Man Utd's game against Newcastle got 'messy' after Ten Hag substituted both centre-backs

On Sunday, Manchester United were left frustrated at St. James' Park as they lost 2-0 to Newcastle in the Premier League.

Goals from Joe Willock and Callum Wilson helped Newcastle exact revenge for their League Cup loss in the final in February. In what was their 13^th win of the 2022-23 Premier League season, Newcastle also replaced Manchester United in third place on the table.

Erik ten Hag's side is more or less out of the title race as they are 22 points behind leaders Arsenal and 14 behind second-placed Manchester City. And now, Manchester United's chances of qualifying for next season's Champions League have also taken a major hit.

The Red Devils will drop to the fifth spot in the Premier League table if Tottenham beat Everton on Monday night. The Old Trafford side will still have two games in hand, but things don't look great for Ten Hag and co. as they have not won nor scored in their past three league games.

An irked Lisandro Martinez smacks chairs

Manchester United were already 1-0 down when Ten Hag decided to sub off both his centre-backs, Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane, as a part of a tactical change in the 83rd minute. However, Ten Hag's call backfired in no time as Manchester United's game became a "mess."

"Since the two centre-backs have gone off, it has been a mess for United. Howe, though, has not put a foot wrong," Gary Neville said on the match commentary.

In a post-match interview, Ten Hag was asked about his decision to remove both Martinez and Varane at the crucial time when the Red Devils were looking for an equaliser and were desperate not to concede another goal, which eventually happened after substitute defenders Victor Lindelof and Facundo Pellistri came on.

"We were not happy. We played too high in midfield and it was easy for their two centre-halves to go and attack. We had to play a little bit deeper. Therefore we made the sub. Then we made changes to bring more energy. Then in the end we were losing so we decided to go with three at the back and play an extra offensive player and I decided to take both centre-backs off with Lindelof to defend the spaces," Ten Hag said.

Meanwhile, Argentine centre-back Martinez did not hold back his emotions as he appeared to smack chairs on the subs bench after being removed from the field just a few minutes before the final whistle.

Manchester United's frustrations were more than evident as things began to heat up at their end of the field. Antony and Diogo Dalot were seen having a heated exchange, while stand-in captain Bruno Fernandes had a scowl on his face and gestured at a team-mate.

Earlier in the game, in the first-half, Marcus Rashford lost his cool as he furiously threw his boot on the ground after referee Stuart Attwell denied him a free-kick after the former was clipped by Newcastle's left-back Dan Burn. The challenge saw Rashford's boot come flying off, but no foul was given.

'Newcastle won on passion, not quality'

Manchester United's left-back Luke Shaw made a brutal admission, saying that Newcastle did not win "on quality, they won on desire, passion, hunger, and attitude."

Meanwhile, Ten Hag "totally agreed" with Shaw's crushing assessment of Manchester United's performance at St. James' Park on Sunday.

"I totally agree [with Shaw] and that was also my assessment. They had more desire, determination and aggression. I was surprised we couldn't match it," said Ten Hag, who had to be separated from Newcastle's Howe by his assistant, Steve McClaren, as the two managers clashed in the second half.

Manchester United have bagged just six points from their last five matches in the league. Their next fixture is a home game as they host Brentford on Wednesday at Old Trafford.