- Man United deny reports of dressing room destruction after Brighton defeat
- Fernandes, Casemiro and Marcus Rashford spoke during the post-match debriefing
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Bruno Fernandes and Casemiro issued a rallying cry in the dressing room after the defeat to Brighton, urging their Manchester United teammates to rediscover the strong team spirit they built last season.
Mail Sport can reveal the players have outlined their “major priority” to restore a spirit that some of them say has slowly started to fade on the pitch after three defeats in the first five games.
There are no concerns about Erik ten Hag’s tactics or game plan, but rather a feeling of unfamiliarity between the players, with changes brought on by increasing injuries the root cause of their stuttering form .
“We need to rebuild a strong unit,” was the key message relayed by captain Fernandes and Casemiro. Marcus Rashford was another senior player who spoke passionately during the post-match debrief.
United have denied talk of a dressing room crisis, but Mail Sport understands the players have rallied in a bid to turn around their early season form – starting against Bayern Munich on Wednesday night.
Bruno Fernandes (above) and Casemiro led dressing room rallying cry after Brighton defeat
Erik ten Hag’s team had a rocky start to the season and lost three games.
Manchester United have denied reports that players were involved in a dressing room spat.
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Outside noise around the ownership situation – the Glazers are not budging on their asking price despite a tumultuous start to the campaign – and roster changes are also seen as contributing factors to the group’s cohesion.
United’s players head into Wednesday night’s Champions League group opener against Bayern with a renewed belief that they can once again be a cohesive force at the highest level, aiming for a road result like the 2-1 victory against Paris Saint-Germain in 2020.
Ten Hag has categorically dismissed rumors that United are in crisis this weekend and has instead challenged his players to step up in the face of adversity.
“We must be disappointed and we must be very annoyed with ourselves because at United the requirement is that you win games,” he said.
“It’s about character and now we need to see how strong we are and how the team sticks together and which players stand up and lead the team. We absolutely need character, belief, resilience and of determination.
The mood was good among the Carrington players on Tuesday before they flew to Germany, with sources close to the team expecting to see more gestures of encouragement towards each other if things do not go as planned at the Allianz Arena.