09 March 2023 , 22:55
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Erik ten Hag has praised the way his Manchester United players bounced back from Sunday's 7-0 humiliation by Liverpool to beat Real Betis 4-1 i n the first leg of their Europa League clash.
The Red Devils welcomed Manuel Pellegrini's side to Old Trafford at the round-of-16 stage knowing that a positive performance was required to try and take the first step in putting the Anfield horror show behind them. Marcus Rashford put the hosts 1-0 up after just six minutes with a thunderous right-footed strike to mark his 26th of the season across all competitions.
However, Ayoze Perez, on loan at Betis from Leicester, bagged his first goal for the Spanish outfit on the stroke of half-time to level things up at the interval. United did not let the goal phase them and emerged from the break looking even sharper.
Antony put Ten Hag's men back in front with a trademark left-footed curler from outside the area before Bruno Fernandes headed past Claudio Bravo to really highlight United's dominance in the tie.
Much-maligned forward Wout Weghorst capped off a fantastic night at Old Trafford with what was just his second goal for the club since arriving on loan from Burnley in January. The emotion on the Dutchman's face was clear for all to see as he wheeled away in celebration.
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After the game, Ten Hag waxed lyrical about his side's effort and heaped praise on the Old Trafford faithful for sticking by them in what has been a difficult week for the club.
Erik ten Hag was delighted with Manchester United fans during the 4-1 win over Real Betis (Matthew Peters/Manchester United via Getty Images)Will Manchester United go all the way in the Europa League this season? Have your say in the comments!
The United boss told BT Sport: "I think we played a very good game in both halves. At half-time, we should have been up 3-0 but we make one mistake it is 1-1. We scored some good goals, we gave the fans something to support and they gave it back, so we are very grateful.
"It was a great attitude, we were good on the ball, made good switches and runs in behind and created a lot of chances. It is always good to see how the team reacts after a setback. This is not the first time this season we can reset and bounce back. This team has character, so big compliment to the team."
"For a striker, [Wout Weghorst] was so close so many times. He has already created chances and goals for others and he deserved his goal. Bruno [Fernandes] was fantastic.
"He led the team with his control of the game and passing and then he scored a goal. I think the substitutes made a good impact, and you see when we made the last two we made it 4-1."