Former England midfielder Joe Cole doesn't think Manchester United will climb out of the bottom half of the Premier League standings this season, but he also believes the beleaguered side will be safe from relegation.
The Red Devils head into the first weekend of 2025 in 14th place, just seven points above the relegation zone, as they continue to struggle despite the recent arrival of lauded manager Ruben Amorim from Sporting CP.
United have lost their last three league matches and are heavy underdogs in their upcoming fixture, a Sunday showdown at Anfield against Cole's former side Liverpool.
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Cole can't see United turning things around against the league-leading Reds and predicted that Amorim's side will continue to be mediocre for the remainder of the campaign.
“I think that Manchester United will be in the bottom half for the majority of the season, but there are too many teams that are too far off it for United to get really sucked into a relegation battle," Cole said while speaking to Paddy Power.
“When Rúben Amorim came in and was proclaimed to be the saviour, it was the equivalent of buying a house and not getting the surveying done properly, then walking into the house to find structural damage, and things falling apart.
“Amorim has walked into it, and he doesn’t realise how much surgery needs to be done on the club in every aspect. Manchester United fans have to be mature and accept what’s going on and build slowly. The new boys [INEOS] can’t even blame the Glazers and the old regime now, because their transfer window at the start of the summer was dreadful – and they’ve already hired and fired Dan Ashworth, someone who was brought in to do some long-term planning, fired after six months.
“Everything about the club is off at the moment. They won’t get sucked into a relegation battle, but they’re a bottom-half team.”