Lindelof: We didn't deserve to lose

Victor Lindelof praised the second-half performance of his Manchester United team-mates - and Jose Mourinho acclaimed the Swede's display - following the Reds' 1-0 defeat to Juventus in the Champions League.

Speaking to BT Sport after the match, the defender was pleased with the reaction of the squad after the interval and stated that the improvement would be something to build on, going into this weekend's Premier League fixture against Everton at Old Trafford.

“We were playing against a very good team, very good players and yes, it was a tough game, but I think we deserved more than to lose,” said Lindelof.

“In the last couple of games we have played really well in the second half,” he added. “I don’t know why, but we need to start the games the way we play in the second half I think, so we need to work on that.”

The Reds fell behind after 17 minutes, as Paulo Dybala capitalised on a deflected cross into the box. However, after the interval, United did produce more of an attacking threat with Paul Pogba's effort striking the frame of the goal before bouncing off Juventus goalkeeper Wojciech Szczęsny.

“The way we played in the second half, I think we can take that with us and we can work on that,” Lindelof continued. “We know Juventus are a great team, but we’re also a great team when we have the ball in play, so the way we played in the second half, I think we should do that more often.”

Meanwhile, Jose Mourinho complimented the contributions of Lindelof and fellow central defender, Chris Smalling, when he spoke to the media. The United defence were matched up against one of the best attacking forces in Europe, as Cristiano Ronaldo starred for the visitors on his return to Old Trafford.

“This was the first time Victor has played a game of this dimension and he had a positive game,” Mourinho said. “Lindelof and [Chris] Smalling played well. On the goal, there was a bit of a positional situation with them, with the midfield players, but they played well.

”They were fast, they were aggressive, they dominated the space, adapted very, very well. Chris and Victor, they pressed up, they got Cristiano in the movements that he does behind the defenders. They were really positive, both of them,“ he added.

”Luke Shaw, at this level of the Champions League, had a good match. It was good experience for some of the boys – [Marcus] Rashford, [Anthony] Martial, [Romelu] Lukaku – it’s only his second season in it too. So we work. We work hard and we try to improve our players but quality is quality and again, I repeat, quality in football is everywhere.“