Tuesday talking point: Fourth place is not a success

Dale O'Donnell, Stretty News & Strettycast, external

The last three games put a sour taste in every United fan’s mouth. I end up sounding spoiled on a weekly basis as I dwell on poor results.

I’m not spoiled, though. Manchester United have massively underachieved and — unless we win the Champions League — our season is over. That sounds cruel and blunt, though it would be nonsensical to pin this on Ralf Rangnick, and I don’t know anyone who thinks we will win in Europe this season.

Moreover, fourth place is not a success. United have picked up six less points than this stage last season. If we were 100 miles away then, now we’re 1,000 miles away from where we need to be.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was praised for a ‘cultural reboot’ - little did we think the next manager would have such a mammoth task, with what appears to be a fractured dressing room.

As for Cristiano Ronaldo, some say he’s the problem, but can you imagine how bad our season would be without him? When he missed two games, United were lucky to beat Aston Villa in the FA Cup before squandering a two-goal lead at Villa Park, yet now some want to pin the blame on him.

He has gone six consecutive games without scoring, but it’s only a matter of time before he’s firing again - this is one of the most prolific goalscorers in history that we’re taking about.

United are still learning. The style of football has changed, arguably for the better, but we need to take our chances to win football matches.

I still believe Ronaldo will deliver.