Ten Hag: We ate Palace alive in the first half
Erik ten Hag felt missed opportunities in the first half were the reason why his Manchester United side could not find a way past Crystal Palace on Saturday.
The Reds were dominant in the opening 45 minutes and denied on several occasions by Palace’s former United keeper Dean Henderson as we were held to a frustrating Selhurst Park stalemate.
However, the boss was pleased with the control his players had of the game and praised Andre Onana’s stunning double save in the second half.
Scroll down to read the key quotes from Ten Hag’s post-match thoughts via Sky Sports, radio interviews and BBC Sport, and watch his reaction speaking with MUTV…
'The performance is okay, the score is not'
Erik ten Hag gives his assessment of a positive United performance that lacked a decisive finishing touch...
WE ATE THEM ALIVE IN THE FIRST HALF
“When we don’t win, I’m not content. We should have won. In the first half, we ate them alive. I would say the second half was more of a balance. But in the first half, we should have scored one or two goals.”
WE SHOULD BE MORE CLINICAL
“I think we played very good and had total control of the game. In and out of possession, I think we played very good. The only thing was in the box and in the box is always where the game is decided. We should be more clinical. There is always one chance [for the opposition] and they got the chance in the 44th minute - it was a big chance they got. One mistake leads to a big chance for them. At the time, we should have been 2-0 or 3-0 up.”
AN IMPROVED PALACE IN THE SECOND HALF
“I think they closed the midfield more and they had some good counter-attacks. It was more difficult [in the] first place for us to get through. On the flip side, they got more space and had some good counters. A brilliant save from Andre Onana twice in one action.”
BOTH GOALKEEPERS WERE BRILLIANT
“It is very difficult for a goalie to be there in the moment you are needed. Especially like Deano - Henderson also played a very good game. How many balls he stopped? He’s in a rhythm but Andre has to wait, keep the focus and, in the right moment, you have to be spot on and he was brilliant. We all see now how good he is. His reactions are so good, he’s so quick and we saw that with the save in the second half."
TWO POINTS DROPPED
“In Brighton, we should have drawn or even win the game there, so we lost three points. Today, we also probably lose two points because of the first half, but the thing is that we don’t lose this game in the end.”
LICHA'S YELLOW CARD
"He [Lisandro Martinez] took a risk but I think he was on the ball. He didn't hit any opponent so I think [it's] a booking but he should take more control."
Onana "sad" to only take a point
ArticleAndre brushes off his wonder save and expresses his annoyance at the result.
HITTING WOODWORK TWICE WAS BAD LUCK
"In that action, absolutely. The finish from [Alejandro] Garnacho, nothing wrong with this. Then in the rebound, Bruno [Fernandes], nothing wrong with this. It’s a difficult ball to take. That is bad luck."THIRD SUCCESSIVE SHUTOUT PLEASING
"We have worked very hard as a team to be defensive, compact. We’ve worked on pressing and you see the benefits from it but also, on the ball, we are very constructive and we have control and that also, we take the breath of the opponent away.”
RASMUS’S RETURN
"Of course, you want to bring players from the banks with an impact. Now, we could bring Hojlund and [Marcus] Rashford, that brings impact in a game and they need to get up to full speed. I’m sure they will be there to finish the game and to win the game for us."