Ross Barkley has urged Aston Villa to remain positive and keep working hard after their 3-1 loss to Manchester United in the Premier League.
Villa’s difficult run of form continued at Old Trafford as they suffered a fourth consecutive league match without a victory.
The hosts had taken the lead through Casemiro, but Barkley restored parity midway through the second half with his second goal of the campaign.
However, late strikes from Bryan Mbeumo and Benjamin Šeško sealed all three points for Manchester United.
Speaking after the defeat, Barkley admitted the mood inside the dressing room was one of disappointment but insisted Villa have the quality to bounce back.
“We’re all disappointed in the changing room,” Barkley said in quotes revealed by Aston Villa’s official website.
“The result wasn’t what we planned for. Man United are a top team in top form, but we’re more or less in the same position right now.
“We’ve just got to keep going, learn from it and keep working. We’ve got too many top players in that changing room for this form to continue.”
The former Chelsea midfielder also highlighted the areas Villa must improve if they are to return to winning ways.
“I think we just need to get back to doing the basics right, making better decisions on the pitch and managing the game better,” he explained.
“We’re working on that on the training pitch and analysing the games and the bad results to try and learn from them.”
Barkley also pointed to the importance of injured players returning to strengthen the squad.
“We’ve got our captain back and he’ll be pivotal in helping us get our form back, and we’ll have some other players coming back from long injuries,” he added.
“We’re staying positive. It’s disappointing, the results of late, but we’ve got too many top players for this to carry on.”
The match also marked Barkley’s first Premier League start of the season and his first top-flight start in over a year.
The 32-year-old marked the occasion with a well-taken finish from inside the box, sparking celebrations among the travelling Villa supporters.
Despite the personal milestone, Barkley admitted the result left a sour taste.
“It was nice to get a start,” he said.
“I’ve been working hard and had a few injuries throughout the season, so things haven’t gone my way.
“I was happy to get the start and the goal, but the result isn’t great.
“I’ll keep working hard and hopefully we can turn this form around and help the team get back into good form.”
