Wayne Rooney could not hide his disappointment after Manchester United crashed out of The FA Cup, but says his personal quest for a medal is a secondary thought.
The eleven-time winners missed out on a Semi-Final berth after United old boy Danny Welbeck pounced on a short back pass from Antonio Valencia to score what turned out to be the game's decisive goal.
Manchester United 1-2 Arsenal
The FA Cup
Sixth Round Proper
7.45pm, Monday 9 March 2015
Old Trafford, Manchester
Winners receive £360,000 from prize fund
Live on BBC
The winner came after Rooney had hauled the home side back into the contest with a fine diving header, which came after Nacho Monreal had put the Gunners in front four minutes earlier.
But it was a night of frustration for Rooney and United, and although he insisted his disappointment was focused solely on the team, his wait for a first FA Cup winners' medal goes on.
"I want to win The Cup for and with the team; it's not about me wanting to win The FA Cup," Rooney told MUTV.
"That's why it's so sad for us to get knocked out; we knew we'd have a great opportunity if we'd won on Monday night."
The evening had begun well for Wayne Rooney as he scored a fine diving header in the 29th minute
"We're obviously disappointed. Going into half time having equalised, we felt that we'd create enough chances to win the game, but it wasn't to be."
Speaking after the game, his manager Louis van Gaal refused to publicly criticise Valencia for the error that led to the winning goal.
“t's a hard one to take, but we have to dust ourselves down and get ready for Sunday”
Wayne Rooney
And the striker followed suit, insisting the most important thing will be that the team move on and focus on the battle for fourth in Premier League.
The Red Devils face Tottenham Hotspur, another side vying for a Champions League spot, on Sunday at Old Trafford – and Rooney says attention must now turn to that.
"Mistakes happen, but it's not nice when you're on the receiving end of one which costs us a goal," he added.
"It's a hard one to take, but we have to dust ourselves down and get ready for Sunday.
"Conceding the second goal the way we did in the second half meant that we were always chasing the game afterwards; they made it difficult for us and defended well."
Highlights of the FA Cup Sixth Round game at Old Trafford
