Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag admitted his side “weren’t in the right focus” following a 3-0 defeat to Bournemouth at Old Trafford on Saturday.
Dominic Solanke gave the Cherries the perfect when he found the net in the fifth minute, before Philip Billing and Marcos Senesi both scored in the second half to complete a dreadful afternoon for the hosts.
“At the start of the game we weren’t in the right focus,” Ten Hag told BBC Match of the Day. “We gave a goal away that can’t happen. Mistake in the build-up, okay, but then we need better positions they shouldn’t come easily through and score the goal from that. We knew that beforehand and from that point on you’re following facts.
“We tried we were in the game we had a lot of tempo, came in their half and came good into the box. Brilliance or the movement in the box we are not good enough. The same after half-time we tried to get equaliser and the breakdown was the second goal.:
Asked if Man United lack cutting edge, Ten Hag answered: “That’s always the question. You have to start right and 100 percent focused, when you don’t everyone is eager. It can’t happen when the opponent is more eager than you are.
“We had good spells of football only moments where our positions aren’t good enough. You can’t make such mistakes at this level, opponents will take benefit from it. You can’t switch off and that’s what happened.
“We have to work on that if we want to be successful. If you want to reach the targets you’ve set you have to be consistent.”
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