After Erik ten Hag's team survived an injury crisis to beat Nottingham Forest at the City Ground, Diogo Dalot praised the "personality and character" of the Manchester United squad.

Several United players have been injured recently, including Marcus Rashford last weekend, Raphael Varane on Thursday night, and Lisandro Martinez the night before. Then, before the journey to Forest, Tyrell Malacia complained of a bad knee, and when Marcel Sabitzer withdrew from the team during warmups, it made ten starters unavailable.

United, despite their limited resources, took advantage of defeats for Newcastle and Tottenham on Saturday to reclaim third place and set the tone for a pivotal week in the season with a 2-0 win, with goals from Antony and Dalot.

With Eriksen returning, United has its strongest partnership back.

United's next game is away to Seville in the second leg of their Europa League quarterfinal; Bruno Fernandes will miss this match due to suspension. On Sunday, United will host Brighton in the FA Cup semi-final; Harry Maguire will sit this one out.

Dalot hopes United can maintain their winning mentality and continue to advance in the cup competition over the following week.

Those words: "We showed character, we showed personality," came from his lips. There was a lot of commotion outside the locker room, but we managed to remain composed; we are more than just 11 people, as we demonstrated once more.

I believe we have proven this season that we are making progress and heading in the right route, and I believe we have demonstrated our character and individuality in our performance today.

But I do believe this needs to be more constant if we are to maintain that mindset and, more importantly, that character in our next projects.

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As the number of United players needing medical attention grew, the game against a Forest team fighting relegation appeared like a potential banana peel, but it ended up being a pleasant stroll along the banks of the River Trent.

The injury issue had been the main topic of conversation leading up to the game, which motivated the replacement players to show they belonged in United's starting lineup.

Dalot told reporters after the game, "When you play for Man United, you're going to be in the spotlight all the time."

"We knew there could be some uncertainty about today due to the injuries that we had, crucial players that were injured.

However, I must reiterate how difficult it was to demonstrate that our team consists of more than 11.

I think we proved that we have a legit team. We played with character, calmness on the ball, and personality, and we were successful.

United eliminated any concerns about their place in the top four with the victory, while their challengers faltered on Saturday. This could prove to be a defining moment in the Premier League playoff race. Next week, while United play in the FA Cup semi-final, Newcastle and Tottenham will face off in a match that might determine who finishes in fourth place.

Dalot thinks the team's cohesiveness was crucial to their victory over Forest and their third domestic away win of the season, both of which came at the City Ground.

Every time we get to play for a club like this, I believe, we have to display a tremendous amount of spirit and solidarity. You've got a shot that a lot of other guys would kill for," he told me.

When you put on this jersey and onto the field for your team, you have to make a statement about who you are and why you belong here. If you find yourself in a position to take it, do so.

As the coach said after the game, "We want to have that responsibility, and I think once again we show today that on a difficult pitch against a different opponent, we showed character and personality."