Cooper frustrated by Leicesters's 5-2 defeat to Man Utd

NicheSportMedia

Man Utd 5 - 2 Leicester   Old Trafford, Manchester, UK.  30/10/24

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00:00Yeah, I mean, OK, I think anybody that wasn't here tonight and looks at the scores and sees

00:07the scoreline probably thinks it was a dominant, straightforward, comfortable result for United,

00:15but it was everything but that really. I think that, OK, it's a 5-2 result and we conceded

00:23five goals and the circumstances around each goal from a brilliant strike from Casemiro

00:31and a really, really poor linesman's decision for the second goal. A couple of the third

00:39and fourth sort of ricochets, deflections from set-pieces that hasn't gone where we

00:43want them to go and then we have to take a bit of responsibility that maybe we could

00:46have done a bit better on that as well and then a hand away for the fifth goal. That's

00:51why the game was 5-2, I know that's an obvious thing to say because I've just explained every

00:55goal to you, but in terms of how the game went, for example, how the game went was typified

01:02by the start of the second half to the fifth goal. We were completely dominant in their

01:09moments, I don't think United ended our half, and then we gave away a goal like we did.

01:17So that typified the game really, it wasn't quite the atmosphere I think we were expecting,

01:21I think that was a little bit of what we did in the game. We did talk about, not too

01:27much, there might be a little bit of something different in the air tonight, but it was,

01:30I don't want to say anything disrespectful or negative, but it wasn't an absolutely fully

01:37blown atmosphere, it was quite calm here really. But I think that was a lot on the possession

01:46and the territory that we had in the game as well, but what we've done is we've handed

01:51United, and we did it in the game before as well, too many moments to cause damage, and

01:59that's something that we have to take responsibility for. So it's strange to analyse, you have

02:02to take responsibility for the result and we'll own that, certainly on some of the goals

02:08and then I'll have to say some things that went against us on other goals. But in terms

02:12of the general game, I looked at the guys in the dressing room, I looked at some players

02:18and thought, you've done alright tonight, and we've done well in games and stuff like

02:22that. Yeah, it's turned into real frustration and anger really, but we need to turn it into

02:29motivation for going forward into the weekend.

02:32You mentioned the potential offside for the second goal, did you get booked for that?

02:41Yeah, I know, cheers. Not to you, but to that. Honestly, maybe there's a bit of sympathy

02:50for the linesman, he's a Premier League linesman, he's used to the, I use the word protection

02:55of VAR, that's what it is, it can protect the game a little bit with decisions. But

03:02still, you can't make a mistake like that, you just can't. So, big moment in the game

03:09because actually we score soon after, it should be 1-1 and it's 2-1. The referee enjoyed giving

03:19me a yellow card as well, so it looked like he had a good time tonight. So yeah, that

03:27was that. But I want to stand up for my team, you can't just see an image on the bench and

03:33we see technology straight away and just go, OK, the linesman made a mistake, we'll accept

03:38that. Not like that, you know?

03:40How will you find it, I'm assuming you're now going to be suspended for the time being?

03:45I don't know how it works, to be fair. I wish it was a cup game, and league games are different

03:49yellow cards, but I'm not sure what it is. It won't be for me anyway, I'm sure.

03:53I'll confirm with you, I think it's a switch.

03:55Is it?

03:56Yeah. Sorry, it was Saturday, Russell Martin was yellow carded, but he was banned for yesterday.

04:06OK, there you go, yeah.

04:08Sorry.

04:09Yeah. No, I'm sure the... No, I'm not saying anything.

04:13How will that be for you not being able to be...

04:15I don't know yet, mate, we can talk about that tomorrow. We've got a press conference,

04:18and I'm not that interested in myself in terms of... I don't think any team is reliant on

04:24a manager stood on a touchline, you know?

04:27But, yeah, we'll take that as it comes on the weekend.

04:33But, yeah, we're just sort of really frustrated with how the night's gone, really,

04:39because, like I said, it wasn't an environment or an atmosphere that was intimidating at all.

04:46It was OK, it was good to play in, to be honest, away from home.

04:49You could see that with the phases we had in the game.

04:53Just disappointed in how the result is what it is, because I've already explained around how the goals were.

04:59How do you get that balance right in terms of, like you say,

05:02you did some really good phases of play, you dominated in periods,

05:05you played for a team that really connected and understood each other,

05:08but to have that without being open at the back...

05:12Yeah, no, that...

05:14Yeah, it was similar, really, on Friday, to be honest, last Friday.

05:20So, it is a balance, Jordan, you're right, and, like I said, that's where the frustration is,

05:25because the guys know that, one, we can't play like we have done in phases of the last two games

05:33and then give away moments like we have done.

05:36That is an imbalance and we've got to work hard to shorten that up a little bit.

05:42No problem.

05:45You look good, yeah.

05:52Yeah, I think we spoke about him ourselves and he's obviously here for the long term,

06:01he's going to be a good and important player for us over the course of time

06:04and we are gradually getting to the level that we wanted to get.

06:11You mentioned his age, that he's come over, he's had to settle in new surroundings,

06:18both within the club and out, and he's had a few starts now and appearances,

06:25and that will continue and will grow and you'll see more bits like tonight,

06:30and that's what we're looking forward to with him and so many others as well.

06:35Thanks, Jordan.

06:37How do you go about eradicating, because there were quite a lot of defensive mistakes

06:42that you touched on, it must be frustrating because you created so much good going forward,

06:46but you wouldn't do it at the back.

06:50Well, we keep working.

06:51There are lots of players, obviously, that played tonight that haven't played for a little bit.

06:56I'm not just going to say it's the defenders, it's everybody really.

07:00You are right, Charlotte, with that, but not in conceding five goals.

07:07We've looked at some of the other things around that as well.

07:11I think at times it's not so much about the defending, it's about how we've turned the ball over.

07:17United's from four are really strong, but they're not the best at counter-attack,

07:24and we've handed them at times counter-attack moments,

07:27so then it's having to defend in the first pace that's a problem, maybe not the defending,

07:33but it can be that as well.

07:35I felt there were moments tonight where we gave United short spells of momentum in the game

07:40by handing them the ball when we didn't need to.

07:47That's how it was, and we'll have to accept the result,

07:52be frustrated about it, because I'm not saying we deserve to win the game tonight,

07:57but it didn't deserve to be 5-2, but some of it is us as well.

08:01Some of it's bad luck, some of it's Casemiro sitting in the top corner,

08:08but we've just got to use all of this now for frustration and anger,

08:16and turn it into motivation for a game that we're really looking forward to on the weekend.

08:23Just on the linesman, do you think because he's a Premier League referee,

08:31he's got it in his mind that he's supposed to let the game go and then VAR will look at it?

08:37There is no VAR, but when you come back in ten days' time and the same thing happens...

08:43Yeah, the goal gets overturned and the linesman's embarrassed.

08:50I don't know is the answer, it's just one for him to ask, but it must be tough for him as a human to go...

08:56You know that decisions will be corrected, or if they are correct, we'll carry on through the VAR process,

09:09but it's like half a yard, so that's the frustration of tonight.

09:14I get marginal, sometimes we see the VAR things, and it's like it's half a boot,

09:21or everyone talks about the toenail and stuff like that, I get that,

09:25and sometimes before VAR things like that would have gone for and against teams,

09:30not like ones tonight, not like that one, before VAR or with VAR, you can't do that.

09:39Mind you, we've made mistakes as well, so it's human isn't it?

09:43Safe journey.

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