- Manchester United has officially failed to qualify for the 2022/2023 UEFA Champions League
- This confirmation came after Saturday’s 4-0 defeat to Brighton at the Amex Stadium
- The result left the Red Devils battling for a UEFA Europa League spot next season
Manchester United will definitely not be playing in the UEFA Champions League next season after Saturday’s 4-0 humiliation at the hands of Brighton left them mathematically unable to qualify.
United headed into the game knowing they needed a minor miracle anyway. Arsenal was four points clear with two games in hand, meaning the Red Devils needed to win each of their remaining two fixtures while hoping that neither Arsenal nor Tottenham picked up any points for them to secure the fourth position.
Not only did they fail to win, but their European dream came crashing down in astonishing fashion as they were absolutely overwhelmed by Graham Potter’s Brighton at the Amex Stadium.
Chants of ‘You’re not fit to wear the shirt’ from Manchester United supporters took over the Amex Stadium as goals from Moises Caicedo, Marc Cucurella, Pascal Gross and Leandro Trossard had Brighton 4-0 up on the hour mark.
Brighton players and fans celebrate after Leandro Trossard scored the fourth goal against Manchester United in the Premier League clash on Sat, May 7 2022, shuttering United’s hopes of playing in the UEFA Champions League next season. | PHOTO: Getty Images |
The result takes United to 56 goals conceded this season – their highest total since the Premier League was founded in 1992.
United’s focus is now on ensuring they play any form of European football next season under incoming manager Erik ten Hag.
The Red Devils sit sixth in the Premier League table, occupying the final Europa League qualifying spot, but are just six points ahead of West Ham, who have two games in hand and three left to play overall.
Concerningly for United, it is still mathematically possible that they could miss out on European football altogether, with even a spot in the Europa Conference League not guaranteed.
Wolves are eight points behind United with three games to play and could still leapfrog United if they win their remaining fixtures.
Fortunately, the fixture lists aren’t too kind to either West Ham or Wolves. The former still need to play Manchester City, while the latter have both City and Liverpool on their schedule.
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