Erik ten Hag defended Anthony Martial after he was mocked by
Manchester United fans during Saturday's sobering 3-0 defeat against Bournemouth . The Dutchman explained before the match that Martial had been selected ahead of summer signing Rasmus Hojlund as the Denmark international had "played a lot of games" recently, but he struggled to make an impact against the Cherries, who cantered to their first-ever victory at Old Trafford. Martial was eventually withdrawn to loud cheers from the home support in the 56th minute with Hojlund coming on in his stead. But Ten Hag hit out at that reaction after the match, insisting that the disappointing result cannot be attributed to Martial alone.
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Premier League matches for free this December Erik ten Hag points the blame as sorry Man Utd thumped at home by Bournemouth Speaking post-match, Ten Hag said of the reaction: "Two weeks ago against Everton he played a very good game so he has absolutely the competences & abilities to play, so I don’t think it is fair, after a performance like this, to go to one player. We as a group failed all together." The reaction from fans to Martial comes less than 24 hours after it emerged that the club could activate a one-year option in the striker's contract. He is due to be a free agent at the end of the current campaign. After overseeing Manchester United's worst start to a season in decades, the pressure on Ten Hag is growing ahead of a pivotal week. The Red Devils will face Bayern Munich in a do-or-die
Champions League fixture on Tuesday before a trip to arch-rivals
Liverpool next weekend. Join the debate! What did you make of Martial's performance v Bournemouth? Let us know here. Erik ten Hag has spoken out in defence of Manchester United striker Anthony Martial ( Image: Sky Sports) Worryingly, Ten Hag conceded after Saturday's result that his team simply "aren't good enough" to consistently churn out results. He said: "I think we have to always be ready for the game and so I have to take the responsibility for that, I have to prepare the team so they are ready for the game. From my point of view, I'm very disappointed the way we started and we have to be better. "I think, as a squad, we are not good enough to be consistent and we have to work as a squad to improve that. We are really inconsistent, we have the abilities to do it, but you have to do it every game and every third day." The result means Manchester United are now 10 points behind Liverpool, who will end the week at the summit of the Premier League following
Arsenal 's defeat at Aston Villa . Join our new
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