Man Utd boss reveals dressing room message ahead of Liverpool clash after Chelsea heartbreak

Manchester United manager Erik Ten Hag has backed his side to bounce back after showing good ‘character’ against Chelsea despite their defeat.

United came from two goals down to lead heading into the 100th minute but a late Cole Palmer penalty and deflected goal saw them steal victory in the most dramatic fashion at Stamford Bridge. It was a damaging night for United in more ways than one; centre-backs Raphael Varane and Jonny Evans were brought off injured making it four senior centre-backs (Victor Lindelof and Lisandro Martinez) now out of action in total.

And their next game doesn’t get any bigger. Just weeks after the two sides played out one of the best games in FA Cup history, United welcome Liverpool to Old Trafford for a crucial game in the title race. Any slip-ups from Jurgen Klopp’s side could see their slender lead cut down with less than 10 games to go but United are also facing a battle to finish in the European places.

Speaking to reporters after the loss to Chelsea, he claimed that his side are running out of games after surrendering a late lead but backed his side to show character against Liverpool. "In this week we have dropped five points in stoppage time and that is very expensive, the points are getting more expensive because the games are running out, we know that. We have to catch up and we are many points behind so it will be difficult but we will keep fighting and I’m sure you’ve seen our team has character. They showed today they are resilient and I’m sure they will go on Sunday and fight against Liverpool. Need to be perfect? Yeah but that’s also what they said before this match.

“For me personally I have to manage the game and I have to manage the team. We have quality and some great players. We can play at very high standards which we have seen today and we have seen against Liverpool that we can compete with the best and beat the best teams in the Premier League. When you beat them in the PL you can do it across Europe but we need to learn how you win games. For example Saturday was an example in how you need to get over the line and get three points so we have to make better decisions individually and as a team.”