Manchester United's Dutch manager Erik ten Hag looks on during the English FA Cup semi-final football match between Coventry City and Manchester United at Wembley Stadium in north west London on April 21, 2024. [Photo/Agencies]
Erik ten Hag says the media reaction to Manchester United's performance in the FA Cup semifinal against Coventry was "a disgrace", robustly defending his side's achievement in reaching a second straight final.
United surrendered a 3-0 lead at Wembley on Sunday, and was saved from a humiliating exit in extra time only by a VAR intervention, which ruled out a goal for offside in the final moments.
It eventually scraped through against the Championship side on penalties to set up a rematch of last year's final against Manchester City.
Ten Hag admitted after the match his team had "got away with it", but played down any notion of embarrassment.
However, he has been widely criticized, adding to speculation he is on borrowed time at Old Trafford.
Former Premier League striker Chris Sutton said the performance would "cement his sacking".
United, winless in its past four Premier League games, is in danger of missing out on a European spot next season after a poor campaign.
Realistically, it is already out of the race to qualify for the lucrative Champions League, but still has the Europa League and the Europa Conference League to aim for.
"We have to win every game, we know that," said Ten Hag. "That's what United stands for, and that is our approach, go from game to game, but we have to qualify for Europe and we now have two opportunities — in the league and the FA Cup final."
Ten Hag said he would work closely with newly appointed technical director Jason Wilcox to determine the future direction of the club.
