Next 3 Weeks Key in Determining Our Season?

[Aarron Swift]

I'm sure its a phrase that will be used on almost a weekly basis from now until end of the season but looking at next 7 games between now and 21st March, this set of fixtures coming up look the period which will decide whether we emerge as a front runner for Top 4 or remain firmly seated in a multi-club scrap for those positions and with he Europe and FA Cup up as well we have opponents on paper which could set us up nicely for the latter stages of those competitions.

Our next 4 Premier League Fixtures, We play 3 sides that are close us points wise in the fight for the CL places along with the Manchester Derby. After those we then have a kinder run of games against bottom half side (although our record so far this season suggest we'll have better luck in these 'tough' games than bottom half side, lets hope that has changed.). A good record over our next 4 games could really set us up to pull away into a more comfortable position in the top 4 once we move onto the 6 games after that.

What I wanted to ask people was:

- What do you think the results will be? How Confident/Unconfident you are and why?
- How man points will we take?
- Have we turned the corner in the last 7 games or just papered cracks? (5 wins, 2 draws in last 7, 6 clean sheets Wolves, City Away + Chelsea Away in that run, arrival of Bruno & scoring more goals)
- Where will we be in the league at the end of this run, points and position?
- How confident are you in the run after these games?
- Will we progress in Europa/FA Cup?
- Do you think we'll get Top 4 and/or win a Cup?

Next 7 Games all Competitions

Premier League Everton (11th) Away
FA Cup 5th Round Derby County Away
Premier League Manchester City (2nd) Home
Europa League L16 LASK Away
Premier League Tottenham Hotspurs (6th) Away
Europa League L16 LASK Home
Premier League Sheffield United (7th) Home



I don't think this time is necessarily 'make or break' for the season. Every team in that cluster are dropping points and even a somewhat bad run (5pts or less) in that time, would still leave us in the mix.. I do see it as a huge opportunity to establish a foothold in the Top 4 race. I'm going cautiously with 7pts, 2 wins, 1 draw and a defeat. the defeat to Man City who have a good record at Old Trafford last few years. Win against Sheffield Utd and then win 1, draw 1 Everton Spurs, not sure which one. most likely leaving us in a similar situation to now 5th/6th 3 or 4 points from Chelsea...with potential to over take in the last 7 games of the season. I'm quietly optimistic that we'll have a good end to the season and will make Top 4, the team just seem to be playing far better since Bruno arrived

oh and i think we'll go through both cup competitions, I don't think we'll end up winning either.

Interested to get others thoughts

 

[Red Dreams]

We are getting injured players back and look in form with a solid midfield now.
We should do well.

 

[Massive Spanner]

We are so inconsistent and unpredictable that it's impossible to say any short period of time can define our season. I wouldn't be surprised if we won all 7 of those games and then lost every subsequent game after that. Hell, that's basically what happened last year!

 

[Dve]

I´d say if we are still only 3 points behind Chelsea in end of March, we are in a very good position. The fixture between Sheffield United and Leicester away in the final match is as easy as it gets.

 

[Bilbo]

I´d say if we are still only 3 points behind Chelsea in end of March, we are in a very good position. The fixture between Sheffield United and Leicester away in the final match is as easy as it gets.

Yep. If we match the points totals of the teams around us over the next four games then we will be favourites to finish 4th

 

[dutchred]

Everton away will be tough especially as I just read that Martial wont be fit.

 

[Blatzo]

W Premier League Everton (11th) Away
D FA Cup 5th Round Derby County Away
D Premier League Manchester City (2nd) Home
W Europa League L16 LASK Away
L Premier League Tottenham Hotspurs (6th) Away
D Europa League L16 LASK Home
W Premier League Sheffield United (7th) Home

I think we progress in the Europa, possibly get knocked out of the FA cup and do OK in the league.

 

[Thepinhead]

If we do well the next 4 premier league games I think we will catch Leicester and finish 3rd. Their last few games are tough and I think they look a bit unmotivated now.

 

[Jacko21]

Feeling pretty good about United at the moment.

Here’s hoping this run doesn’t give us reason to be pessimistic.

 

[DickDastardly]

7 wins

 

[dutchred]

Feeling pretty good about United at the moment.

Here’s hoping this run doesn’t give us reason to be pessimistic.

I'm also feeling good. Bruno has brought a breath of fresh air to the club. Shame about a new injury to Martial. Our midfield is suddenly strong with Bruno and Mac back. The problem will be scoring

 

[No Idea For Nickname]

W W W W W W W W, wait, how many games?
Let's add another W, just in case I missed one.

 

[AltiUn]

I think we can beat City, we've done them twice already this season and I think the 1-3 loss would've been a completely different game had we not wasted the first half by starting Pereira/Lingard, when Matic came on in the 2nd half we were much better.

 

[Crashoutcassius]

The rest of the season will determine our season. We have come through the hardest patch before Christmas. Now every game is vital but no one game, maybe spurs

 

[el3mel]

Everton L or D. Not confident of this tbh.
Derby County W
City W. Yeah think we can do it this time.
LASK D. Will be a good result.
Spurs W. We really should win easily, they barely have any attacking players now.
LASK W and progress.
Shieffield D. Yeah not confident of this either.

 

[Ali Dia]

Bruno seems to have given mata a nice lift. I’d say we will get creative with midfield and have mata and James/greenwood playing off Ighalo. Will it be enough? I have no idea. It’s great to see players coming back from injuries and some players peaking at a good time. Fred, Maguire, Shaw, Matic have gone up levels, Bailey has looked great coming back in. No need to start lingard or Andreas anymore. A lot of positives. Even without a full squad ole has some choices to make with his selections and that can only be positive. Everyone seems happier. Let’s hope we can carry this momentum through this tough period of fixtures. I think on our day we have enough to beat all those teams except for city who are still just a better team than us. Draws at Everton and spurs would be acceptable and we are still very much in the mix then. For some reason I see us getting a draw and a win in those 2. It’s looking pretty good. Cup competitions through to next round in both.

 

[joedirt87]

if we get through Everton, City, and Tottenham with 6/9 points I still like our chances for top four.

 

[Aarron Swift]

I´d say if we are still only 3 points behind Chelsea in end of March, we are in a very good position. The fixture between Sheffield United and Leicester away in the final match is as easy as it gets.

Pretty much how i feel, I think I'm looking too far forward & getting ahead of myself, thinking of the situation say we come out the next 4 game 1or 2pts ahead of Chelsea & in 4th before those games between Sheffield & Leicester

Considering the inconsistencies this year in particular + previous 6 years in general you'd have though I would have stopped looking ahead thinking how great a run of form could be, but here I am haha

 

[reddevil702]

March will really define our season. Yesterdays game was the first in a long time in which we got a great result but we looked better from a tactical perspective. We're very close to top 4 and our squad is getting players back while Chelsea and Spurs seem to be going the opposite direction. I think we should win every game with the exception of the City. Everton game is key as it sets the tone for the month, win and we keep the momentum and confidence high which is very important.

 

[MikeKing]

- What do you think the results will be? How Confident/Unconfident you are and why?

Confident due to our recent good form. Bruno, Greenwood and Ighalo have goals in them, even Fred and McTominay can contribute. Bruno has given us an edge that should come in handy against lesser teams, which should give us more consistent results towards the end of the season. Even if we lose against City etc.

- How man points will we take?

Hopefully, full pot.

- Have we turned the corner in the last 7 games or just papered cracks? (5 wins, 2 draws in last 7, 6 clean sheets Wolves, City Away + Chelsea Away in that run, arrival of Bruno & scoring more goals)

We have done well to paper over some cracks like overcoming though injuries and replacing Lingard, Pereira in the January window. More competition in the squad for Shaw and Martial with Williams and Ighalo introduced.

- Where will we be in the league at the end of this run, points and position

Hopefully in front of Chelsea in the top 4 spot, but not by much.

- How confident are you in the run after these games?

Depends on injuries and other circumstances. Quality wise we do look a bit stronger now, so it will be a mental test for this squad. Interesting to see if we will run out of gas with out relentless pressing style, or if we can keep the squad fit and ready. I just hope we don't become to complacent and sluggish after finally building some confidence. That has been our problem for years after having good periods.

- Will we progress in Europa/FA Cup?

Yes.

- Do you think we'll get Top 4 and/or win a Cup?

Yes.

 

[Teja]

I think we're solid enough to get a draw against most sides in the league bar City / Pool. My predictions:

W Premier League Everton (11th) Away
D FA Cup 5th Round Derby County Away (Derby are quite good, we'll play Pereira / Lingard :-/)
L Premier League Manchester City (2nd) Home (City full of confidence after they beat RM away and probably wrapping up the league cup - will be extremely hard to get a draw)
D Europa League L16 LASK Away
W Premier League Tottenham Hotspurs (6th) Away
W Europa League L16 LASK Home
D Premier League Sheffield United (7th) Home

 

[ReddBalls]

I think on our day we have enough to beat all those teams except for city who are still just a better team than us.

I think we will drop points, but not necessarily to City. We've already proved we can beat them by doing it twice this season.

 

[Zen86]

This season will go right to the wire, that much should be obvious by now. There have been plenty of twists and turns throughout the season, and there will be a few more. People need to stop obsessing over this turned a corner business.

 

[Dve]

I think we're solid enough to get a draw against most sides in the league bar City / Pool. My predictions:

W Premier League Everton (11th) Away
D FA Cup 5th Round Derby County Away (Derby are quite good, we'll play Pereira / Lingard :-/)
L Premier League Manchester City (2nd) Home (City full of confidence after they beat RM away and probably wrapping up the league cup - will be extremely hard to get a draw)
D Europa League L16 LASK Away
W Premier League Tottenham Hotspurs (6th) Away
W Europa League L16 LASK Home
D Premier League Sheffield United (7th) Home

While our latest result have been better with 5 wins and 2 draws in the last 7 - including 2 away win against Chelsea and Manchester City. I think we have good chances against City at Old Trafford. City have nothing to fight for in the PL, as they can´t win and they are comfortable inside top 4. Good for us if they focus on the CL and the cup.

 

[nyanza]

Next 3 months are key, I think.

 

[ReddBalls]

Laporte seems to be out for 3-4 weeks, while it's reported that Pogba might be back for City, although it is probably more realistic he will be back for Spurs. Either way, Laporte out is good news for United.

 

[Gasolin]

Laporte seems to be out for 3-4 weeks, while it's reported that Pogba might be back for City, although it is probably more realistic he will be back for Spurs. Either way, Laporte out is good news for United.

Chelsea injuries are probably going to have more impact in regard to our results. Spurs have already lost Kane and Spurs and will probably struggle to win games. But yeah being able to get another win against City would be interesting.

 

[Paul_Scholes18]

I mainly want to win the EL this season. Not super focused on the league.
Fa cup would be nice, but doubt us to beat the best sides near the end.

 

[bondsname]

I think we will drop points, but not necessarily to City. We've already proved we can beat them by doing it twice this season.

We never beat them at home though. We always beat them away.

 

[ReddBalls]

We never beat them at home though. We always beat them away.

Under Ole, or in general? Didn't we beat them at home, post-poning their celeberation of their league win in 2018?

 

[Gasolin]

We never beat them at home though. We always beat them away.

If you can beat them away, surely you can beat them at home...

 

[bondsname]

If you can beat them away, surely you can beat them at home...

That's the way it should be.

 

[bondsname]

Under Ole, or in general? Didn't we beat them at home, post-poning their celeberation of their league win in 2018?

I think we lost 2-0 at home last season. The 3-2 comeback where Pogba scored a brace was at the Etihad under Mourinho.

 

[AaronRedDevil]

If United can get through March by beating Spurs and Sheffield. Top 5 could be very possible to get. The teams in April and May will be beatable. Only Leicester City in the final day.

 

[Jonty]

We will win the unholy treble Europa League, FA cup and fourth place!

 

[ReddBalls]

I think we lost 2-0 at home last season. The 3-2 comeback where Pogba scored a brace was at the Etihad under Mourinho.

Yeah, I remembered that wrong.

 

[UNITED ACADEMY]

No such a thing. Chelsea can lose many points which was proven many times this season while Spurs is losing Son & Kane which crucial for their season as well.

Failing to win or even win against Everton & City won't really determine our season. However, win against them will show that there is very good potential in our team.

 

[ben.heff10]

- What do you think the results will be? How Confident/Unconfident you are and why?

I'm quite confident, we've been very good in big games and very good over our last 8 games.

Everton: D
Derby: W
City: W
LASK: D
Spurs: D
LASK: W
Sheffield: W

- Have we turned the corner in the last 7 games or just papered cracks? (5 wins, 2 draws in last 7, 6 clean sheets Wolves, City Away + Chelsea Away in that run, arrival of Bruno & scoring more goals)

I think we have more quality in the squad with Bruno and Ighalo so I do think there's been a turning of the corner. I still don't think we're a great side yet but we've done really well recently. If we're able to nail down a consistent XI until the end of the season, I don't see why we can't go on a run.

- Where will we be in the league at the end of this run, points and position?
4th, 63 points. I think we'll win Europa League too. If we do, that's an excellent season.

 

[032Devil]

Injuries keep screwing our season.

 

[wolvored]

Premier League Everton (11th) Away 0-0
FA Cup 5th Round Derby County Away 1-3
Premier League Manchester City (2nd) Home 1-2
Europa League L16 LASK Away 1-1
Premier League Tottenham Hotspurs (6th) Away 2-2
Europa League L16 LASK Home 3-0
Premier League Sheffield United (7th) Home 1-0
5 points in the league 6th place and into the quarter finals of Europa and FA cup im predicting.