Manchester United go into Christmas Day without work the again of Saturday’s 2-0 Premier league loss away at West Ham United now on a four-game dropping streak throughout all competitions as a part of a run of torrid kind, which has not even seen a single purpose scored by Erik ten Hag’s males.
The league kind, which had been United’s saving grace for a lot of the previous few months, has largely dried as much as the purpose that they’re not less than six factors off of the European locations on condition that Manchester rivals Metropolis — presently right down to fifth within the EPL — have a recreation in hand after successful the FIFA Membership World Cup.
Subsequent up for Ten Hag’s Purple Devils is an Aston Villa go to on Boxing Day with Unai Emery’s males eager to make up for a disappointing draw at dwelling to Sheffield United on Friday which price the Villans high spot within the Premier League desk this Christmas after Liverpool and Arsenal drew.
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We are going to check out United’s season to this point and attempt to take inventory of it, beginning with a normal overview of how Ten Hag’s troops are faring throughout the board.
Season to this point
League: United are eighth within the Premier League desk on a run of three straight defeats and 6 factors off of the UEFA qualification locations which may develop assuming that Metropolis get not less than one level from their recreation in hand.
Europe: United are out of all types of continental competitors after ending backside of UEFA Champions League Group A behind Bayern Munich, FC Copenhagen and Galatasaray, successful only one recreation and dropping 4.
Home cups: United misplaced within the EFL Cup fourth spherical and had been eradicated 3-0 by Newcastle United at Previous Trafford again in early November whereas the FA Cup has not began correctly simply but with Wigan Athletic away their upcoming third spherical opponents.
Causes to be pessimistic
United followers really feel like issues can not get any worse proper now however sadly they might with Villa up subsequent within the Premier League and a banana pores and skin of an FA Cup third spherical tie towards Wigan which screams big killing. Ten Hag appears like he has misplaced the United dressing room with one other efficiency devoid of something actually optimistic and never even a purpose to point out for his or her efforts at London Stadium this weekend. In truth, the purpose state of affairs is so dangerous that 5 of United’s final six video games throughout all competitions have been scoreless and that barren run has included dropping out of Europe altogether. To make issues worse, Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s arrival at Previous Trafford with a minority stake, which followers hope will mark the beginning of a turnaround for the membership, retains being delayed and will now drag into 2024 when the hope had been that it might be sorted and underway earlier than the top of 2023.
Causes to be optimistic
Though issues really feel bleak for these of a United persuasion proper now, Christmas is usually a time to disconnect and reconnect with household and buddies at a time of normal goodwill — no higher time that the current in case you are a Purple Satan. If that’s too troublesome to do, then not less than Ten Hag’s males are pretty snug within the high half of the desk owing largely to run of kind which saved a big quantity of strain off when solely Premier League kind was price shouting about. Six factors separates United in eighth from Bournemouth in eleventh which is about equidistant to the European locations proper now forward of the second half of the marketing campaign. The enterprise half of time period itself can be a purpose for optimism with gamers on account of return to health which began with Christian Eriksen towards the Hammers this weekend forward of the festive interval. There may be additionally the prospect of a deep FA Cup run to contemplate which may very well be a significant goal for the workforce as they enter 2024 and begin with a winnable recreation towards Wigan.
