Tim Sherwood claims Manchester United's players 'threw the towel in' during 3-0 thrashing by Bournemouth at Old Trafford, as he insists Erik ten Hag's side have 'got away with it' in recent weeks

Tim Sherwood claims Manchester United's players 'threw the towel in' during their 3-0 defeat by Bournemouth on Saturday. 

Goals from from Dominic Solanke, Philip Billing and Marcos Senesi deepened United's malaise and heaped further pressure on Erik ten Hag.

The defeat saw United set an unwanted home record in the top-flight as they suffered their fourth home defeat in the league during the 2023-24 campaign. 

Speaking on Sky Sports, Sherwood lambasted United's players and claimed they admitted defeat midway through the clash at Old Trafford.

'I think the performances have been as bad as this, but they've got away with it,' he said. 'They improved against Chelsea because they didn't have to take the game to the opposition. They could play counter-attack football.

'There's nothing wrong with being a counter-attacking side but when a team wants to sit back, you have to find a way of opening them up. They are devoid of anyone with any imagination or creativity apart from Bruno.

'Credit to Bournemouth. They had a game plan and pounced on it and were clinical in their finishing. But very rarely was I off my chair thinking Manchester United must score here. Bournemouth were quite comfortable.

'We're talking about a team in 16th going away from home to Old Trafford. I'm within my rights to think Manchester United, with world-class players and the money they've spent, should be able to break them down and score.

'But they got worse. In the second half, they came out and it looked like they had thrown the towel in, which is unfortunate for their fans watching on.'

United remain three points adrift of the Champions League places after their home setback to Andoni Iraola's side but have played a game more than their rivals.

Dominic Solanke made an early breakthrough to stun the crowd, before second-half goals from Philip Billing and Marcos Senesi capped off a miserable outing for Ten Hag's men.

The performance also saw United come under scrutiny from former midfielder Owen Hargreaves, who labelled the Red Devils' performance as 'embarrassing'.

'Listen to the boos, look at all the open seats,' Hargreaves told Premier League Productions.

'The fans have spoken. The performance was embarrassing and it has been like that all season.

'You have to praise a team [Bournemouth] that plays the right way with good attacking players. They deserve the praise. They played exceptionally today.'

Interestingly, this was United's heaviest defeat at home against a side who came into the start of the weekend in the bottom half of the table, with Bournemouth now rising to 13th in the standings, level with Chelsea, Brentford and Wolves on 19 points.