Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes spoke in a press statement following the 2-1 loss against Leeds United in the 32nd round of the English Premier League at Old Trafford.

The player said in his interview: "We squandered the match in the first half. We weren't up to the challenge from the start. We knew they wanted to press us in one-on-one situations, and we needed to be better at controlling the first ball, and even better at controlling the second ball."

He added: "We were not at our best, as we gave the opponent a lot of space. We ended up trailing by two goals, and we had enough time in the second half to change the result, but it was not possible."

Regarding the message given at halftime: "We need to raise our level of performance in terms of enthusiasm and pressure. We need to be more aggressive. That's all there is to it."

Regarding the 24-day break for Manchester United: "This is the reality. We were knocked out of the FA Cup, so we have only ourselves to blame for the long absence from matches. We had to prepare in the best way possible. We did that, but it wasn't enough to win the match."

Regarding the red card received by Lisandro Martinez: "I don't talk about the referee. If I talk about the referee, I'll get into big trouble because the rules are applied differently to everyone. This is evident even in the yellow cards. It's better if I don't say anything."

He concluded: "This loss will not change anything about what we aspire to. We know that our goal is to remain within the top four. It's in our hands; we need to win our matches, and if we do that, we will be in the position we want at the end of the season."