Manchester United are at a low point right now. A wretched 45 minutes in the second half against City was among the worst performances the team have served up in recent seasons.
At present United are in fifth place, one point behind Arsenal, who have three games in hand.
Securing a top four place does not look good. But that does not mean it is over yet, with United having 10 games still to play.
Former United star Gary Neville ripped into United’s performance in the 4-1 loss, but he still believes the Red Devils can secure a Champions League place.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Neville said: “I still think United could do it. I don’t trust Arsenal.”
Neville added that United still have to play Arsenal too, but pointed out a pivotal next fixture, commenting: “United have got to beat Spurs.”
Tough fixtures ahead for United
Next weekend United face Tottenham at Old Trafford. Lose that, and hopes of finishing in the top four could be over.
But really, a lot of damage has already been done, even discarding the City result. United have dropped points in draws against Aston Villa, Burnley, Southampton and Watford in 2022, and had those been wins, we would probably be talking about third place rather than scrambling for fourth.
United’s fixtures don’t ease up after the Tottenham game. United face Leicester and Everton, and there is also a game away at Liverpool which needs to be rescheduled too.
The game at The Emirates against Arsenal will be pivotal. But there could be a situation where United get there, and the Gunners are just too far in front.
Arsenal are in really good form right now and beat Watford 3-2 today, securing a fourth successive victory.
They face Leicester next weekend, before hosting Liverpool at The Emirates in the midweek after, one of their games in hand.
Ralf Rangnick told the club website: “If we still want to have a chance to finish fourth at the end of the season, we can almost not drop anymore points.”
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