(Football news) Manchester United are currently one point ahead of fifth place Liverpool, despite having played a game less and their Champions League destiny remains in their hands. However, after back-to-back defeats, the pressure is on the Red Devils to turn their situation around and secure nine points from their remaining four games. Liverpool on the other hand have momentum, having won six consecutive games and are hoping to leapfrog their rivals for fourth place.
Even if Manchester United were to qualify for the Champions League, the club currently don’t look to be in a position to compete for the prestigious trophy. Despite the fact that the Red Devils may believe they belong in Europe’s elite club competition, they have failed to progress past the group stage of the competition in recent years.
After a disappointing season last year where they finished in the lowest-ever points tally in the Premier League, few expected a top four finish but Ten Hag has overseen not just a potential Champions League spot for next season but also won the Carabao Cup. The team are also in the FA Cup final, where they will take on Manchester City at the Wembley Stadium.
Bruno Fernandes, who hasn’t progressed past the Group Stage of the Champions League since his move to Manchester UNited in 2020 said “We want Champions League football. This club deserves it, this club has to be in that position. I think these players deserve to be there, too, because we have such a great team that has been doing a great job this season when no one thought Man Utd could be fighting for the top four.
“We know everyone is now saying, ‘Oh Man Utd has been great’, but I remember in the beginning of the season no one put our team in the top six so I think it is a good surprise for them but not for us. We knew that we could be there, we knew that we could be even higher in the league. We had our moments and that’s why we’re in the position of fighting for the top four and not bigger things. But I think soon, this club, these players will be fighting for much bigger things.”
It’s very clear that Manchester United have a goal scoring problem, having scored just 14 goals in 14 games and eight in their last nine matches, falling under the 2.5 goals line with just 1.5 total match goals scored per game. However, Wolves are the league’s lowest scorers, averaging less than a goal every game and scoring just 104 times in 111 matches. This means that if Ten Hag’s side manage to find the net, they might be able to hold onto their lead this time around despite the absence of Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane.
Also read: Liverpool is set to appoint Jorg Schmadtke as their new sporting director
