‘Eat or get eaten’ - Erik ten Hag’s warning for Man Utd players after dramatic Brentford win

Erik ten Hag has said Manchester United’s Premier League victory over Brentford has to be a ‘turning point’ in the season.

The Red Devils put in another abject display at Old Trafford on Saturday and had offered little as the game went into injury-time, with United were trailing 1-0. Yet a remarkable late turnaround from saw Ten Hag's side come away with all three points thanks to a Scott McTominay brace.

It led to jubilant scenes at full-time, yet that masks another worrying performance from United, who had lost five of the last seven before Saturday’s match. Speaking after the game, Ten Hag told his players that the players have to use that as a ‘restart’.

“We didn’t allow them one shot and we had some opportunities and then the same story again, we conceded a goal on a decisive moment, totally the wrong decision,” said the Dutchman. “We started and we were not in formation - an easy giveaway and it sums up our season. Such easy giveaways, you get punished in top football.

“We have too [many] good players to act like this. It has to be a turning point but also a restart because we have to get into higher levels. The spirit is good, the belief is good and the team is together. We have shown that, we have shown strong character. It can be a turning point but it is up to us.

“Those games give fuel to a dressing room,” he continued. “They know how far they have to go to get results. It can’t be easy going and in football. It’s eat or get eaten - too many times in the first half of the season we have got eaten by opponents who are more hungry, and it can’t be. It has to go away.

“Every player, every second he is on the pitch, has to deliver that. That is the demand and the standard. When you do that, you saw last season that you get a determined team. We were not always determined on every occasion in games and you get hammered for it. This has to change.”

Ten Hag also praised the impact of McTominay, after what has been a difficult start to the new season for the Scotland international. “He is Man United in everything in his heart,” said the ex-Ajax manager. 

“When you are coming on and giving this to the team it tells a lot. It says a lot about the dressing room, they are together and I felt a strong togetherness with the fans. The team kept going and get reward.”