Manchester United's players were given a chance to air their views as they picked apart their Liverpool humiliation, as per reports.
The Red Devils were dealt a brutal reality check as they lost 7-0 at Anfield, which all but ended any slender hopes they had of challenging for the Premier League title. The manner of their second-half capitulation led to a lot of questions of a team that had looked firmly on the rise.
Erik ten Hag has had to deal with heavy losses already in his tenure, namely the 4-0 loss at Brentford earlier this term. But the conduct of the players was heavily criticised amid claims they threw the towel in, which led to some frank discussions on Monday.
The Athletic reports that the individuals on the pitch were allowed to put their views across during as video session, which highlighted all their errors on Merseyside. Ten Hag had opted against letting his players speak in the immediate aftermath of their hammering on Sunday.
He said when quizzed on if his player's had spoke following the loss: "No, I didn't give them the chance until now. We have to talk about that, I have only given my opinion about it and we will talk about that tomorrow. I know this team will reset and we have to bounce back and we have shown in the past we can.
"I analyse the performance of my team: how's their approach, how is their character, how's their mentality, how do they cooperate together, how do they deal with the setbacks? Look at the body language, how they communicate with each other. They didn't cooperate together anymore and they didn't fulfil their jobs. There are many things that makes me angry but to concede so easily the goals is definitely one of them."
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Ten Hag and his staff are determined to not let the heavy loss derail their season however. There have been huge positives in recent months with the club ending their six-year wait for a trophy having won the Carabao Cup. United are also looking well set for a spot in the top four, which would've been the minimum expectancy this season. More silverware is also on offer in the form of the FA Cup and Europa League.
The United boss has said ahead of their European clash with Real Betis: "It's one loss and we are in the right position - don't forget that - right position in the league and still playing in three [competitions] and we can still win a lot. We have to take the lessons and move forward."
Bruno Fernandes, who came in for criticism given his conduct at Anfield, has since been backed by his team-mates and will remain as the club's vice-captain.
