Manchester United head coach Erik ten Hag has hailed his team's performance against Bayern Munich in Tuesday's Champions League contest at Old Trafford.
The Red Devils entered the match knowing that they needed to beat Bayern, and then hope that Group A's other match between Copenhagen and Galatasaray finished level, in order to progress to the round of 16.
As it transpired, Copenhagen recorded a 1-0 win over Galatasaray to claim second, but a victory for Man United would have seen them finish third in the section to drop into the Europa League.
Kingsley Coman's 71st-minute goal secured all three points for Bayern, with the home side finding it difficult to get going for long spells of the clash at Old Trafford.
Man United only had one shot on target against the Bundesliga giants, while they boasted just 40% of the possession, but Ten Hag has insisted that his side 'did not deserve to lose', with the Dutchman praising the "very good" performance at Old Trafford.
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"We didn't lose today in the Champions League, we lost it before. We have to acknowledge that. I think we've had some good performances but then also we made mistakes, individual errors from players," Ten Hag told reporters after the clash with Bayern.
"In the end, it's not good enough but I think, today, the performance was very good again and we didn't deserve to lose.
"The team did very good, we were very good in the defending organisation, we were very good in the pressing. We had many ball regains, especially at the start of the second half. I think the team very good together and there was good spirit. We won a lot of balls but didn't take benefit from it.
"Also we played against a strong side – Bayern is a good team and even if they are not in the game, they have individual class to use one moment and unfortunately, it happened."
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Man United have now lost 12 times in all competitions this season, including four Champions League matches, and Ten Hag said that his side must move on from the European disappointment.
"Football is always when you don't get the points, it's that you are not qualifying. You have to take that, as a coach and a manager, and you have to look at the performances. We had some good performances in the Champions League, with attacking football, but, at the end of the day, we don't have the points to qualify," he added.
"We have to accept it and learn from it. We've played some good football in the Champions League; for example Rasmus Hojlund scored five times and that's a very good performance, and he has to take that belief into the Premier League. I think that counts for the whole team.
"We know we want to be more consistent and me as a manager, I have to improve the team, the team's progress, and I have to guide them, and the players have to take responsibilities, so we have to do that together. We want to be back again in the Champions League."
Man United will be aiming to bounce back from their latest defeat when they head to bitter rivals Liverpool in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon.
Matt Law
