Manchester United manager Ten Hag defends David De Gea after goalkeeper makes error against West Ham

Last weekend, Manchester United dropped more points in the Premier League run-in, this time to West Ham United at the London Stadium. A long-range strike from Saïd Benrahma bounced and slipped under the outstretched grasp of goalkeeper David De Gea, in what was another error in a season that has been peppered by mistakes from the Spaniard.

The immediate aftermath of the match saw the typically over-the-top fan reactions on social media turn up to another level, calling for the goalkeeper, who has been at the club for more than a decade, to be replaced in the summer. Manchester United are currently just one point ahead of Liverpool in fifth, meaning that although their Champions League qualification is still in their hands, any slight slip-up could prove extremely costly.

‘We can’t ignore’ De Gea errors

Manager Erik ten Hag admitted that De Gea’s form was not good, but stood by his goalkeeper, saying that “we can’t ignore it, but errors are part of football. It happens. They are part of the game and part of the reset from this week.”

Ten Hag was also asked if the players are feeling any nerves ahead of the final stretch of the campaign, to which he replied “No. We are convinced by what we are doing. We have had a lot of success, winning a lot of games. Instructions are clear but we have to execute them. When we do that we are successful.”

Ten Hag not worried about Liverpool

He also confirmed the injury news for the team, saying that “Varane is back but we have doubts over Marcus Rashford”, who has been in fine form for the side ever since his return from the World Cup in Qatar.

Finally, he spoke about the looming threat of the in-form Liverpool, who appear to have found their mojo at the right time of year. “It’s clear, we know that, but it’s not important because we have everything in our hands. We must bring our performance, then it’s not important. What is important is the opponent we face tomorrow: Wolves. We have to take them seriously. They have done a great job, focus on that but they also have deficits, take advantage of that.”