Cesc Fàbregas slows his team, hurting the Red Devils' ego

On the third matchday of the Champions League, Côme Cesc Fàbregas, coach of Côme’s team, saw his side hand a 4-1 defeat to Manchester United this Wednesday, before stating that he had asked the players to ease off towards the end of the match.

“When there’s nothing left, there’s still more,” Fàbregas said after the match, reminding that his team could still push further.

Sitting at the surprising ninth place in the Champions League table, the Spanish coach displayed a false modesty by revisiting the goal conceded in added time.

He said: “I told the players to stop running and stay in the middle of the pitch, and that’s something I regret, because I’m the first one to always push them to fight until the end.”

The only black spot was Joshua Zirkzee’s goal scored in stoppage time, reminding that even a 4-0 domination does not guarantee a clean‑sheet.

Next fixture against Sassuolo

Fàbregas explained that the prospect of facing Sassuolo on Sunday at 3 p.m. prompted him to “stop pulling the ambulance” and to manage the match differently.

He nevertheless regretted the final ten minutes, admitting he had asked the team to slow the tempo, which prevented maintaining a clean‑sheet and left Michael Carrick with the task of re‑motivating the Red Devils.