Paul Merson SLAMS Man United and insists Erik ten Hag’s side were ‘absolutely shocking’ in defeat against Fulham… as he insists the club have ‘NO CHANCE’ of catching rivals Man City in the near future
- Paul Merson criticized Man United mercilessly after the defeat to Fulham
- Alex Iwobi’s stoppage-time winner condemned the club to their first defeat of 2024
- While Pep Guardiola is at Manchester City, it will be difficult for anyone to unseat them – Listen to the It all starts podcast
Paul Merson strongly criticized Manchester United after the club’s defeat to Fulham.
After a faltering start to Erik ten Hag’s second season at the club, United appeared to have finally found their form with an unbeaten start to 2024 with four wins under their belt.
However, at Old Trafford the hosts were forced onto the back foot for long periods, with Calvin Bassey putting Fulham ahead after 65 minutes.
Harry Maguire’s goal on the brink of stoppage time appeared to have saved United a point, but Alex Iwobi would restore the visitors’ lead at the death and condemn United to defeat.
Speaking after the match, the former Arsenal and England star insisted the result was more a reflection of United’s incompetence than Fulham’s success.
Manchester United’s unbeaten start to 2024 came to an end on Saturday thanks to a late goal from Alex Iwobi
But Paul Merson insisted Fulham’s victory was fully justified after United’s ‘shocking’ performance
‘Man United was shocking, I’m not exaggerating. Absolutely shocking.” Merson told Sky Sports.
“You know, how they can think they can get into the top four. And what’s the point of making it to the top four anyway? Just to get into the Champions League. They’re not going to win. So what’s the point of being in it?’
Ahead of Saturday’s match, a billboard outside Old Trafford featured a parody of the infamous Carlos Tevez ‘Welcome to Manchester’ poster depicting Sir Jim Ratcliffe in the club’s famous red.
Earlier this week, the INEOS chief insisted he wants United to usurp their rivals and restore their previous dominance in the Premier League.
“We have a lot to learn from our noisy neighbor and the other neighbor,” he said, referring to City and Liverpool. ‘They are ultimately the enemy. I would love nothing more than to knock them both out of their places.”
Referring to Ratcliffe’s comments, Merson stressed that no amount of investment would allow United to bridge the gap on the pitch, especially against their city rivals.
Merson added that despite Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s lofty ambitions, United remain far behind their rivals
“They’re a million pounds away.” Merson continued.
‘To be honest, I don’t know where they’re going to catch up with us. Where he went, I want to take over Man City, whoa, pull it in to try and take over a few others first.
‘Do you know what I mean? You say: “I’m going to take over Man City”. Just go right away, wait a minute, you know, over the next few years we have to try to catch them and then we will catch them. I mean, no chance.
‘This is going very slowly. This won’t happen overnight. This goes very slowly. If Man United are going to win the league in the next five years, whoever is the manager should be knighted.”
