Giggs makes no excuses

May 3, 2014
Posted by Steven Tan | Source from Mark Froggatt, ManUtd.com
Ryan Giggs bemoaned a lack of quality and composure in the final third following Manchester United’s 1-0 loss to Sunderland on Saturday, the Reds’ seventh league defeat of the season at Old Trafford.
 
The interim manager was hoping to build on last weekend’s 4-0 win over Norwich to finish the campaign strongly. However, against a Black Cats team fighting for their lives at the foot of the table, the Reds found it difficult to make a breakthrough.
 
In the end, the match was decided by Sebastian Larsson’s controlled first-half volley and while speaking to MUTV after the final whistle, Giggs was not ready to make any excuses: “We’re obviously disappointed. After the great performance we gave last week, it was a bit flat today. The preparations were the same as last week, the lads were training well and I changed things around a bit. 
 
“That concentration and quality just wasn’t there today, but credit to Sunderland who are on a good run. When teams are fighting for their lives you need to be at your best, and today we weren’t.
 
“Sunderland had the best chances. They probably had three chances; they scored a goal, hit the post and hit the crossbar. We just couldn’t break up their defence with either a key pass or cross. Even when a cross found one of our players, we didn’t have the concentration to hit the target. It was disappointing all over.
 
“We wanted to end the season with four wins and that isn’t going to happen now. We want to finish our last home game with a win [against Hull City on Tuesday] and we’ll try our best to do that.”
 
United's number of league defeats at Old Trafford is understandably worrying for everyone associated with the club. When asked to suggest why the home form has been so poor, Giggs was at a loss.
 
“I can’t explain it,” Ryan stated. “At home you need a bit of quality to score the first goal, and over the years even when we haven’t scored the first goal, we have produced wave after wave of attack. 
 
"It just hasn’t looked like that this season, so it’s something that needs to be addressed. We want Old Trafford to be a fortress and we don’t want teams to look forward to playing here.”
  • Related keywords: Manchester United, Ryan Giggs