United View: A disaster of a week for Manchester United

Erik ten Hag has suggested his team needs more time to improve following their 3-0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford on Sunday.

Whether he will be afforded that is now under serious debate after United hit another embarrassing low point during his tenure.

The Reds’ week began with another disappointing result against FC Twente in their opening Europa League match. A 1-1 draw with the side sat 4th in the Dutch top division caused alarm bells as United were unable to get the win despite going one up just before halftime.

In that match, United started well enough, controlling much of the first half before Christian Eriksen’s strike opened the scoring in the 35th minute. Many assumed ten Hag’s side would go on to see out this result but a chaotic second half saw Twente secure a famous point, courtesy of Sam Lammers’ goal.

Fans can write results like this off in isolation but after an already lacklustre start to the campaign, this felt like one of serious concern. United have now only won one in their last nine European games.

Perhaps it’s optimism or naivety, but playing Spurs felt like a great opportunity to get things back on track. Ange Postecoglou’s side has also experienced a mixed campaign and with the Reds on home turf, surely, they would have the momentum.

How wrong that thinking was as from minute one, Spurs utterly outshone United, taking the lead within the opening five minutes as Mickey Van de Ven sprinted the length of the pitch before squaring to the unmarked Brennan Johnson.

A Bruno Fernandes red card – which absolutely was not a red card and has since been rescinded– only made a difficult job even more difficult as Spurs went on to add another two after the break. In all honesty, it could have been as many as Spurs wanted, it was that bad.

There’s almost disbelief as to how poor United were in this game, somehow outdoing their 3-0 defeat against Liverpool at the start of the month. The press was non-existent and the gameplan was baffling, sitting back at home and trying to hit Spurs on the counter, something they dealt with ease thanks to their blistering pace at the back.

It was a damning display and unfortunately, the manager’s stock has hit unprecedented depths. For all the talk of needing more time, there’s no excuse for performances like this in his third year.

Earlier in the week, the club’s CEO, Omar Berrada, said United are looking to win the league by 2028. The ambition was never a realistic feat this season and will undoubtedly take time, but to continuously put out performances like the one on Sunday is unforgivable.

Ten Hag was given lots of leeway last season and was rightly allowed to begin this campaign at the helm, however, it’s starting to feel like the writing is on the wall. The vast majority of the team is available, and the ownership confusion has been resolved, this is all about not getting the best out of a strong squad on paper.

We’re only in October and United are already falling by the wayside of the Champions League places, something the club needs to achieve to progress. A significant change needs to happen immediately if they are to turn this around.

Everyone associated with Manchester United will hope the manager can turn this around, however, we’ve seen this script unfold before with previous head coaches. There are now two huge games coming up and both are a must-win for Erik ten Hag.

A trip to Porto in the Europa League followed by Aston Villa at Villa Park on Sunday awaits, both of which could be a pivotal moment in the season for Manchester United.