Athletic Club manager Ernesto Valverde has made an explosive statement after his side lost 3-0 in the first-leg of their Europa League semi-final against Manchester United.
Manchester United secured a commanding 3-0 victory over Athletic Club in the first leg of their Europa League semi-final with three first-half goals.
Ruben Amorim’s side had an early goal ruled out for offside and then had to defend against some pressure from the hosts. Victor Lindelof make a key block on the goal-line.
Casemiro opened the scoring, and shortly after, Rasmus Hojlund earned a penalty, resulting in a red card for Daniel Vivian, who was holding the United striker inside the box.
Bruno Fernandes confidently converted the penalty, then struck again before halftime to give United a three-goal lead.
Despite controlling much of the second half, United couldn’t find a fourth goal but will return to Old Trafford with a strong advantage.
Valverde makes explosive statement after United defeat
Of course, it was the penalty which changed the game in Spain, with United able to take a two-goal lead and see their opponents go down to 10 men.
It was an obvious decision since Vivian had no intention of going for the ball and stopped a clear goalscoring opportunity, although Athletic Club boss Ernesto Valverde was not pleased with the decision.
He says that his team have blamed the referee after failing to penalise a handball from Alejandro Garnacho in the buildup to that goal.
However, while the Argentine did handle the ball, it was after he stopped his fall from a slip, which is a situation regularly not given as handball by VAR.
“We protested a previous handball by Garnacho, but the play continued,” Valverde told reporters. “When I saw it, I thought it had been clearer, but the referee is the one who has to decide. For us, it was too much of a punishment and we blamed him.
“It’s true that we didn’t manage the fact that we conceded the goal well, and the truth is that the second chance really hurt us. It affected the game. We were good in the eleven-on-eleven, we had two very clear chances, but the penalty affected the rest of the game.
“What you learn in this position is to accept things and try to improve them . Defeats are always tough,”We can’t give up. We have a very adverse result and we know who we’re up against, but when we were eleven against eleven, if there was a difference, it was more for us.”
United have to be careful in second-leg
United cannot afford any complacency heading back to Old Trafford even with a three-goal lead.
Valverde’s side were knocking on the door before the sending off and there is no question that the Spanish side will be pulling all sorts of tricks to gain an advantage next week.
Read More: Ruben Amorim reveals ruthless message he told Manchester United squad after 3-0 win vs Athletic Club
You need experienced players like Harry Maguire, Casemiro and Fernandes to keep heads cool during any uncertain moments and getting the first goal would be crucial.
Despite one foot in the final, United need to recognise that their opponent now have nothing to lose and going by Valverde’s explosive comments, they will come out fighting, and the Reds have to be ready for that.
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