Manchester United lost to FC Twente in their first Europa League match at Old Trafford, with manager Erik ten Hag failing to inspire a victory with his changes.
Alejandro Garnacho asked Erik ten Hag to leave him alone during Manchester United’s Europa League match with FC Twente, according to former Premier League manager Ruud Gullit.
United gained a first-half lead over Twente in their opening European match of the season, but were unable to extend their lead. It eventually proved to be their undoing, as Sam Lammers took advantage of some careless play to level for the Dutch side.
Argentina winger Garnacho was brought just before the equalizer, replacing fellow wideman Amad as Ten Hag looked to finish off the opponents. He had started the previous two games, scoring twice in a Carabao Cup victory against Barnsley, but was forced to start on the bench this time.
Former Chelsea and Newcastle manager Gullit was on punditry duty for Ziggo Sport in the Netherlands, reflecting on what will seem like missed opportunities for United. And he noticed something in Garnacho’s body language as the 20-year-old prepared to enter the battle.
“[Ten Hag] wanted to meet with Garnacho, but he didn’t feel like it,” Gullit explained (via Metro). “Garnacho was about to come on, and Ten Hag continued chatting to him. “You can just see it when a player thinks: ‘Leave me alone, man!'”
Gullit also stated that he was not shocked by United’s up-and-down performance this season. “Am I stunned by the football? “No, because I see this every week,” the 62-year-old said.
“I believe Twente played sensibly. They appeared to have acquired some confidence following a cautious start to the encounter. At some point, you have to put them to the test, and they performed really well.”
Ten Hag expressed his displeasure following the dropped points. United will now want to get a victory away to Porto in their second Europa League encounter in order to finish in the top eight in the new league phase.
“We kept them alive,” the United manager told TNT Sports. “When you’re 1-0 up and in control of the game, you must maintain consistency and keep going. In the second half, we dropped the ball and conceded the goal. We didn’t complete it; we had to go for the second goal, therefore they survived and we were penalized for our own error.”
“The goal is a collective fault; a Twente player may dribble over the pitch without stopping. We cannot give a goal away like this. We’ve seen that you have to keep going throughout the game; if you’re up 1-0, you have to keep going and go for the second. It’s the first game; you must win.”
