Ten Hag: Man Utd face must-win situation in UCL

Published on: 23 October 2023

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Manchester United have to beat FC Copenhagen if they want to qualify for the Champions League knockout rounds, according to manager Erik ten Hag.

United sit bottom of Group A after losing their first two games against Bayern Munich and Galatasaray.

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FC Copenhagen, champions of Denmark, visit Old Trafford on Tuesday and Ten Hag has said his team must win.

"If you lose the first two games, you have to win," Ten Hag told a news conference on Monday.

Ten Hag is expecting an emotional atmosphere at Old Trafford in United's first home game since the announcement of Sir Bobby Charlton's death, aged 86, on Saturday.

"It is always special, every night at Old Trafford, the fans are always so behind us," Ten Hag added. "Remember the last home game against Brentford, even when the game is not going in our direction, they stayed behind us in difficult moments.

Erik ten Hag will be hopeful that Manchester United can secure their first win in the Champions League on Tuesday. Photo by Matthew Peters/Manchester United via Getty Images

"In moments of adversity the fans are still with us and fighting. Definitely tomorrow, the passing of Sir Bobby Charlton -- their hero, the legend -- it will be more emotional.

"He is in front of Old Trafford with Denis Law and George Best. He is always with us and they are always a huge inspiration for us every day in every game."

After losing six of their first 10 games of the season, United have won back-to-back matches with narrow victories over Brentford and Sheffield United.

Ten Hag's team are looking to win three games in a row for the first time since May and full-back Diogo Dalot is hopeful their mini revival can be a springboard to help turn their campaign around.

"Every game for us is an opportunity to show we want to build confidence, build momentum," said Dalot, who scored the winner against Sheffield United on Saturday.

"When you win games it's easier to get that confidence and we've shown in these games when you don't play the way you'd like to play you have to find a way to win. We've shown that quality, we have fantastic players who can show up and turn up and win games. We have to use these wins to build confidence and momentum."

Source: espn.co.uk

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