LUKE SHAW admitted to making a “silly mistake” at the end of Manchester United’s 1-0 defeat at Brighton last night.
But the full-back was left fuming at a bigger problem for the Red Devils.
Having spurned numerous chances at the other end, United found themselves having to defend late on.
As a late cross was swung in, Shaw handled – with a spot kick being awarded following a VAR check.
Alexis Mac Allister subsequently scored to consign the Red Devils to a 1-0 defeat.
Shaw fronted up after the match, telling Sky Sports: “It hurts a lot, last minute, last action.
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“I got a little nudge but my hand shouldn’t be there and I own up to it.
“Take it on the chin, cost us the game, it’s tough I can’t even explain why my hand’s up there, I got a nudge, maybe that helps but still it shouldn’t be there.
“Even before the corner the free-kick that was given away was never a foul. I’m not looking for excuses for what I did but there’s no way that should have been given a foul.
“For me that corner shouldn’t have happened, I can’t change that, not accusing the ref of anything but for me it wasn’t a foul but hands up, silly mistake. But it cost us a point at the end.”
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With United having been wasteful in front of goal, Shaw lamented his side’s lack of clinical edge, which left them vulnerable to a late sucker punch.
He added: “The chances that we have, we have to be scoring these goals.
“The game’s completely different if we score with the chances that we make.
“Maybe we’re not clinical enough, I don’t really know what else to say to that, obviously said about that but what I did is totally the opposite and it’s disappointing and I lost us a point in the end.
“But maybe in the first half we could have been 3-0 up.”
Addressing the top four race, Shaw continued: “It changes nothing, it’s still in our hands.
“We have to kick ourselves from the position we are in, it’s very comfortable but now you could say there’s a real chase.
“Teams around us picking up points but we have one game in hand, it’s in our hands.”
Despite their defeat United remain fourth, four points above fifth-placed Liverpool with a game in hand.
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Brighton’s win moved them to within eight points of the Red Devils with a game in hand – but a grip on Champions League qualification remains firmly in United’s hands.
Erik ten Hag’s men are back in action this weekend, when they take on West Ham on Sunday evening.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
