Manager unhappy after club plunges deeper into crisis with 3-1 defeat to Brighton
\nMANCHESTER
\nErik ten Hag urged Manchester United to show some \u201ccharacter\u201d after they plunged deeper into crisis as Brighton swept to a shock 3-1 win at Old Trafford on Saturday.
\nTen Hag\u2019s side were rocked by a first-half goal from former United forward Danny Welbeck before Pascal Gross and Joao Pedro put Brighton further ahead after the interval.
\nHannibal Mejbri\u2019s first goal for the club was no consolation for United, who were booed off at the final whistle.
\nIt was United\u2019s second successive defeat after their 3-1 loss at Arsenal before the international break.
\nWith three defeats in five league games already this season \u2013 the first time they have suffered that fate in the Premier League era \u2013 United are languishing in 12th place and have the look of a club in turmoil on and off the pitch.
\n\u201cDefinitely that is something that bothers me. Finally it\u2019s about character. Now we have to see how strong we are, how the team sticks together and which players are standing up and showing the character and leading the team,\u201d Ten Hag said.
\n\u201cBecause in all the games, all the games but especially the games today, against Arsenal and Nottingham Forest, we have seen we can play very good and we can create a lot of chances.
\n\u201cBut, yes, there are also some improvements to make. That is definitely the case and now we have to step up.\u201d
\nTen Hag appeared to have stabilised United last season when he ended the club\u2019s six-year trophy drought by winning the League Cup and qualifying for the Champions League in his first campaign.
\nBut hopes of a title challenge are already fading after a dismal start to the new season, with a daunting Champions League opener at Bayern Munich on Wednesday threatening to add to United\u2019s woes.
\n\u201cWe have to be very disappointed,\u201d Ten Hag said. \u201cAnd we have to be very annoyed with ourselves because at United the demand is you win games.\u201d
\nIn response to a rash of disciplinary issues involving his players, Ten Hag claimed this week that he arrived at Old Trafford following his move from Ajax to find \u201cno good culture\u201d among the squad.
\nOn Friday, Ten Hag said he did not know whether exiled forward Jadon Sancho will play for United again.
\nSancho has been banished to train away from United\u2019s first team after the England international angered Ten Hag when he claimed he was a \u201cscapegoat\u201d after he was dropped for the Arsenal loss.
\nMeanwhile, United forward Antony is on a leave of absence to fight allegations of domestic violence made against him by three women, which he strongly denies.
\nAntony\u2019s problems came weeks after Mason Greenwood was forced to leave United on loan to Spanish side Getafe over domestic abuse allegations that were later dropped.
\nUnited fans have also continued their protests against the disliked Glazer family after the club\u2019s owners appeared to halt their sale plan.
\nMarcus Rashford and Rasmus Hojlund both missed early chances to put United ahead and Brighton took the lead in the 20th minute.
\nAdam Lallana let Simon Adingra\u2019s low cross run through his legs to the unmarked Welbeck, who side-footed home to leave Old Trafford in shell-shocked silence.
\nGross has made a habit of tormenting United in the past and the German made it seven goals in 11 games against them when he collected Tariq Lamptey\u2019s 53rd minute pass, danced past Lisandro Martinez and fired a clinical finish into the bottom corner.
\nTen Hag was loudly jeered when he opted to replace Hojlund with Anthony Martial.
\nBizarrely, Ten Hag said: \u201cI think it was positive. You see that the fans from the first moment in Old Trafford, the reception for him was great.\u201d
\nIn the 71st minute, Pedro produced a superb finish from Lamptey\u2019s pass, prompting United fans to trudge to the exits.
\nHannibal came off the bench to curl home from 20 yards two minutes later, but it was too late to stop the crisis from engulfing United.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Manager unhappy after club plunges deeper into crisis with 3-1 defeat to Brighton MANCHESTER Erik ten Hag urged Manchester United to show some \u201ccharacter\u201d after they plunged deeper into crisis as Brighton swept to a shock 3-1 win at Old Trafford on Saturday. Ten Hag\u2019s side were rocked by a first-half goal from former United […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":356646,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-356614","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports"},"yoast_head":"\n