Luke Shaw conceded Manchester United deserved to lose to Arsenal in dramatic fashion due to their "passive" approach to the second half at Emirates Stadium.
United went down 3-2 to the Premier League leaders on Sunday, dealing a significant blow to their own remote title hopes.
The visitors scored first through Marcus Rashford but trailed early in the second half as Eddie Nketiah's leveller was followed by a fine Bukayo Saka strike.
Lisandro Martinez's header got United back on level terms, only for Erik ten Hag's side to retreat to their own penalty area in a dramatic last stand that saw Nketiah eventually score again to take Arsenal five points clear of Manchester City and 11 ahead of their opponents.
Arsenal had 25 shots to United's six, with those attempts worth 2.9 expected goals, while United's shots had a combined value of 0.3 xG.
The Gunners controlled 65.6 per cent of the possession in a second half in which just 15.8 per cent of the action played out in the home side's third of the field.
For that reason, Shaw had few complaints as he reflected on the defeat on Sky Sports.
"I think in the second half we maybe deserved that," the left-back said. "We were a bit passive and just let them control the game completely in the second half.
"To concede right at the end is obviously gutting. We know they're an extremely good side, and we were fighting all the way to that last second.
"In games like this, you need to be concentrated for the full game, because a little lapse in concentration and you'll concede a goal against a very top side.
"Always coming to Emirates, they start really fast. They had two corners in the first minute. We got through that and started to have a bit more control in the game.
"I felt like we were aggressive and we were winning the ball high up the pitch. The first half went well.
"But the second half we backed off a bit and let them fully have control of the game. They were having chance after chance.
"If it was going to be like that, towards the end of the game they're always going to get one more chance."
Nketiah's winner, which arrived with only 48 seconds of normal time remaining, came from the final shot of the match.
Liverpool agree compensation deal for Slot
Liverpool and Feyenoord have reached an agreement in principle over a compensation deal for Arne Slot to become the Reds’ manager next season, according to widespread Dutch media reports.
The Dutchman is reportedly poised to take over from Jurgen Klopp, who announced in January that he would be leaving the club at the end of the campaign.
Slot led Feyenoord to their second Eredivisie title last season after taking over the club in 2021.
It is believed that he topped the list of Liverpool’s favoured candidates due to his attacking playing style and ability to develop players.
Former Liverpool midfielder, Xabi Alonso, who led Bayer Leverkusen to their first Bundesliga title, and Sporting CP’s Ruben Amorim were also reported contenders to take over from Klopp.
Slot had already confirmed his interest in managing in the Premier League, both earlier this week and previously when he was linked to Tottenham in 2023.
QPR 4-0 Leeds United: Shock loss for Farke's men seals Leicester's promotion
QPR thrashed Leeds United 4-0 in the Championship on Friday, ensuring Leicester City booked their promotion straight back to the Premier League.
Ilias Chair was the star for the Hoops as he scored the opener and assisted two more goals to ensure QPR will stay in the Championship for another season.
Lucas Andersen, Lyndon Dykes and Sam Field also got their names on the scoresheet in an emphatic win for Marti Cifuentes' side.
Leeds' heaviest defeat of the season was a huge blow in the race for an automatic promotion spot, with Ipswich Town just one point behind them in third place with two games in hand going into their away clash against Hull City on Saturday.
‘We can’t control the Opta supercomputer’ – Eidevall says Arsenal’s destiny is in their own hands
Jonas Eidevall insists Arsenal are still focused on their title push despite being given a 0 per cent chance of winning the Women’s Super League by the Opta supercomputer.
The Gunners sit in third place ahead of Sunday’s match against Everton and are six points behind leaders Manchester City.
Chelsea occupy second place, three points ahead of Arsenal, but with a game in hand on the teams around them.
Asked if he thought his side could do something special despite the Opta supercomputer’s prediction, Eidevall did not rule his team out of the race.
He said: “It's about for us focusing on what we can control.
"The Opta supercomputer is definitely one of the things that we can't control. So, they can make their calculations, but we have to focus on our performances.”
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