Facing adversity after conceding a goal in the first half, United struggled to find the equalizer, with an Anthony Martialeffort being disallowed for offside.However, McTominay eventually secured all three points for his team.
“It showed the big character of this team, it showed resilience, it shows also that we have a plan to keep going, and you have to make your own luck, and that is what we did,” commented Ten Hag after the game.
However, following the 97th-minute goal from McTominay, one could see an excited Erik Ten Hag jumping and celebrating down the touchline. A video of his celebration has gone viral.
Ten Hag’s reaction after McTominay’s winning goal vs Brentford
“They kept going the whole game, we were losing, but the belief was always there, and they are also patient. They were calm; we kept switching the game and we created chances, but the ball was not going in the net,” he added.
“It tells something about the dressing-room, a player who is coming on for five minutes and bringing that spirit on the pitch, he fights so (much) for the badge, and you have to earn the badge, but definitely Scott McTominay is United,” he concluded.
Brentford’s manager, Thomas Frank, took a measured stance when assessing the frenetic final minutes of the match, which he believed his side had nearly played perfectly.
“To lose the game is even more brutal; at least a draw was probably a fairer reflection,” said Frank.
“That’s the beauty of the game of football. The ball dropped in the right areas for them; that’s it … first half, we were much better than in the second, but so close to being the perfect away performance,” he remarked.
(With Reuters inputs)
