The Red Devils suffered a comprehensive 3-0 home defeat to fierce rivals Liverpool in the Premier League on Sunday (01.09.24) but the coach played down the negative response to the result and suggested he doesn't have a magic wand to fix years of underperformance at Old Trafford.

Ten Hag said: "It is not like I am Harry Potter. You have to acknowledge that.

"For three players it was their first start of the season.

"Manuel Ugarte did not play one minute - he needs to build his fitness. Then we have to build him into the team. I am sure he will contribute to our team. It will take a couple of weeks, maybe even a month. That is the same for a lot of players."

Ten Hag remains convinced that his team is capable of winning silverware this season despite a disappointing start to the Premier League campaign that has seen them lose two of their first three matches.

The United boss said: "I don’t want to talk about positives today. This defeat hurts for us and our fans.

"It is the third game of the season. I have had to explain this so many times. We have to build a new team. We will be fine but it is clear we have to improve.

"At the end of the season I am quite confident we will have a big chance to lift another trophy."

United midfielder Casemiro had a particularly poor game as his two misplaced passes gifted Liverpool their opening goals but Ten Hag came to the veteran's defence, even though he substituted the Brazilian at half-time for 20-year-old Toby Collyer.

The coach said: "I took him off because we were 2-0 down against an opponent like Liverpool. We had to take risks because we wanted to bounce back and needed players in midfield who can cover the ground.

"He won everything in his career. I am sure he will keep contributing to our team."