Former Man United midfielder Tom Cleverley has dismissed the chances of Erik ten Hag's side lifting the Premier League trophy any time soon
Former Manchester United player Tom Cleverley says Manchester United have 'never been further away' from winning the Premier League title than they currently are under Erik ten Hag. Cleverley, who has now taken up a coaching role with Championship side Watford, came through the United academy system before going on to make 79 appearances for the Reds, scoring five goals and registering eight assists between 2008 and 2015.
But under David Moyes, and later Louis van Gaal, Cleverley struggled to cement himself in United's first-team plans after an initial bright start and joined fellow Premier League side Everton following the expiration of his contract at Old Trafford. The former midfielder was, however, a part of the last United squad to win the Premier League title under legendary manager Sir Alex Ferguson in 2013. He has now given his assessment on whether the current crop of United players are good enough to follow in that team's footsteps.READ MORE: Erik ten Hag sends Sancho a message over his future When asked whether United are on the right track under Erik ten Hag by Sky Sports, Cleverley said: "I like to be optimistic but you have to be realistic and I don't think they've ever been further away, to be honest. The strength of the other teams, not only do you have your usual competitors but you've got the introduction of Aston Villa, Brighton and Newcastle so it's going to be very, very difficult. "I hope I'm wrong. I hope they can have a good run in the Champions League but as far as domestically in the league, it's a massive, massive task and I think you have to be realistic about that." The former midfielder also opened up on how he struggled to deal with the pressure at United during his time at Old Trafford. He added: "I struggled with it. I think at times like that you've just have to look in the mirror [and ask yourself], 'Am I doing everything right to prepare and perform?' I think that the support networks for players were a little bit less back then it was a bit more of fending for yourself which I tried to do and I struggled a little bit. "That's why you have really got to take your hat off to these players who can come through these slumps in form at the biggest of clubs. I'm thinking [Bukayo] Saka after the Euros, [Raheem] Sterling's had periods and always ended back at the top and John Stones had a season where people doubted him and he's one of the best defenders in the world. "So you've got to take your hat off to these players that are resilient enough to be at the top for 10 to 15 years because there's always going to be dips in form that you have to mentally deal with." Follow the MEN's United coverage on TikTok and YouTube, and subscribe to the Manchester is Red podcast
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