Why the next two weeks could define Man United’s season: Erik ten Hag’s team could be OUT of the Champions League and top four race by the time they play Liverpool… five years since Jose Mourinho’s reign ended at Anfield

If it is true that history repeats itself first as tragedy and then as farce, Erik ten Hag will have even more reason to worry ahead of Manchester United's upcoming visit to Anfield in a fortnight's time.

United travel to Merseyside on December 17, exactly five years since they lost to Liverpool in Jose Mourinho's last game in charge.

The Portuguese was relieved of his duties on 18 December 2018 following a 3–1 defeat at Anfield two days earlier, which left United sixth in the table, 19 points behind then leaders Liverpool.

There are now only seven points between the two sides, but the gap between them feels as wide as it did when Mourinho was sacked four years ago.

While Ten Hag's future is not in immediate danger, the trip down the East Lancs Road could hardly come at a worse time for United, who are heading into another potentially season-defining period.

The 1-0 against Newcastle at St James' Park on Saturday evening ended a run of three Premier League victories and left ten Hag's men in seventh place.

If the result was disappointing, the manner of the defeat was inexcusable. United never watched the races against Newcastle and several pundits, from Paul Scholes to Roy Keane and from Jamie Carragher to Alan Shearer, questioned the lack of effort from a number of players.

'Nonsense', said Scholes for Premier League Productions. “There are too many lazy players.”

Speaking The Rest is Football podcastShearer suggested the manner of the defeat spoke volumes for the attitude of some United players.

“I thought they were a mess, I thought they were terrible,” he said.

“I thought there were three or four players yesterday who weren't willing to roll up their sleeves and gave up way too easily and didn't want to fight.”

United are back on familiar territory, where the progress shown in a convincing win is quickly erased by a dismal performance in defeat and a potentially season-defining series looms on the horizon.

If there is a silver lining after their meek surrender against Newcastle, it is that Ten Hag's men can respond immediately when they host Chelsea on Wednesday evening.

The days when this match decided the destination of the Premier League trophy are a distant memory, with Chelsea currently tenth in the table and five points behind United.

The Blues have not won at Old Trafford for a decade and are looking as erratic as their rivals, with every sign of progress under Mauricio Pochettino quickly followed by unexpected setbacks.

Worryingly for Ten Hag, however, Chelsea have played at their best against big teams this season, with Arsenal, Liverpool and City drawing and halting Tottenham's unbeaten start to the season.

Bournemouth's visit to Old Trafford three days later should, in theory, give United's dormant attack a chance to find some form.

The Cherries have conceded 30 goals so far this season, the worst result in the Premier League after Sheffield United and Burnley. The Cherries scored six against Manchester City and four against Arsenal.

But after a slow start, Andoni Iraola's men have found some form and have taken 10 out of 15 possible points in their last five games. United's difficult wins against Sheffield United, Fulham and Luton paint the picture of a side struggling to put aside clubs in the bottom half of the table.

The final match of three games at Old Trafford is perhaps the most crucial of them all as United welcome Bayern Munich on December 12 with their Champions League fate on the line and out of their hands.

United are bottom of Group A with four points from five games and need to beat Bayern, who have already qualified as group winners, to retain any hope of reaching the knockout stages.

Crucially, Copenhagen also needs to draw at home against Galatasaray to progress.

If United fail to develop from a relatively easy group, it would be a tough pill to swallow, especially as they would have only themselves to blame.

United scored nine goals in three away games in the Champions League, but have only one point to show for it, giving up two goals ahead in both Copenhagen and Istanbul.

Now that their fate in the Champions League has been decided, the focus shifts to the match against Liverpool.

United have lost their last four Premier League meetings against their arch-rivals by an aggregate score of 17-2 and were defeated 7-0 on their last visit to Anfield.

Another heavy defeat on Merseyside and there would be precious little for Ten Hag to celebrate at Christmas.

Before the trip to Newcastle, the Dutchman insisted that United were the form team in the competition from a statistical point of view.

But one Various sets of figures paint a much grimmer picture for Ten Hag.

At the time of writing, United are nine points behind leaders Arsenal and five points behind fourth-placed Aston Villa.

They have already lost six times in the Premier League this season and have the worst goal difference of any team in the top half of the table.

They have not won against a team in the top nine of the Premier League in eleven attempts under Ten Hag, losing ten times. A record so bleak that Roy Keane didn't believe it was real.

Barring a drastic change in fortunes, this is unlikely to change at Anfield.

Ten Hag must hope that history will not repeat itself, neither as a tragedy nor as a farce.