Ten Hag's verdict on deserved victory

Repeating last season's result, in less dramatic circumstances, the Reds were good value for the three points as Alejandro Garnacho and Rasmus Hojlund found the net after the interval.

The sense of injustice at Ethan Pinnock's opener was still very much on Erik's mind after the final whistle, as he was upset Matthijs de Ligt was ordered to leave the field to treat a head injury by referee Sam Barrott, as the Bees prepared to take a corner in first-half stoppage time.

However, there was much for Ten Hag to be pleased with, in his post-match interviews with the official broadcasters...

DELIGHTED WITH THE POINTS

"We are happy to win the game. It's important. At United, we have to win games but also to win entertaining and I think everyone was enjoying the afternoon, especially the way it happened. We conceded an unfair goal but, in the second half, we showed, as a team, we are together. We showed fighting spirit and determination and scored two beautiful goals."

DE LIGT CONTROVERSY

"We didn't know why the referee made one of our players, at a vital moment, go off the pitch because it was dry blood. So it had already happened. [It was] before a corner, for the critical moment, so it was strange. He is one of our best headers, maybe even our best header at the moment. They can benefit from it so we were frustrated."

SENSE OF INJUSTICE

"Of course, we feel it was really injustice and it wasn't right, the way they handled the situation, but we have to live with that and I think we showed the right response. We put that as fuel and we showed a quick start to the second half. There was anger and we transferred that into quality. We wanted to do things right and we did, scoring two beautiful goals." 

GETTING THE GOALS

"We defend very well as a team, we have four clean sheets in the Premier League and it shows the organisation is very good. We've created lots of chances, coming into the right spots, but the conversion was not of the level we can expect. Today, we did everything right and you see we have players who can finish high-quality chances. In the second half, there were slight changes, we fill the pockets and have better intensity for the counter-press. Also, the first half wasn't bad, and we had some good moments, and some good chances, but didn't score. In the second half, we scored and everyone is happy."

IN IT TOGETHER

"The togetherness you see today and the determination. We will score goals and then win games, it's what everyone expects, especially the fans who are always behind us. When everyone is against us, they stick with us. They are behind us and it is also one of the reasons why we made a quick start after half-time. We increased the tempo and turned a losing game into a winning one." 

BEATING BRENTFORD

"We can also win in the final moments of a game. We showed that last season with two goals from Scott McTominay. But, for the heart-rate of the manager, it is better to do it early in the second half! It is more calm and I enjoyed it, the way we played in the second half especially. The first half was okay but, in the second half, we stepped it up and played a good formation with good structures and increased the tempo."

LOVING THE GOALS

"The cross from Rashy [Marcus Rashford] was brilliant and it was a brilliant finish from Garnacho. For the second goal, the pass from [Christian] Eriksen, the flick from Bruno [Fernandes] and the finish from Rasmus, it was so beautiful. Of course, we're happy Rasmus is back as we miss his goals." 

A SENSE OF PERSPECTIVE

"It's great but don't overrate it. It is just a win. At United, you have to win every game. You have to win the next game and the game after, you have to win as well. If you don't win, everyone is criticising us, every time. So enjoy it for 24 hours and then move on."