The Championship side forced extra-time after taking advantage of a crumbling defence and came inches off winning it in the 121st minute when Victor Torp’s goal was ruled out for offside. Despite the shaky performance, Ten Hag was delighted that his team had booked a place in the FA Cup final for the second successive season and he rejected the criticism levelled at his players.
Writing in the United programme for the home game against Sheffield United on Wednesday night, he took a very different tone. “What matters most in football is winning but it was quite clear the manner of our victory fell below the standards we expect of ourselves,” he wrote.
“When you are in that position, you simply cannot allow your opponent to come back into the game.” The fresh take suggests that Ten Hag is keen to keep the supporters onside amid speculation around his future at the club.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Avram Glazer were both present at Wembley to watch United scrape past Coventry and the INEOS boss has been busy hiring new people to fill crucial positions at the club. Ten Hag had shown his fiery side earlier in the week when he was asked if he understood the negative reaction to the Coventry performance.
“No. Absolutely not,” he shot back.
“You made enough and one of the questions was ‘is it embarrassing?’ No, the reaction from you was embarrassing.
“It is the comments. Top football is about results, we made it to a final and we deserved it, not only by this game but also the other games.
We lost control for 20 minutes, we also had bad luck, when it went 3-2 and then 3-3. We were very lucky in the end, clear.
Penalties was very good and we made it to the final, it is a huge achievement. Twice in two years is magnificent.
For me as a manager, four cup finals in four years. His side has won just one of their last seven league matches and sit seventh, 16 points off the top four.
Ten Hag has six league matches and the FA Cup final left this season in which to try and convince Ratcliffe and Sir Dave Brailsford that he is the right man to take the team forward into the 2024/25 season – the final year of his current contract.