Sevilla coach Jose Luis Mendilibar aimed a dig at following last night’s thrashing by claiming he was surprised by just how straightforward victory was for his side.
A frantic finale at Old Trafford last week breathed new life into a tie that looked all but done after had fired United into a two-goal lead.
The concession of two avoidable goals, allied to the injuries sustained by and Raphael Varane, rendered last night’s return match far more difficult than it needed to be and.
David de Gea was arguably at fault for all three of Sevilla’s goals, but nobody in a United shirt emerged with any semblance of credit following arguably the worst performance of Erik ten Hag’s reign to date.
Mendilibar, who has overseen a stunning transformation since his recent appointment, was delighted with the intensity and intent his side displayed but was taken aback by the lack of fight on show from a United side that were able to field so many experienced players, despite their injury woes.
The Sevilla coach said: ‘This is a team that’s used to greater things.
‘We came from an awkward situation in Manchester, where we drew 2-2 without doing things right, and people believed that we could do it. In the end we did it.
‘It’s surprising for us to win a game against Manchester United without struggling and with such forcefulness, it’s not easy.’
Ten Hag, meanwhile, could only offer an apology to the fans who had witnessed a scarcely comprehensible capitulation that represented less than ideal preparation ahead of Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final against in-form Brighton at Wembley.
‘We have to do better, that’s the demand,’ Ten Hag told BT Sport after United’s defat to Sevilla.
‘We were not composed, not calm. We didn’t beat the press, when you do there are so many spaces behind, and it was obvious at the start how to do it.
‘We lost the battles, they had more passion, more desire, more willingness, that’s difficult to win .
‘We can’t run away from it. On Sunday we have another opportunity and have to step up and show more character and personality.’
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