Erik ten Hag insisted this season would be a success for Manchester United if they won the Carabao Cup, in a defiant final message before he was sacked.
The Dutchman was dismissed on Monday after a 2-1 defeat at West Ham on Sunday left United in 14th place in the Premier League.
Sporting head coach Ruben Amorim is the frontrunner to replace Ten Hag and Ruud van Nistelrooy has been placed in interim charge at Old Trafford.
It had long felt as though the writing was on the wall for Ten Hag, and the decision of the United hierarchy to sack him brought his two-and-a-half-year tenure to an end.
During that time, United won the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup. But last season’s eighth-place finish marked their worst-ever finish in the Premier League.
Asked before his sacking whether winning the Carabao Cup would make this season a success, Ten Hag replied: “Oh, definitely. It is about trophies.
“I don’t want to go into this debate again, but I think it is the truth that there are not so many trophies you can win, and if you win a trophy in top football, that is most important. That is what the fans expect and what we expect: to win a trophy.
“We have had five opportunities [this season]; one we missed, the first Community Shield. But there are still four to go.”
Ten Hag was also asked what the defeat to West Ham would do to his players’ morale.
“First of all, we have to do better at our [league] ranking, but I will tell them [the players] that our ranking is not really reflecting our performances and our levels”, he said. “At the end of the season, we have to get this right.
“But, of course it is not easy when you have so many setbacks in the start of the season. You have to overcome this. We have to fight back.
“The confidence will grow. And we are now on the other side where we are disappointed and we have to deal with setbacks. Now we have to find the fuel from setbacks and disappointments.”
