BIG Ten Hag has brought United back to the top table... but they won’t be feasting on the title just yet
We ask the Mirror experts: How far away are Man Utd from being true title contenders?
HAD they beaten Arsenal, Manchester United could have counted themselves as being in the title race, but instead it is now going to be all about challenging for a top-four spot and progressing in the cups, with a League Cup semi-final this week.
Where should their focus be for the rest of the season? How far away are they from doing what Arsenal have done in the league? Where does Erik ten Hag need to improve/strengthen to sustain a
longer title challenge?
JOHN CROSS
EVEN if United have fallen short in the title race, Erik ten Hag has done a remarkable job.
From the depths of despair six months ago to renewed hope. If they can crown his first season with a trophy that will represent an incredible transformation.
But a top-four finish and a return to Champions League football will be by far and away the most important thing this season.
It represents the prestige of being back at the top table of European football, big financial rewards and an ability to attract the best signings.
This is still a club with a strange, lopsided-looking squad with a team still lacking something in identity.
The fact that Ten Hag has got them playing so well, got results and got them back on track is a huge tribute to his manmanagement. Imagine what is possible with two or three good additions.
But this season has to be about the top four.
MIKE WALTERS
WHAT did you expect – the Hanging Gardens of Babylon? Krakatoa erupting? Herds of wildebeest sweeping majestically across Chester Road to Lou Macari’s chip shop?
Let’s get real: Manchester United have spent £82million on a winger who does not go past his full-back, signed a No.9 on loan who does not look like scoring and the midfield is still brittle when Casemiro is not playing.
Against those debits on the balance sheet, United are wellplaced to finish in the top four and end six years without a trophy.
They should beat Nottingham Forest over two legs in the EFL Cup semi-finals and Reading at home in the FA Cup fourth round, so although the title is gone, all is not lost in the cups.
But the way Arsenal forced them back, and spent log periods swarming around the United box, should tell Erik ten Hag everything he needs to know about how far away he is from turning his side into champions.
ANDY DUNN
SUCCESS in both domestic cup competitions is there for Manchester United’s taking but – and I never thought I would say this – securing a top four Premier League finishing position has to be Erik ten Hag’s priority. Why? Because he needs to make two or three blue-chip signings in the summer and they will only come to Old Trafford if there is Champions League football on the schedule.
A world class striker is top of the wanted list and even if Harry Kane (left) is leaning towards a new deal at Spurs, United should test the water.
With Harry Maguire clearly not to his taste, Ten Hag also needs more competition for central defensive positions and a creative alternative to Christian Eriksen, who is not getting any sharper.
In other words, United are progressing nicely under Ten Hag but are still some way off reclaiming their superpower status. A successful summer in the transfer market can sort that out but Champions League football is a must.
DARREN LEWIS
TAKE a look at Manchester United’s position in the Premier League. Fourth, with a cushion over fifth. Why would anybody connected with Manchester United panic over Sunday’s defeat?
Everything about the club under Erik ten Hag suggests they are heading in the right direction.
Had Casemiro played in midfield we could easily have seen a different result at the Emirates.
Lisandro Martinez (above, celebrating) epitomised the character in the United side when he stooped to head in the equaliser for
2-2. Yes, United conceded at the death for the second time in a week but Ten Hag is a man who identifies mistakes and rectifies them.
Most fans are realistic about where the club is right now. Taking baby steps, blinking, into a new era.
Respect for the shirt is back. Recruitment follows a sensible plan and Champions League football next season will attract a higher calibre of player in the summer.
There is every chance that they could win the League Cup and Ten Hag’s side will fear no one in the FA Cup.
If anything, Sunday simply kept feet on the ground at Old Trafford and served as a reminder that they have a long way to go before they really are back.