Manchester United are in danger of losing their grip on the Champions League places after Erik ten Hag’s men succumbed to back-to-back defeats in the Premier League.
Losses to Brighton and West Ham have put Liverpool within touching distance of the Reds and with four games remaining, United are just one point ahead of their bitter rivals. United do, however, have one game in hand on Jurgen Klopp’s men.
United’s form has dipped over the last six weeks but Ten Hag has maintained that their fate remains in their hands going into the final four games.
The former Ajax manager has insisted that United’s final placement will hinge on themselves rather than Liverpool closing in on them after they picked up some good form.
“Nothing changed, only we could have made it [securing a top-four place] easier when you have a win,” Ten Hag is quoted as saying after the 1-0 defeat at the London Stadium by the official Manchester United website.
“We need three wins in four games, so everything is in our hands and we have to believe.
“But it’s not about Liverpool, it’s about us, because look to the table and we have everything in our hands.
“If we bring our performance, if we bring our standards then we will win games, so we don’t have to look to others – we have to look to ourselves and find a way to win and find a way to get back to our levels.”
SN’s verdict…
Ten Hag has challenged his players publicly on a number of occasions in the last couple of weeks and evidently, it has done very little to arrest United’s decline.
A long season of relentless scheduling started to creep in prior to the international break but with roughly three weeks of the campaign remaining, United look legless and resigned to defeat in most games.
It’s absolutely paramount that Ten Hag finds a way to get his side back on track as another season outside the Champions League could have serious repercussions.