Erik ten Hag issued Casemiro a stern message when asked about his substitution after Manchester United’s stunning comeback win against Brentford on Saturday.
The Red Devils overturned a one-goal deficit in stoppage time against Brentford thanks to a brace from substitute Scott McTominay.
Mathias Jensen opened the scoring for his side in the first half with help from Andre Onana who was unable to stop a relatively easy shot.
Ten Hag’s side were on track for their third consecutive loss as boo’s reigned down from the Old Trafford stands at half-time.
The Dutch coach decided to bring off Casemiro at the interval, replacing him with Christian Eriksen as he opted for a more attacking approach.
United then kicked on, producing chance after chance before McTominay won the game in dramatic fashion late on.
Ten Hag gave a stern interview with Sky Sports after the game, when asked why he replaced the former Real Madrid man he simply replied: “I wanted more football.”
The former Ajax coach then went on to issue a rallying cry to the dressing room, urging them to be more accountable for their actions.
“When you give a goal away so easily – you can’t do that at our level, we have to do better,” he said.
“More of them have to take more responsibility, they have to be accountable, otherwise it’s difficult to win games.
“Opponents will benefit from it. But then we had the personality and character to come back. We made our own luck and this can be a turning point, but we know we have to change and reset.”
Erik Ten Hag’s substitutions today, proved that no player is indispensable. If he continues this way, it could mark a turning point for the club. It’s interesting that the two players who were to be offloaded during the transfer window, Harry Maguire and McTominay won the game for Man Utd.