Jesse Lingard breaks silence on incident with Man Utd fan during Liverpool defeat

Jesse Lingard has opened up on his conversation with a Manchester United supporter during Sunday’s humiliating defeat at the hands of Liverpool at Old Trafford. The Red Devils were humbled on their own patch by their biggest rivals, with Naby Keita and Diogo Jota firing Liverpool into an early lead before Mohamed Salah’s hat-trick capped off a ruthless team performance from the visitors.

United failed to threaten Jurgen Klopp’s side for the vast majority of proceedings, with the Anfield club moving up to second in the Premier League table as a result of their merciless showing.

The hosts looked devoid of any confidence or defensive intelligence as they allowed the likes of Salah, Jota and Roberto Firmino to rip them apart on a consistent basis.

Liverpool could have scored at least six or seven goals on another day, with United’s horrific performance doing little to ease the growing pressure on Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s shoulders.

The atmosphere in Old Trafford turned particularly toxic as the Reds ran riot before half-time, with loud boos ringing around the stands as United’s players trudged off down the tunnel.

A number of supporters were seen leaving the stadium in their droves before the start of the second half, but plenty remained to watch their side fall to one of their most embarrassing defeats in recent memory.

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Lingard found himself in an altercation with an enraged spectator at one point as he warmed up on the sidelines, with the England playmaker having been spotted telling the fan: “I’m not on the pitch.”

The 28-year-old has since revealed that he was not being targeted with abuse by the supporter in a frustrated Twitter post in which he addressed the incident for the first time.

“It wasn’t abuse! He said ‘work harder’ like I’m not already doing that day in day out,” wrote Lingard.

“And I said ‘I’m not even on the pitch’, end of!”

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Meanwhile, it remains to be seen whether United will be able to return to winning ways against Tottenham on Saturday after their latest crushing defeat.

The Red Devils were firmly second-best from the very first minute against Liverpool and slipped to seventh in the Premier League table as an unwanted consequence of their dire display.

Solskjaer revealed after the final whistle at Old Trafford that it marked the lowest point of his spell in charge at United, with the Norwegian boss underlining the need for a rapid response at the next available opportunity.

“It is mine, that is it,” he said.

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“The coaching staff are very, very good, brilliant. I choose the way we approach the game, we were not clinical enough and gave too much spaces and when you give good players space they score.

“We are at home, playing against Liverpool, we have gone here over the last two and half years and had a similar approach to high press, but today they scored on their chances.

“I think as Manchester United we should always try to stamp our authority on the game. That fourth goal is when you go into half time with having to score one every 15 minutes.

“I know these boys are capable of it. The fourth, that was probably game over. You can look at last season we lose to Spurs 6-1. This is worse, miles worse.

“This is miles worse for me as a Manchester lad. I’ve just got to say we have to get over this as quickly as we can.”

source: express.co.uk