Mason Mount made an honest admission after Manchester United fell to a 1-0 home defeat against Crystal Palace.
Joachim Andersen’s fierce first-half strike saw Crystal Palace claim all three points and subjected United to back-to-back defeats at home in the league.
Indeed, the last time United lost two consecutive home games in the Premier League was against Liverpool and Manchester City in October and November 2021, the last two home league games of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s tenure.
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Moreover, the loss means United have suffered their worst-ever start to a Premier League season, with Erik ten Hag’s men having lost four of their first seven games of the campaign,
Indeed, it is the first time United have lost four of the opening seven games since the 1989-90 season, and after the game Mount opened up on the club’s “difficult” start.
“We want to win these games and we know we need to win these games,” the England international said via the Mirror. “It’s been a difficult start. When you go 1-0 down, it’s always going to be hard to get back in the game. We had a few chances, but it wasn’t enough.
“We know we need to go back and look at the areas we need to improve on. We need to improve because we want to win games.
“Every competition we’re in we want to go right to the end. It’s a tough one to take. There are areas we need to look at, but it's a frustrating one to take.”
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Reflecting on his squandered opportunity to level the scores in the second half Mount said: “I just tried to glance it and it hit my shoulder. If I score that, we’re back in the game and we’re hunting to get the winner. It’s fine margins and it’s just not going our way at the moment.
“You don’t want to lose games, especially at home with the fans here. We want to perform for them and win games for them. We need to go away and look at some areas that just weren’t ticking today.”
Meanwhile, manager Ten Hag said he understood the United faithful’s frustrations, with the final whistle having been greeted by a chorus of boos.
The Manchester United boss said: "I understand fans are expecting a win and we didn't win and we lost.
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"Of course, it is a concern, we have to be more consistent, this is not the demand for Manchester United. The demand is we get a row of wins and get into a series. We have to do better than now.
"I can give you reasons but you will explain it as an excuse and there are no excuses, we have to win."
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Topics: Football, Manchester United, Erik Ten Hag, Mason Mount, Crystal Palace, Premier League