Erik ten Hag, the manager of Manchester United, was happy that his team’s 1-0 victory over Southampton demonstrated that they had internalised the lesson from this month’s humiliation at the hands of Brentford.
Bruno Fernandes’ volley gave the Red Devils the lead in the second half, but they were obliged to hold on to complete a league sweep after defeating Liverpool on Monday.
And Ten Hag is delighted that his team avoided a defensive collapse like the one that occurred against Brentford on the south coast.
“I think the players learnt some lessons from Brentford,” the Dutchman said. “We were more compact on the long balls. Of course we were really happy. The goal we created, we could have made more. You hope to have more control in the last 30 minutes of the game.
“Before half time we already had the best chance of the game. I was satisfied. At the start of the game we could have created more. It is the start of the season, it is tough. You have to battle and we did that today so we were rewarded.
“It was a fantastic finish. I am really happy for Bruno [Fernandes]. But I think it was the best part of us. We kept control straight after half-time. We moved it around and we created three really good chances straight after half time and that is how I want us to play.
“I still feel there is room for improvement, to control more, but we are not that long in our way. We can improve that is clear.”
