Erik ten Hag left his Manchester United players in no doubt that they should be trying to win their Europa League group before their last-gasp victory over Omonia Nicosia on Thursday night.
The Red Devils left it late before Scott McTominay came off the bench to score the winner and sink the Cypriot minnows at Old Trafford. United have been playing catch-up in Europe since losing to Real Sociedad in the opening round of fixtures but have a realistic chance of topping Group E thanks to McTominay's heroics.
Avoiding a second-place finish is even more important as part of the new Europa League format, as teams which end up second in their group do not automatically qualify for the knockout stage. Instead, they must take part in a preliminary knockout round against one of the eight teams which finished third in a Champions League group.
