Man City and Arsenal win to close gap to Liverpool

Manchester United's struggles, Aston Villa's rise, and the Premier League's top teams in a thrilling week of football.

The week started at Manchester United with Jim Ratcliffe completing his purchase of a minority stake and setting out a three-year plan to return the club to the top of English football, knocking local rivals Manchester City and Liverpool “off their perch” in the process.

It ended with the team getting mostly outplayed in its own stadium by Fulham — an opponent in the bottom half of the Premier League — and beaten 2-1 to lose ground in the race for Champions League qualification.

Not only did sixth-place Manchester United’s four-game winning run in the league come to an end on February 24, fourth-place Aston Villa beat Nottingham Forest 4-2. That left an eight-point gap between Villa and United after 26 of 38 games. It remains to be seen if the Premier League will have four or five places in next season’s Champions League. Fifth-place Tottenham is three points ahead of United and has a game in hand.

Failing to qualify for the lucrative competition will be a huge blow to United’s status, not to mention its finances. It could also spell the end for United manager Erik ten Hag as Ratcliffe looks to raise the standards at the fallen giant.

Dave Brailsford, the sporting director of Ratcliffe-owned INEOS and now on United’s board, was in the directors’ box at Old Trafford to see the team concede the deciding goal on a counterattack in the seventh minute of stoppage time. Alex Iwobi tucked home the finish, sealing Fulham's first win at Old Trafford since 2003, with United's players having poured forward seeking a winner after Harry Maguire’s equalizer in the 89th.

“After one defeat, you have to see the bigger picture,” Ten Hag said, “and the bigger picture looks very good.”

Douglas Luiz scored two of Villa’s goals, with Ollie Watkins and Leon Bailey also netting in its first home win of 2024. One of the three defeats at Villa Park this year came at the hands of United.