Every word from Erik ten Hag ahead of Man United’s Europa League clash vs Real Betis at Old Trafford

Erik ten Hag faced the media on Wednesday afternoon ahead of Manchester United’s round-of-16 clash against Real Betis in the Europa League.

The first leg of the European knockout tie gives Ten Hag and his side the perfect opportunity to bounce back from their embarrassing loss to Liverpool on Sunday.

After moving into the quarter-finals of the FA Cup at the beginning of the month, United could put one foot in the quarter-finals of the Europa League with a positive result at Old Trafford on Thursday.

Ten Hag was asked about several different aspects since the Liverpool loss in his latest press conference, including the position of Bruno Fernandes as captain and the reaction from his squad.

What did you learn about the group after the Liverpool loss and what conclusions have you made? “Of course, we have to set conclusions and that is what we did. Of course, we talked about [the loss] and, of course, we have seen and set the right conclusions. We have to reset and bounce back.”

Do you feel let down by the players in that game? “No. We are in the same boat and we did it in togetherness. So we win together, we lose together, so all we made a mess on Sunday and we have to deal with that.”

Did Bruno Fernandes meet your standards on Sunday and will be continue as captain? “Yes, definitely. And I think he is [having] a brilliant season. He is a really important [reason] why we are in the position where we are because he is giving energy to the team. He is not only running a lot and in the highest intensity, but also in the right way, in the right direction and he is pointing and coaching players. He is an inspirator for the whole team but no-one is perfect. Everyone has his mistakes and everyone has to learn. I have to learn and he will learn as well because he is intelligent, so I am really happy to have Bruno Fernandes in my team and I am really happy that Bruno Fernandes – if Harry [Maguire] is not on the pitch – is our captain.”

How have the players reacted to the loss and have you been satisfied by the reaction? “Yes. I think the players, they reflected well. We know, but we also know when you go in the season, the setbacks will always be there. And this was a huge setback, clear. But when you are – we had a run of, I think, 23 games with one loss, and that was the second, but, of course, the way there were a lot of lessons in it that can help us for the future. That is what we have, so [that is] the positive out of it. [The] negative is that we were really below average, especially mentally. We have to take the lessons. We want to be a big team, we want to bring trophies, so then you have to act different and I think, after Sunday, we got a big lesson, we take that, but now we have to move on and we have to look forward. So that is the way we treated it, and now all the energy, all the focus, has to be on the next game.”