After a reasonably promising start, Louis Saha believes that Manchester United still has time to compete for the Premier League title this season.
After dropping their opening two Premier League games under Erik ten Hag, 2-1 to Brighton and 4-0 to Brentford, the Red Devils faced criticism early in the season.
However, they have subsequently recovered strongly, winning six games, drawing two, and only losing one more, putting them three points behind third-place Tottenham with a game remaining to play. Saha believes the Red Devils can still contend for the Premier League title this year, despite their current deficits to leaders Arsenal and the defending champions, Manchester City, respectively.
As reported by the Manchester Evening News, he said:
“There is time for them to still challenge for the Premier League title this season. It’s a very special year because of the World Cup, and we know that there’s the prospect of a few players returning tired, but December and January have always been crucial months in title races gone by, so let’s see what happens.
“Many people believe that Manchester United are competing for the top four only, but at the moment they need to remain very humble.
“They’ve shown positive signs against both Tottenham and Chelsea, but it’s not enough as you have to show a run of remaining unbeaten for maybe eight or nine games and keep up the pressure on the sides ahead of you and be ready to capitalise when those sides have got injuries or head into a spell of inconsistent form.”
Christian Eriksen had earlier stated that the club is leading in a positive direction under Ten Hag and their performances reflect those words.
The Red Devils have been pressing hard against their opponents, winning crucial midfield battles and keeping up the spirit of the game until the last minute. These are the qualities that were missing in this squad, however, the team still has a long way to go.
The upcoming months will witness a huge rush of fixtures and the way the manager and the players deal with his scenario will ultimately decide the fate of their season. Many players will be playing at the World Cup and they will be aiming to return fit and contribute to the club in the crucial months of January and February.
