Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has called on his players to show resilience and start a new run of positive results after a disappointing week was compounded by a 1-0 defeat at Newcastle United on Saturday night.
On the brink of exiting the Champions League after a 3-3 draw at Galatasaray on Wednesday, despite leading 3-1 in Istanbul, United returned to Premier League duty at St James' Park and were thoroughly outplayed, despite the hosts' threadbare squad.
Anthony Gordon struck the winner in the 55th minute in a game that saw Newcastle have 22 shots on the United goal, compared with the visitors' seven.
United have now lost six league games this season, including all five against top-half teams, to sit seventh in the table. Newcastle, meanwhile, climbed to fifth with their seventh home win in eight matches.
“This week, it was not in our advantage but you have to take it as it is," United manager Ten Hag said. "We have to put this right. I know we are resilient. Several weeks ago, we lost to [Manchester] City and then we had a good run [in the Premier League], so we have to get back to a good run.”
While United had late chances, when Sergio Reguilon had an effort cleared off the line by Fabian Schar and Antony had a goal ruled out for offside, Ten Hag admitted Newcastle were the better side on the day.
“We have to give credit to Newcastle. They played better than us tonight," he said. "We started well, we had a good chance by [Alejandro] Garnacho but then, for a long period, Newcastle had the better performance than us.
"We went down 1-0 but, to be fair, by the end of the game, we came back and had some good opportunities. [Sergio] Reguilon had a good chance, then [there was] the offside goal, so we fought back but we have to do this for the whole game.”
The mood could not have been any more different in the opposing dugout. Newcastle also entered the game after a deflating Champions League trip, having led Paris Saint-Germain until a late and controversial penalty from Kylian Mbappe denied the Magpies a famous win that would have boosted their hopes of advancing to the last 16.
Newcastle v Man United player ratings
-
NEWCASTLE UNITED PLAYER RATINGS: Had very little to do compared to his counterpart, but Pope was alert and cleared when needed. Unfortunately added his name to Eddie Howe’s lengthy injury list when he landed on his shoulder awkwardly in the closing stages. PA -
A constant threat with set pieces, Trippier made life challenging for Onana and was unlucky to see a superb free-kick effort hit the crossbar before half-time. Opened up United with his passes, and confident when dealing with Garnacho. Getty Images -
Should have capitalised on an early set piece but fell short as he headed over within the first 20 minutes, but the Magpies captain was reliable in defence as United looked for an equaliser. Getty Images -
The Swiss defender was everywhere on the pitch. Desperate for a goal, he enjoyed the freedom to surge forward into space in the first half and had several efforts on goal. Defensively, he crucially helped keep a clean sheet by clearing Reguilon’s effort on goal. Reuters -
Exciting on the left flank, Livramento tormented Rashford throughout, leading to the England forward’s early departure in the second half. Equally impressive in defence. PA -
Calm and composed, Miley continued to look at home in midfield alongside Bruno and Joelinton and was happy to press outside of possession. He’ll give Howe plenty to ponder when Sean Longstaff returns. PA -
Ever so reliable in Newcastle’s midfield, Guimaraes controlled the midfield and fed the ball to Trippier in the lead-up to Gordon’s opener. Earlier, he tried his luck with a curling effort from the outside of the box as Newcastle loaded the pressure on United. AFP -
Contributed defensively and kept busy in the middle of the park, but lacked any sting to a second-half shot. Booked. AFP -
Displayed bursts of energy when charging forward to assist attacks. Tested Onana with a low effort on goal, which lacked power, before a curling effort that went wide of the far post. AFP -
Missed a golden opportunity to open the scoring when his shot was deflected narrowly wide of the post. Happy to drop deeper to support play. Getty Images -
Rewarded for his patience when Trippier’s cross found Gordon at the far post, who tapped in a well-deserved goal for Newcastle. The winger is in exceptional form. Getty Images -
SUBS: (Pope 86’) Brought on for the closing stages, Dubravka thought he’d conceded an equaliser before an offside flag was given against Maguire. Getty Images -
(Gordon 90'+8) Late change for Newcastle. Getty Images -
MANCHESTER UNITED RATINGS: Chants of "dodgy keeper" greeted him, yet he wasn’t as he saved from Almiron on 16. Beaten by Trippier’s free-kick but saved by the crossbar. Not at fault for the goal. No howlers, but questionable distribution. EPA -
Tough against the effective Gordon, but he was mostly up for it – though he was caught off guard as Gordon crept behind him to score the only goal at the back post. AFP -
Busy first half, when he did well to block a Guimaraes shot and deflect another away for a corner. Another block on 44. Booked in frustration. Offside when Antony put the ball in the net. Reuters -
Solid defending alongside Maguire as he stood his ground and was twice perfectly positioned to stop Newcastle going ahead. Reuters -
Played at left back. Early mix up with Onana. A right-footer who is nowhere near as effective as Shaw at left-back. AFP -
Excellent ball for Rashford in a United attack on 31 – one of the few bright moments from his side in the whole game. But played in a team that were miles off their opponents. EPA -
Only 30 touches, a very low figure for a central midfielder showing how Newcastle dominated. Getty Images -
Tenth-minute shot on goal and an early threat on the left. Then faded. PA -
Smart early pass to Garnacho. Hammered in tackles which went unpunished. One of the few who can be satisfied with their performance. Getty Images -
Awful on the right, losing the ball, throwing his arms around and not tracking back. First to come off with Martial. Body language does not emit contentment. EPA -
Preferred to Hojlund, but was poor. Didn’t track back, which saw his manager shouting at him. Subbed with Rashford. EPA -
SUBS: (Martial 61') Put himself about but almost no service. EPA -
(Rashford 61') Put the ball in the net on 88, but Maguire was offside. Booked. EPA -
(Mainoo 79') Steady as United pushed late on, but woeful ball back to take the impetus out of a 94th-minute attack. Getty Images -
(Wan-Bissaka 79') Struck a shot on target on 81. Getty Images
However, despite battling fatigue and a growing injury list, Newcastle were by far the superior side against United, and manager Eddie Howe was delighted with his players' efforts.
"A massive win for us, especially off the back of Paris and those emotions and feelings," Howe told NUFC TV. "Brilliant response from the players and I think one of our best performances of this season, maybe even going back to last season, because you have to take everything into consideration.
"The squad is stretched, but I thought we gave a brilliant technical performance and a really good athletic performance in terms of off the ball, so I'm delighted with the players."
Having navigated a tough week with a stretched squad, Howe will now likely be without first-choice goalkeeper Nick Pope for a prolonged spell after he went down with a suspected dislocated shoulder late in Saturday's game.
“It looks bad,” Howe said. “He’s done it before and had it operated on and come back successfully. But I don’t know what the future holds for him, I don’t know if he will need an operation or not.”
