We're not a Champions League level team, we're right where we belong. The most expensive Europa League team in history. I don't see us getting top 4, the other contenders are far superior.
Top 4 race 2016/17
- Thread starter Yorkeontop
- Start date
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In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik @Rood and Imran @Annihilate Now! start with the good news by celebrating Manchester United Women's emphatic FA Cup win over Spurs at Wembley and the future of manager Marc Skinner.
Then it's the bad news and the ever worsening form of our Men with losses to Arsenal and Palace.
Finally the main debate - ETH Out now or keep him until the end of the season - if not longer. Are you Team Nik or Team Imran?
We're going to finish 6th or 7th aren't we? fecking hell, we are absolutely shit.
It's another battle for top 4 and I'm not convinced we'll make it.
We've got so many problems and our 'progress' from last season is minimal.
We've got so many problems and our 'progress' from last season is minimal.
No chance.
We are shit, wasted money left, right and centre.
Crap.
We are shit, wasted money left, right and centre.
Crap.
The Europa League is our best chance of Champions League football next season, but we're not really good enough to expect to win that TBH.
As @Ainu says, we are at the level we deserve to be at.
As @Ainu says, we are at the level we deserve to be at.
Continuously signing mediore dross will do that to any team. Even if we had Guardiola plus Mourinho and Ancelotti as assistants the results will be the same.
We're a 6th - 7th place team.
We're a 6th - 7th place team.
Not only that but there are 5 teams who are hands down better than us.
I wonder what percentage of United player's wages are contigent on them making top 4. I doubt it's very high at all.
I wouldn't be surprised if Arsenal's wages are heavily skewed on making top 4. When we've put in abslutely shocking starts to the season we've gone on to put in title winning form to make the top 4.
I wouldn't be surprised if Arsenal's wages are heavily skewed on making top 4. When we've put in abslutely shocking starts to the season we've gone on to put in title winning form to make the top 4.
Wenger might be on a similar sort of deal. No top four means he's gone, but never any pressure to actually win the league?
Top 4 
This is done too
We still look about a 7th place team, like we have since SAF left. Maybe next year with yet another new manager spending a fortune on new players can get us to 6th!!
Moving in the opposite direction -- We really can't compete with the top teams in the league.
Not even sure of a top 10 finish at this rate.
We.are.shit.
Highest wage bill, highest net spend in last 3 years, yet we are utter utter shit.
Highest wage bill, highest net spend in last 3 years, yet we are utter utter shit.
Best chance by far is fluking the Europea League. Spurs, Chelsea, Arsenal, City and Pool are absolutely miles better than us.
Think we'll finish 6th or 7th, there's no spark no nothing from this team. Been absent for 4 years.
Feel gutted right now...
Shit, shit, shit!
Shit, shit, shit!
Yeah, no fecking chance. Spend a fortune and still miles away from a title, so humiliating.
After seeing the distance covered table, I knew then that it would be impossible for United to win the league or even reach top four if that aspect does not improve.
We will struggle even to get top 7 at this rate
Unless something significantly changes we can kiss goodbye to the CL for another season. Can't believe I'm having to say that again. It's so far from being acceptable that we once again look a fecking shambles of a team.
Too early. Let's see where we are in December
This early run of form reminds me of when moyes first took over. Just a consecutive array of difficult fixtures right at the start of the season.
Not helped that we had a terrible preseason too.
No excuses, but we havent even found our best eleven let alone actually coming together with a good formation.
Not helped that we had a terrible preseason too.
No excuses, but we havent even found our best eleven let alone actually coming together with a good formation.
Isn't it way too early to say we are out of top 4?! Get a grip! Still have 29 more games to go and like what Jose said, this league is so competitive and unpredictable. One or two weeks of results and everything changes again. We are just unfortunate that we have such a tough run of fixtures this month.
We ll finish 6th or 7th.
City
Arsenal
Chelsea
Liverpool
And then Spurs Everton and United
We felt so deep
City
Arsenal
Chelsea
Liverpool
And then Spurs Everton and United
We felt so deep
Very clearly 6th or 7th best at this point. Big changes needed.
Unfortunate? As tough as anyone else since the start of the season.
Only team above us we've gained points on over past four games is Everton.
To an extent that's true, financially we could only handle about 2 none Champion's League seasons after the Emirates was built through to about a couple of years ago.
The thing is nearly every big club manager's remit is to deliver CL football or lose their job, see Rodgers, Daglish, Moyes, LVG, AVB, Redknap etc etc. If you're at a big club and don't deliver CL football you won't be there too long. Mourinho needs top 4 by season 2 or it's unlikely he'll get a shot at a third season.
The only positive is that after a frankly horrific run of form, we are still only 6 Pts off the pace
The league table doesn't look so bad actually, we're not that far off the pace. A run of wins and we'll be right in the mix. Whether we're capable of that is an entirely different matter.
Let's just wait and see before we panic as it's not gonna help at all.
I remember under Moyes it wasnt so bad intiially, we kept the pace, then we tapered off horifically. Im concerned the same might happen here unless Mou really gets a grip and goes for wins instead of draws. Good thing is we've got two really hard away games out of the way. A run is needed now more than ever, at any stage in the last few seasons.
With the respective fixtures coming up we have a chance to close the gap, but as you say whether we're capable of going on a run is a different story. In the next four games Liverpool has the easiest run on paper followed by City, United, Everton, Arsenal, Chelsea then Spurs.
City, Arsenal and Liverpool seem to be nailed on to get a top four spot.
The race for the fourth, given how things stand - would be between Spurs, Chelsea and United.
Today was a horrible game to lose. I hope we manage to nick points off Spurs, at least.
The race for the fourth, given how things stand - would be between Spurs, Chelsea and United.
Today was a horrible game to lose. I hope we manage to nick points off Spurs, at least.
Top 4 race is still wide open yet. I'm not sure about our title chances now. Although mathematically it's open as ever, we haven't capitalised on teams around dropping points and we will suffer more set backs along the course of the season.
It's of the utmost importance though that we keep up pace in the Europa League. It could very well be our saving grace this season, and we may find it a better option to abandon the league in favour of this route into the CL.
It's of the utmost importance though that we keep up pace in the Europa League. It could very well be our saving grace this season, and we may find it a better option to abandon the league in favour of this route into the CL.
I reckon we will make a late surge for top 4 towards March - April, similar to Van Gaal's first season where we had a winning run during the last couple of games.
Would take 4th place right now. Depressing.
So far this season City, Liverpool, Arsenal, Spurs and Chelsea have been better than us to varying degrees
Something has to change for us....Jose has to find a way of creating a more motivated balanced side and im not confident we will win more games than any of the teams I mentioned
Something has to change for us....Jose has to find a way of creating a more motivated balanced side and im not confident we will win more games than any of the teams I mentioned