happens on the pitch.”
The Manchester United coach added, “But the English Premier League must also pay attention to our match schedule, as it negatively affects the players, but we deal with the situation as we did today.”
Ten Hag concluded his statements by saying, “My team is mature and the players are mature, and we must always win. There is no room for excuses for not winning any match.”
Manchester United are preparing to host Barnsley next Tuesday in the English League Cup, before visiting Crystal Palace next Saturday evening at Selhurst Park in the next round of the league.
#Ten #Hag #opens #fire #unfair #timing