Diogo Dalot admits Man Utd players must accept responsibility for shortcomings
Diogo Dalot admits Manchester United’s players cannot shirk responsibility for their shortcomings after an underwhelming second season under Erik ten Hag continued with Saturday’s 2-2 draw at Bournemouth.
United twice trailed at the Vitality Stadium and were fortunate to escape with a point following a poor first half in which the impressive hosts wasted a series of chances.
While Bruno Fernandes’ double prevented defeat in Dorset, Ten Hag’s seventh-placed side face an uphill task to secure European qualification and also avoid the club’s worst Premier League finish.
Defender Dalot believes battling back on the south coast was an encouraging sign but concedes the team have significant room for improvement going into their final six top-flight fixtures.
“The big positive is we fought always for the result,” the Portuguese told United’s website.
“That hunger of trying to fight until the end is something we have been showing this season.
“It’s been a positive thing, in my opinion, although we have a lot of things we should improve, as a team, as individuals.
“There are some things we obviously need to take responsibility (for), we cannot hide from it.
“The standards are always high at this club so we have to be really, really accountable for these types of mistakes that we are making as a team that we cannot (make) if we want to fight for the big trophies.”
United, who have never finished below seventh position in the Premier League era, are 10 points adrift of the Champions League positions following a fourth league outing without a win.
Dominic Solanke and Justin Kluivert capitalised on sloppy defending to score for the Cherries but Fernandes’ volleyed equaliser ensured the visitors were only a goal behind at the break.
United’s captain converted a 65th-minute spot-kick in a more even second period to again level before his side breathed a sigh of relief when Bournemouth were denied an added-time penalty by VAR when Willy Kambwala’s foul on Ryan Christie was adjudged to have been outside the box.
United next weekend face a Wembley FA Cup semi-final against Championship club Coventry before returning to top-flight action at home to bottom side Sheffield United on April 24.
“We are already focusing on a big opportunity for us to be again in the FA Cup final and it’s a massive competition we want to win,” said Dalot, who was an unused substitute in the 2-1 loss to Manchester City in last year’s final.
“We know the feeling of being there, now we want the feeling of being there again and winning it. Next week we are going to have a huge opportunity to be there again.”
Bournemouth were denied a first league double over the 20-time English champions on the back of December’s thumping 3-0 victory at Old Trafford.
Striker Solanke became the Cherries’ record scorer in a single Premier League season with his 17th strike this term, moving clear of former team-mate Joshua King’s tally in the 2016-17 campaign.
“For the last few games I wanted to get that next goal,” he told Bournemouth’s website.
“It’s a great achievement and I’m over the moon with that record. Hopefully I can get a few more towards the end of the season.
“Sorry Kingy about that – records are there to be broken!”
Speaking about the late VAR drama, Solanke added: “I only managed to see it back on the big screen in the stadium and it looked like it was on the line. It definitely could have been a penalty.
“I’m a bit gutted not to get the win.”
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Erik ten Hag reveals Man Utd defender played through injury against Bournemouth
Ten Hag reveals Harry Maguire played through pain during 2-2 Bournemouth draw
Red Devils have suffered mass injuries in defence throughout 2023/24 season
Raphael Varane, Lisandro Martinez, Victor Lindelof and Jonny Evans all absent at centre-back
By Jude Summerfield
Apr 14, 2024
Injuries have seen Maguire partner youngster Kambwala in defence
Injuries have seen Maguire partner youngster Kambwala in defence / Marc Atkins/GettyImages
Erik ten Hag revealed Harry Maguire played through an injury during Manchester United's 2-2 draw with Bournemouth on Saturday night.
The Red Devils were once again without a number of key players and fell behind twice at the Vitality Stadium. However, two strikes from Bruno Fernandes helped Ten Hag's side leave the south coast with a point for their efforts.
Maguire partnered youngster Willy Kambwala in central defence, with Raphael Varane, Lisandro Martinez, Victor Lindelof and Jonny Evans all missing due to injuries. Fellow defenders Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia also remain out of contention.
While Ten Hag did criticise his players for the performance in the draw, he picked out Maguire for some praise having overcome a knock earlier.
Harry Maguire
Maguire is a regular in United's defence / Catherine Ivill - AMA/GettyImages
"We have a team that is resilient, has character, we want to win. Twice we fought back from losing positions," he told Sky Sports. "Second half was better. We took more responsibility and we closed up the sides.
"That also has to do with in the middle Harry Maguire was struggling in the first half, and you see we don't have many options at centre-half any more. But in the second half his leadership and guidance helped us to be more closed.
"We have used the same back line twice and these players gave everything, their maximum."
He later said in his post-match press conference: "One thing was Harry Maguire had an issue in the first half and for us he overcame [it].
"During the game, he recovered from it and you see in the second half, he was up there and then he can express his leadership, he can express his defending qualities and his [ability] on the ball.
"We needed that in this back four, we lost some balls in areas we shouldn’t lose them. For instance, the first goal, the setup was good, but in that area, you should never lose the ball."
Maguire had come close to leaving Old Trafford to join West Ham in last year's summer transfer window but injuries elsewhere have seen the England international start 16 Premier League games for Man Utd so far this season.
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Chelsea handed £35m transfer boost after Newcastle thrash Tottenham
On-loan Newcastle defender Lewis Hall set to make move from Chelsea permanent
Clause triggered after Magpies' 4-0 thrashing of Tottenham on Saturday
Blues at risk of breaching PSR rules following lucrative spending
By Jude Summerfield
Apr 14, 2024
Chelsea will receive some much-needed cash
Chelsea will receive some much-needed cash / James Gill - Danehouse/GettyImages
Newcastle's 4-0 thrashing of Tottenham on Saturday triggered a clause which will see on-loan Chelsea player Lewis Hall join the club permanently in the summer transfer window.
The Magpies surged to victory at St James' Park with Alexander Isak leading the way up front as Eddie Howe's side lifted themselves above Manchester United into sixth.
Hall was signed on loan from west London with an obligation to make the move permanent should specific thresholds be met and their latest win has ticked off a mandatory clause.
It's now reported that the clause was based around Newcastle's final league position. A finish of 15th or above was required for Hall's deal to be made permanent and the Magpies can now no longer mathematically finish any lower than 14th.
Lewis Hall
Hall came on as a late sub against Spurs / George Wood/GettyImages
It will see Hall arrive for £28m this summer with potential add-ons taking the transfer close to £35m. The 19-year-old has made 12 appearances in the Premier League in 2023/24, with three coming as starts, and also featured in the Champions League for the first time ever back in November.
The news comes as a welcome boost for Chelsea, whose accounts for the 2022/23 season recently revealed a £90.1m loss. The Blues are at risk of breaching Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) and could be forced into selling a number of key performers before 30 June.
A statement signed off by chairman Todd Boehly rebuffed any suggestions of a PSR violation, but their spending has increased fan fears of a potential punishment in the near future.
Chelsea forked out an enormous £75.1m to agents and intermediaries between February 2023 and February 2024, comfortably clear of the likes of Manchester City (£60.1m), Manchester United (£34.1m) and Liverpool (£31.5m).
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