Owen Hargreaves (pictured) has urged United fans not to blame David de Gea for the defeat

‘There was no fight, no tackling, no aggression’: Owen Hargreaves lays into Man United after Brentford thrashing… but calls for fans NOT to blame David de Gea despite his first-half howlers

  • Owen Hargreaves calls out Red Devils players for lack of fight in Brentford defeat
  • United were thrashed 4-0 by the Bees in the Premier League after poor showing
  • Hargreaves asks fans to avoid David de Gea criticism after making costly errors
  • Red believes Erik ten Hag is at fault after failure to prepare side for match 

 Former Manchester United midfielder Owen Hargreaves has slammed the Red Devils following their abysmal performance against Brentford.

The Bees beat United 4-0 at the Gtech Community Stadium after a first-half flurry of goals put them into a comfortable position. The goals came following a series of lacklustre performances from the United players.

Goalkeeper David de Gea took responsibility for the result as he was at fault for the first two goals, the first he let Josh Dasilva’s shot squirm under him and the second, he made the wrong decision trying to pass out from the back.

Owen Hargreaves (pictured) has urged United fans not to blame David de Gea for the defeat

Owen Hargreaves (pictured) has urged United fans not to blame David de Gea for the defeat

Hargreaves, however, believes the blame for the result lies with new manager Erik ten Hag’s failure to have the team ready for the match and the whole team’s lack of fight throughout the 90 minutes.

On Premier League Productions, he said: ‘They made some mistakes and the goals were poor. There was no fight to get back into the game, no tackling, no aggression. Football at this level is about competition, that’s how you make it.

‘Brentford won every battle today. You’ve got to win the battles. They weren’t ready against Brighton and they weren’t ready again. Erik ten Hag is a super coach, he did an amazing job at Ajax.

Hargreaves has said that the United players lacked fight during the 4-0 defeat to Brentford

Hargreaves has said that the United players lacked fight during the 4-0 defeat to Brentford

‘But these two games have not gone to plan. I don’t know how you can turn this around quickly.

‘The confidence is just gone. It’s a privilege and honour to wear that football shirt. We’ve all been there as players, had terrible games.’

“But you get through it by fighting and competing. Forget about the tactics, it’s about winning your individual battles. I was hopeful [we would see a response after Brighton].

Hargreaves has blamed manager Erik ten Hag (pictured) for not preparing the players properly

Hargreaves has blamed manager Erik ten Hag (pictured) for not preparing the players properly

‘I’m tired of being critical and negative. But what can you say? There wasn’t any positives. Don’t put all the blame on [David de Gea].

‘Yes he made a huge mistake, but there is plenty of time to get back into the game and fight back. David has been in those teams where they do fight back, but it was not there today.’

De Gea took the blame after the game during his post-match press appearances despite Hargreaves’s defence of him.

David de Gea blamed himself for the result against Brentford in his post-match media talks

David de Gea blamed himself for the result against Brentford in his post-match media talks

De Gea failed to hold on to Josh Dasilva's shot that gave Brentford the lead against Man United

De Gea failed to hold on to Josh Dasilva’s shot that gave Brentford the lead against Man United

He told Sky Sports: ‘I think I cost my team three points today. It was a poor performance from myself. After the first mistake and then the second, it was very tough to be playing, and it was a horrible day.

‘Of course, we should react better but the moment we are living now is tough, every time we concede a goal. I should’ve saved the first shot and probably the result would be different.’

Manchester United are currently bottom of the Premier League table after starting their season with back-to-back defeats.

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