Erik ten Hag did not try to defend the indefensible but, after his team showed precious little fight, he pronounced himself a fighter. His programme notes had contained the assertion that it was “only a matter of time before we show our true selves.” Instead, Manchester United had been truly awful, a wretched rabble who were overpowered by Newcastle United’s depleted side. If the England cricket team were mounting the most abject defence of a title at the World Cup, United’s attempt to retain the Carabao Cup felt their own brand of dreadful.
A season has spiralled into the realm of calamity. Ten Hag has tried to sugarcoat things in recent weeks, to claim his side were on the right track. Not now. “As a team we are not good enough and whatever the reasons are, it is no space for excuses,” he said. “It is below the standards everyone expects from Manchester United. It is not good enough by far. We have to put it right. I take responsibility for it. It is my team and they are not performing.”
