Tielemans apologises to Man United fans after Como defeat

Manchester United conceded after just two minutes at the Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia and never recovered control of a match that exposed problems across the team. Nico Paz opened the scoring before Anastasios Douvikas, Paz again and Jacobo Ramón extended Como’s advantage. Joshua Zirkzee scored a late consolation for the visitors.

Speaking to MUTV after the final whistle, Tielemans said the early setback immediately left United chasing the game.

“We played very poor and conceded after two minutes and then it puts you on the back foot straight away,” the midfielder said.

“We want to be positive and go forward but this wasn’t the way.”

United had hoped to respond after the interval, but Douvikas scored four minutes into the second half to make their task even harder. Tielemans said the mood in the dressing room was affected by the way the game unfolded.

“There was more said at half-time about us trying to get back into the game, but they score just after half-time, so it wasn’t a great atmosphere in the changing rooms,” he said.

The Belgium international was particularly critical of United’s collective performance, pointing to problems with their pressing, decision-making and ability to work together.

“Everything was missing tonight. We were disjointed as a team, we didn’t play well together, our press was off and when we were on the ball, we could not make the right decisions, so you get frustrated with the game.

“They [Como] played around us too easily, it was a poor night.”

The defeat leaves United needing an immediate response as they return to domestic action. Tielemans insisted the players must put the result behind them quickly, with further fixtures approaching, but acknowledged that words alone would not be enough.

“We need to move on as we have games coming,” he said.

He also apologised directly to the away supporters, who had made the journey to northern Italy only to watch United suffer a heavy European defeat.

“They travel all the way and don’t want to see this; the only thing we can do now is apologise.

“We can apologise as much as we want but we need to put the performances out on the pitch and, at the moment, we aren’t doing that.

“It’s tough times for them supporting the club and we have to fight as players.”

Tielemans’ message was clear: United must show greater commitment and deliver a performance that matches the support they receive.