Puel: United defeat wasn't a fair result for Leicester

Claude Puel felt that Leicester City deserved more from its trip to Old Trafford, where it lost 2-1 to Manchester United.

Published : Aug 11, 2018 08:43 IST

Leicester City manager Claude Puel believes Friday's loss to Manchester United was unfair on the Foxes. Jose Mourinho's United emerged winner over a spirited Leicester in the season-opening Premier League fixture at Old Trafford.

Leicester made a poor start, conceding an early penalty as Paul Pogba converted after three minutes, though Puel's side responded well and enjoyed strong spells of possession.

Luke Shaw managed to double United's level with seven minutes remaining before substitute Jamie Vardy pulled a goal back in stoppage time.

READ: First United goal a career highlight for impressive Shaw

It was too little too late for Leicester, but Puel felt that his side deserved more from its trip to Manchester, where James Maddison, Ricardo Pereira and Rachid Ghezzal debuted.

"It's disappointing for the players because they gave their best. Of course, to concede a goal just a couple of seconds after the beginning of the game is a shame and we have to correct this," said Puel.

"Our kick-off was not good enough. Our first-half was a good performance with good quality, good pressing, good play forward and a lot of chances. We needed to score in this moment, a strong period of domination in the first-half."

ALSO READ: I'll always give my best no matter what's going on – Pogba after inspiring United win

"We pushed and we played against a team who were deep on the pitch. Without space, it was difficult. We found success with good moves and good quality and perhaps in the second-half we had good energy to finish this performance for another result, but I think at the end it is a disappointment. It is not, for me, a fair result."

"We dominated this game with good play and a lot of chances. With a lot of free-kicks and set pieces, we can do a lot better with these situations," Puel continued.

"Sometimes, we were unlucky with the possibilities to score in different moves. I’m happy about the performance, but it would have been better to win or draw for our fans. It would have been a good reward for our play."

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