Fabregas takes responsibility for the goal conceded against United

Como head coach Cesc Fabregas said that pulling his team back in the final stretch of the match, when they led Manchester United 4-0, was his own decision. The game, played in Lombardy in the third match of the Champions League league phase, ended 4-1.

Joshua Zirkzee scored United's only goal in stoppage time. The goal did nothing to help head coach Michael Carrick's hopes of keeping his job.

After the match, Fabregas said he regretted the final ten minutes. With the next match also in mind, he explained that he had asked his players to lower the tempo, stop running and stay in the middle of the pitch. As someone who always urges his players to fight until the very last moment, he said he was still upset about that instruction. He added that the goal hurt, that the intensity and the defensive block dropped, and that the mistake was his.

Since Carrick was appointed permanently, United have won only two of their 11 matches in all competitions. The wins came against Sabah in the Champions League and against newly promoted Ipswich Town in the Premier League. In the Ipswich match, United conceded three goals and won a game in which Bruno Fernandes scored a hat trick. After the match, the captain openly voiced his opinion on Carrick's tactics. Carrick, for his part, directed part of the responsibility at the players.