Defeated Erik ten Hag admits Man Utd are ‘not a top’ club after losing 13th game of the season in woeful West Ham outing
ERIK TEN HAG suggested that Manchester United are no longer a “top” Premier League club following Saturday’s 2-0 defeat to West Ham.
The Dutchman could not hide his disappointment while speaking to the media after his team’s 13th loss of the season.
He told BBC Sport: “At this moment we are not top, but we have seen last week against the top of this league we were head-to-head.
“We didn’t score, we had the best opportunities of the game.
“There we defended very well for 90 minutes, that has to be always our standard like what we did there. You have to bring that to every game on the pitch.”
Following a lacklustre first half from both teams, Jarrod Bowen broke the deadlock in the 72nd minute.
Summer signing Mohammed Kudus then pounced on a Man Utd error to seal all three points.
West Ham went on to win the match 2-0, subsequently leapfrogging the Red Devils in the Premier League table.
United now sit eighth, 11 points adrift of league leaders Arsenal.
However, Ten Hag believes his team will improve in the new year.
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He added: “In 2023, we won a Cup, we played the FA Cup final, we were third in the league.
“There were highlights but we are over-performing, but in this moment we are underperforming.
“There are reasons for it, we have many injuries, so the team will be better if the injured ones return.
“We have to be calm, stick together, stick to the plan, we have to do it together.”