Erik ten Hag admitted that his Manchester United side “could have been better” during their win against Fulham and were kept in the game by David De Gea.
The Red Devils reached the FA Cup semi-finals with a 3-1 victory over their Premier League rivals but despite the scoreline, it was not a straightforward evening. Aleksandar Mitrovic opened the scoring for Fulham at Old Trafford after an extremely slow start for United.
De Gea was also called on to produce a string of eye-catching saves to stop the London side from doubling their lead. The momentum only began to swing after Willian’s handball on the line, with Bruno Fernandes scoring the resultant penalty.
The Brazilian was eventually sent off after a VAR check, whilst boss Marco Silva and Mitrovic also suffered the same fate for their over-exuberant protests. Marcel Sabitzer put United ahead with a stunning flick before Fernandes rounded off victory in the closing stages.
Assessing his side’s performance, Ten Hag admitted that he was not overly convinced but did spend time praising De Gea’s performance. Speaking in his pre-match press conference, he said: “In possession, we could have been better.
“Out of possession, we were excellent. We came under pressure, gave away some set pieces and then conceded the goal. David de Gea kept us in the game after we conceded.”
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Ten Hag reiterated his praise of De Gea’s performance during his post-match press conference, whilst he also picked out two further Red Devils who impressed him throughout the game. "We created great opportunities and at half-time, we should have been up because I can't remember a save from David in the first half," he said.
"And in second half, we came [into] difficulties out of the dressing room. It was tough. We conceded the goal from the set play and we needed David to survive the game because he had two great saves. And then the key moment it was a great attacking transition and really well done by Antony, really well done by Jadon (Sancho), and it was a clear and obvious penalty."
United face a semi-final clash with in-form Brighton and should they win that tie, then they will face either Sheffield United or local rivals Manchester City at Wembley. But Ten Hag has called for calm amid the Red Devils’ battle to lift a domestic cup double.
"One thing is important: don't think too far ahead, go from game to game," he said. "I think we had a really massive run. From Christmas up, we had 25 games or so and I think two defeats, the rest draws and especially a lot of wins.
"You see the progress in the team. This team has a strong character, strong belief, a strong determination to win games. Today was an example of it. When you have a difficult period in a game, stay in the game, fight back and turn the game.
"We are definitely in the position we want to be. We battle for it, we deserve it, trophies will be won at the end of the season, we are in a position to win trophies.”
