Man Utd should be 'embarrassed' by Champions League humilation, claims ex-striker

Suraj Radia

• 14 Dec 2023 16:05 CST
• 3 min read

Former Manchester United icon Dimitar Berbatov has described his former side’s Champions League group stage exit as ‘embarrassing’, admitting Erik ten Hag’s side simply were not good enough to go through.

United finished bottom of their group with just one win across their six games, suffering humiliating losses to Copenhagen and Galatasaray, who finished second and third respectively.

Berbatov, who finished runners up in the competition twice with United, felt the early exit would hurt the club as they ‘expect’ to be playing in these tournaments and the Bulgarian believes the players will be feeling the embarrassment too.

"You need to be ready for Champions League football and not be last in your group. You will feel that embarrassment, sadness, disappointment and anger at yourself and teammates for finishing last," Berbatov told Betfair.

“It's embarrassing to finish below Copenhagen and Galatasaray,” he added. “With all due respect to Copenhagen and Galatasaray, you shouldn't finish last in that group. Even if you look good and lose, it's not good enough because in the Champions League group stage, you need the points to qualify.

"The consistency and concentration was not there. So they've finished last in the group and they'll feel embarrassed."

Ten Hag facing uncertain future at Old Trafford

United sit seventh in the Premier League having already lost more games than any side in the top nine and scoring the sixth-least amount of goals in the league.

However, it was their problems in defence that cost United in the Champions League, with only one team conceding more goals than Ten Hag’s side in the entire group stage.

The collapse in Europe has led to significant pressure on Ten Hag but he is likely to earn some reprise until Sir Jim Ratcliffe assumes control of footballing operations when his investment into the club is confirmed in the coming weeks.

Although Ratcliffe’s arrival could spell trouble for Ten Hag, with former Chelsea boss Graham Potter reportedly being lined up as a potential replacement for the Dutchman.