Darren Fletcher has challenged the Manchester United players to regroup and expressed his firm belief that they are good enough to achieve success this season.
The Reds bowed out of the Emirates FA Cup at the first hurdle on Sunday afternoon, following a 2-1 defeat by fellow Premier League side Brighton & Hove Albion in our maiden home game of 2026.
Our interim head coach could not hide his disappointment in going out of the competition and admitted the players’ confidence took a hit after conceding early against the Seagulls, but the Scot has backed the squad to recover and Shea Lacey to learn from his late dismissal.
Catch up on Fletcher’s post-match reaction in his interview with TNT Sports below and watch his chat with MUTV in the video…
MIXED REACTION
“Mixed really. I thought we started okay and then the [first Brighton] goal knocked the stuffing out of us and we didn’t really create the tempo after that. We didn’t play enough balls in behind and test them and I think our passing was quite slow, so I challenged them at half-time. It was similar to the game in midweek [against Burnley] - move the ball with composure, but you need to move the ball with tempo and that was difficult. I thought we created enough chances, then to go 2-0 down was disappointing but the lads responded well. When we got back to 2-1, I thought ‘here we go’. The crowd was up, the energy was up, but ultimately we couldn’t get over the line and get an equalising goal. But I think you can see the players are fragile and they need to build themselves up well because it’s up to them now, they’ve got to respond.”
STILL A LOT TO PLAY FOR THIS SEASON
“Without a doubt [the squad is devoid of confidence] and then you concede a goal and the confidence hits them as well. Confidence is one of the most powerful things in football so when you don’t have confidence, you have [to] dig deep, battle, grind, fight, work, win games and then the confidence comes back. But they are experienced players, they are talented players and, as I said, I challenge them to regroup and it’s over to them. Someone is going to come in and lead them and they need to make sure that they’ve got a lot to play for this season. This team’s still good enough to achieve success this season but they’ve got to dig deep and find a way within themselves.”
NO FURTHER DISCUSSIONS ABOUT FUTURE
“This is what I’ve been asked to do so I’ve not had any discussions beyond that. I’ve done the job this week and we have had to concentrate on the game. All the discussions beyond that will, I’m sure, unfold in the next couple of days.”
THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE FOR THE NEXT MANAGER
“Confidence and potentially being used to playing a certain style and formation - that’s difficult to adapt from. But as I said, they’ve just got to come together. The biggest thing for me is that the group, the players, whoever leads them comes together. It’s only them in the situation, it’s only them that can do something about it, build the confidence through grinding out maybe some results. You want to play nice football but you’ve got to find a way to win first and, once you do that, hard work, attitude, application. It might not be pretty at times but from there you can grow and build and then fast, exciting football can come.”
I UNDERSTAND THE FANS’ FRUSTRATIONS
“We’re out of the cups and only Premier League games to play for. Fans weren’t happy at the end but they’ve got every right to air their grievances and I don’t think it was toxic by any stretch of the imagination, so they showed their disappointment and they have every right to do that. The fans have supported the team for a long, long time and got behind them. Old Trafford is an amazing atmosphere. They went out of the cup today so understandably they are disappointed but I’m sure if the players show the right reaction, the fans will get behind them like they always do because, as I said, there’s still a lot to play for in the Premier League this season.”
DISAPPOINTED LACEY WILL BOUNCE BACK AFTER RED CARD
“He’s disappointed because he cares and he understands. He knows he will learn from it. There’s no doubt about his talent and it’s a steep learning curve today but we believe in Shea, he’s one of our most exciting young prospects. I’m sure at Old Trafford he will have a chance to make amends for that in the future.”