'That can't be right' - Erik ten Hag agrees with Christian Eriksen dressing room claim after FC Twente draw
Man Utd drew 1-1 with FC Twente in their opening match of the Europa League campaign.
Erik ten Hag agreed with Christian Eriksen’s admission that Manchester United’s draw with FC Twente actually felt like a loss after they were held 1-1 in their opening match of the Europa League.
United put in another impressive first-half performance at Old Trafford, but once again paid the price for their lack of threat in the final third as Eriksen's stunning first-half strike was cancelled out by Sam Lammers' equaliser after the restart.
A draw in the opening Europa League match is hardly a disaster given how many opportunities there are to reach the knockout stages of the revamped competition, but it was another reminder of how much work still needs to be done after a mixed start to the new season.
Twente were statistically the weakest side United will face at home in the Europa League group campaign and Eriksen couldn't hide his disappointment on a night when his wonderful striker counted for little.
"I think mostly disappointed as a team, we wanted more in the end, far from good enough," he told TNT Sports at full-time. They looked like they wanted it more - that can't be right."
When quizzed on the mood in the dressing room, he added: "I think everyone is looking at themselves, everyone is a professional footballer, they know what to do, what can't happen. We don't lose but it feels like a loss."
Speaking in his pre-match press conference, Erik ten Hag agreed with Eriksen's claim that Twente wanted the match more on a difficult night for his side.
"Yes, you saw it. It was the game of their life," he said. "They fought for every yard and we didn't. 99% is not enough, you need 100%. We have to kill it off. We bring the game until the end, but you have to go for the second goal and kill the game."