“I think there was confidence”- Diogo Dalot makes damning admission after Man Utd’s first post-Erik ten Hag win

Diogo Dalot has admitted Manchester United were ‘more determined’ to score during their 5-2 win over Leicester on Wednesday than they have been previously. 

United put the Foxes to the sword at Old Trafford in the EFL Cup, with goals from Casemiro (x2), Bruno Fernandes (x2) and Alejandro Garnacho sealing a quarter-final spot.

The result came just days after Erik ten Hag’s departure as manager, with Ruud van Nistelrooy taking interim charge ahead of the expected appointment of Ruben Amorim.

Although it was a cup match against a rotated Leicester team, United appeared far more free in attack, with their five goals more than they’ve managed in their last five domestic games combined.

Diogo Dalot makes Man Utd post-Erik ten Hag admission

Speaking after Wednesday’s match, Dalot — who was guilty of missing a golden chance in Sunday’s 2-1 loss to West Ham in Ten Hag’s final game — admitted United were ‘more determined’ in this match than in previous games.

The Portugal international also said that he and his United teammates wanted to ‘send a message’ amid all the upheaval.

“I think it was the message that we wanted to send after a defeat and a tough week,” Dalot told MUTV (via Manchester Evening News). “That was the minimum that we could show for ourselves and for our fans.

“I think they enjoyed tonight and we did as well. We scored a lot of goals, some good goals, and it was a good night at Old Trafford.”

On United’s clinical performance compared to against West Ham, Dalot added: “I think that summarised a little bit of this season. We were creating enough to score and win games; the difference was we probably had a little bit more determination inside the final third, believing that we were going to score.

“I think there was confidence that we were going to score. Today, I think Cas’ goal breaks a little bit of that.

“We scored some good goals and overall it was a good match. We still had two goals that we conceded that we should avoid, but overall it was a good night for us and we are though.”