Man Utd are out of title race after FIVE games – leaving them behind after spending £180m

Man Utd are out of title race after FIVE games – leaving them behind after spending £180m

 

ROBBIE SAVAGE: I never thought Manchester United would decline so quickly this season after spending an extra £180 million this summer. It’s incredible

 

Erik ten Hag has struggled as Man United manager this season

Erik ten Hag has struggled as Man United manager this season (Image: REX/Shutterstock)

 

 

The fact that Manchester United were knocked out of the title race after just five games shows how bad the situation is at Manchester United.

And it’s another worrying sign that a fourth defeat in a row would come as no surprise if they lose to newly promoted Burnley this weekend. Earlier this year, when United were chasing four trophies, I was ridiculed for saying that Erik ten Hag was one of the best managers in Europe at the time because he got them going after a terrible start.

Ten Hag was highly regarded as he won the club’s first trophy in six years, reached the FA Cup final and took the club back to the Champions League. I never imagined that United, after spending another £180m in the summer, would collapse so quickly this season. It is incredible and unacceptable that they are already nine points off the Premier League table

 

 

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But I can’t say I was surprised that Brighton won at Old Trafford last weekend, and I can’t say I was surprised that they lost their first Champions League match against Bayern Munich – or that Harry Kane, the center forward who should have been contracting in the window, was one of the scorers.

Ten Hag hoped to make his mark on the team this season, but at the moment this Manchester United team lacks dynamism, is full of lethargy and the players don’t seem to be enjoying themselves. What’s worse is that the coach seems to suffer from delusions of grandeur because some of his excuses don’t hold up.

‌ he tried to blame the application of technology when Alejandro Garnacho’s late goal was disallowed at Arsenal, claiming VAR was looking at it from the wrong perspective. He claimed that Rasmus Hojlund was denied a clear penalty in the Emirates, but few neutral people share his opinion.

And he bemoaned United’s luck when Hojlund’s late goal against Brighton was disallowed because the ball had disappeared slightly from play in the build-up. But in the last three games they have scored ten goals. They can’t all be due to bad luck.

 

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ERIK TEN HAG EXAMPLE OF BURNLEY CLASH

There is a lot of background noise about the Glazers’ ownership, a takeover saga that seems never-ending, Old Trafford looks like a run-down stadium and the Carrington training center is surpassed by others in terms of facilities. Yet one of the most worrying signs of decline can be found where it matters most: on the field. And in this respect it stops at Ten Hag.

He needs time to get things right like he did last season, but his authority isn’t helped by those strange excuses. Look, I have a lot of time for United as a club. I want them to do well because the way they treated my son Charlie was exemplary.

‌But I have to ask Ten Hag: is goalkeeper Andre Onana an upgrade for David De Gea? I admire Onana for standing up and taking the blame for Bayern’s defeat and yes, he seems more comfortable than De Gea with the ball at his feet – but are outfield players who receive the ball better equipped to play out from the back? Is Mason Mount better suited to midfield than Declan Rice, Jude Bellingham or Alexis Mac Allister, who all changed clubs in the summer? Hojlund, to be fair, looks like a decent player – as you would expect from a £72 million striker – but why haven’t United challenged the boat further for Kane?

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Both players scored at the Allianz Arena on Wednesday night, but the England captain would now surely be a bigger asset for United. Under Ten Hag, United spent around £400 million on new players during his reign, but are the rewards commensurate with the investment?

Antony appeared to be worth less than £85 million before his break to deal with off-field issues, Lisandro Martinez was a success last season but hasn’t exactly looked safe this season, and Casemiro hasn’t reached his level this year last. Manchester United don’t look any stronger than they did 12 months ago. And I shudder to think of the collapse of their supporters when they failed at Turf Moor.

 

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