Erik ten Hag was happy with Manchester United’s performance against Fulham but admitted in his post-match interview that he wanted his strikers to ‘kill in the box’. Joshua Zirkzee came off the bench to score the only goal of the game as the Red Devils left it late to claim all three points at Old Trafford.
United were guilty of missing a few big chances before Zirkzee’s winner, with the likes of Bruno Fernandes and Casemiro going close to breaking the deadlock. Speaking to Sky Sports after the final whistle, Ten Hag said that his only criticism of United’s performance was their lack of bite in the final third.
“It’s always difficult against Fulham, they are very good on the ball,” he reflected. “We defended and pressed very well. We kept them under pressure and they had a lot of trouble to come out of the pressure, which was good. We created a lot of chances and should have scored earlier. That’s the only criticism I have of the team, to kill in the box.”
Ten Hag was then offered some friendly advice by Roy Keane, with the United legend telling him that his players just need to ‘keep on winning’. It drew a chuckle from the Dutchman, who issued a short but sweet reply as he said: “It’s that simple.”
He also reserved special praise for Zirkzee following his late strike which saw the Red Devils avoid slumping to a goalless draw. The former Bologna man turned in Alejandro Garnacho’s cross in front of the Stretford End with three minutes remaining to mark a debut to remember.
“Scoring for a striker is important,” said Ten Hag. “He should be there where he was as a striker to kill. He has to find the right balance, it’s one of the things I spoke to him about. We also want him to link up. He has great qualities to make the link-up play and he has great midfielders around him to make combinations so we can take control of the game.”
Zirkzee was not the only United player making his Premier League debut, with Noussair Mazraoui also impressing at the back after being handed a start following his move from Bayern Munich earlier this week.
“I know him like this and he’s a great defender but also very composed on the ball,” added Ten Hag when quizzed on Mazraoui’s display. “He’s not in full condition at the moment. When he gets to 100 per cent he can do much more but I’m very pleased with the performance. Now he has to build his fitness.
“It’s just the first game but it’s good for the belief and the confidence in the team, not only the win but also the performance. I have seen many places where we can and we have to improve, but that’s normal in the first game of the season.”
