Erik ten Hag admitted he was not bothered by the full-time scoreline of Liverpool versus Aston Villa as the game at Anfield neared its end.
Manchester United did their part on Saturday afternoon after beating Bournemouth 1-0, which has now left them on the cusp of the Champions League. The Red Devils now require one point from their final two fixtures to secure a top-four finish, in a devastating blow for Liverpool.
Jurgen Klopp's side could have ramped up the pressure on United had they got the better of Villa and came agonisingly close to snatching all three points deep into ten minutes of additional time, though could only manage one goal from the departing Roberto Firmino.
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United's fixture on the South Coast had finished as Liverpool went in search of a winner, with Ten Hag refusing to let events from Merseyside distract him as he conducted his post-match media duties. "I don't care what happens in Liverpool, it's about us. We have to do the job," he told Match of the Day.
"The only criticism is we didn't kill off the game, we had to produce that second goal but that's the way this team are. It is not easy scoring goals. "It was a great goal from Casemiro. We pinned them back, didn't let them breathe in the first 25 minutes. David de Gea made a mistake a few weeks ago but everyone can make mistakes. We defend with 11, that's why we have so many clean sheets. David made some great saves."
After learning of Liverpool's full-time result moments later, Ten Hag added: "We are nearly there - in the top four - but we are not there. We need a win."
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