All it took for Manchester United to win a trophy was to be healthy, says Erik ten Hag.
The Red Devils claimed the FA Cup with a 2-1 victory over rivals Manchester City on Sunday at Wembley Stadium, with teenagers Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo providing the goals for the winning side.
United came into the match as massive underdogs, with Premier League champions City expected to continue their red-hot form and claim another piece of silverware. Instead, it was the Red Devils who lifted the trophy after shocking their foes by going up by two goals before halftime, with Jeremy Doku's 87th-minute goal nothing more than a consolation for the Sky Blues.
After the match, under-fire United manager Ten Hag addressed the performance, which he called "very good" and an "important" one for the club.
The manager pointed to an improvement in the overall health of the team as the major reason why United were able to compete on Sunday.
"All compliments to the team," Ten Hag told the BBC. "We played very good to our identity. Very strong. You have seen how we can play when we have the players on board. Some were not even match fit but the performance was very good.
"I tell you this all year - when the players are fit we can play good football. A very good performance against the best team in the world.
"With a local rivalry it’s there and it’s much more important when you play a team from your own city. But for us it wasn’t about this, it was to prove a point after so many setbacks. The team showed so much resilience and I’m proud of them."
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