“Beating Manchester United is something we love to do” - Dominic Solanke says Bournemouth teammates are not 'happy' with draw
Bournemouth striker Dominic Solanke has said that his side are not satisfied with the result against Manchester United in the Premier League on Saturday, April 13.
The game at the Vitality Stadium ended in 2-2. Solanke opened the scoring in the 16th minute following a mistake from Willy Kambwala. United captain Bruno Fernandes restored parity with a smashing 31st-minute finish from inside the area.
The Cherries, though, soon regained the lead, with Justin Kluivert beating Andre Onana at the near post. Fernandes scored a 65th-minute penalty to equalise again.
Bournemouth beat United 3-0 when the two sides met at Old Trafford in December. Solanke scored the opener in that game as well. While they managed a draw at home this time, Solanke made a bold claim after the match, telling the media (via UtdDistrict on X):
"We're not happy. Beating Manchester United is something we love to do. The boys aren't happy with that."
Solanke has bagged 17 league goals in 32 appearances this season. Against the Red Devils, the 26-year-old was a constant threat. Apart from his goal, he was involved in the build-up play regularly, especially in the first half.
Bournemouth are 12th in the league with 42 points from 32 games. The Red Devils, meanwhile, are seventh with 50 points from 32 matches, level on points with sixth-placed Newcastle United.
Diogo Dalot addresses Manchester United's defensive issues
Manchester United have suffered 64 injury instances this season, with their defence getting hampered the most. Erik ten Hag has used 26 different back four combinations and 12 different central defensive pairings.
As a result, the team have faced an obscene amount of shots. In the first half against Bournemouth, they faced 12 shots. Diogo Dalot has addressed the matter, telling Sky Sports after the 2-2 draw (via BBC):
"It's been one of our concerns, maybe we need to try to be more compact as a team- don't try to make the gap between defenders and midfielders too big. Sometimes it is, and they counter on the counter attack."
Manchester United have conceded 48 goals this season, scoring 47. Ten Hag clearly needs to make a remarkable turnaround to end the season on a high.