led his team to defeat Aston Villa 3-2 at home in the 19th round of the Premier League, Manchester United head coach Ten Hag attended the press conference.
The second half was exciting and the atmosphere was electric. Dave Brailsford was watching the game from the directors' seat. What do you think he and Jim Ratcliffe thought of the game?
I don't know, you have to ask them these questions.
Can you say this was your team's best and worst performance?
No, this is not the worst performance. I thought we were pretty solid in the first half, but we were a little careless with set pieces, which resulted in two goals conceded. We made a little bit of a change at halftime, just a very small change, but we said we're going to keep going. We already created chances in the first half, with Rasmus Hoylen, Rashford, Bruno Fernandes and Dalot all performing very well and creating a lot of chances. So we say keep going and believe in yourself and that's what I want from a team. I said it before the game and I said it at halftime, keep the faith and we will win this game.
You moved Ganacho to the right tonight and he did really well. I mean, he played really well on the left and he can also play really well on the right. Isn’t it now that: That is, it doesn't matter where he plays, what matters is his influence?
I think we've done this before, when he was more comfortable playing on the left. But yes, I think he can play on the right as well. And today, I thought he was a threat on the right and was very good throughout the game and scored two goals. But I think the entire front line performed very well. They kept running and timing their coordination very well, posing a continuous threat to their opponents.
I know Rasmus (Hoylen) has scored in the Champions League, but how important is it for him to score in that atmosphere? Also, do you need to keep him confident and optimistic during this period?
Yes, of course, I have had several conversations with him and every time I point it out; you have scored a lot of goals with the Danish national team and you have scored in the Champions League, so that proves your ability. So you can do it, believe in yourself and the goals will come. I believe that now that the first goal has been scored, he will continue to score more goals.
How is he doing in the locker room?
Yes, of course it's always a problem when a striker doesn't score, but he has a strong character, he's very resilient and very determined. So he has a lot of fighting spirit, which I think is what a striker needs. When you keep giving, the goals will come.
This is the first game since the Ineos deal was announced, are you frustrated that the deal is taking so long? Now that the deal has been confirmed, have the players felt less pressure or have they been affected in any way?
I don't think it has any impact on the players. For me, I was always informed, throughout the whole process it was Richard Arnold who was telling me what was going on and then Patrick Stewart, so I knew what was going on. Yes, we look forward to it. I think it's positive for the club that they're coming in, they have a lot of experience at the highest levels of sport: Formula 1, cycling teams, other football clubs. So, that will only help and support us in achieving our goals and we're looking forward to that. They want to work with us and we want to work with them.
You now need to maintain a stable state after achieving good results. This season you often fall into a trough after achieving good results. How do you change this situation?
Yes, but you also have to analyze the reasons. We often have to change the lineup so we don't have a consistent routine. We know football is about performance, consistency and top quality, but we know we need to take a step forward in that regard.But I believe when we have more players available regularly, especially in key positions, then we will get the benefit of stability.
Marcus Rashford has not started a game for three weeks. He came on tonight and had several shots and scored goals. What do you think of his performance? Are you happy to have him back?
I thought he was doing really well, but there was a time before when he was sick. Also, there were one or two games where we would have preferred to play Ganaccio on the left because he performed better. Not only did he show a threat, but he also made key plays: assisting, shooting on target and scoring a goal. So, internal competition is there, but we have to see how we integrate them into the team. Today we have Garnacho on the right, which may be a solution, but may also change. But at the same time, I also know Rashford can score goals playing on the right.
