'Absolutely unnecessary!' - Erik ten Hag furious after Man Utd concede 98th minute equaliser and says Brentford players 'wanted it more'

The Dutch manager was furious with his players for letting their lead slip against the Bees and conceding a 98th-minute equaliser by Kristoffer Ajer after Mason Mount had put his side in front just moments earlier.

"If you are winning you shouldn't give it away. We have a strong side in such situations, we have to bring it over the line, that's very disappointing," Ten Hag told Sky Sports. "We should act differently when we concede the equaliser it was absolutely unnecessary. Maybe we didn't deserve it, I think Brentford wanted it more for the whole of the game but you have to take it [in injury time]."

United were thrashed 4-0 at Brentford last season and could have lost by a similar margin here as Thomas Frank's side had 31 shots and hit the woodwork four times. The draw has left the Red Devils with a mountain to climb if they still want to qualify for the Champions League as rivals Aston Villa and Tottenham both won their matches on Saturday. United trail Villa in fourth by 11 points and Tottenham in fifth by eight, with nine games left to play.

Ten Hag admitted United were not up to scratch in their first game since their epic 4-3 win over Liverpool in the FA Cup. Asked what his team had been lacking against Brentford, he said: "So many points to make. We were not ball secure in the final third, they had more energy and it should be the other way round. But even when we don't play well we have to win the game and we almost did, that's what disappoints me the most."

The Red Devils return to west London next week to face Chelsea in their next Premier League game. Victory is essential if they are to stay in the hunt for the Champions League. Ten Hag, however, insisted he has not given up hope of returning to Europe's top competition. He added: "We will keep fighting it can be a very good point in the end."