Erik ten Hag has what he wanted at Manchester United and now he needs to use it

It has been hard to separate valid criticism from the unfair criticism of Manchester United this season. They head into tonight's clash with Chelsea having already lost 10 matches this season, seventh in the Premier League, out of the Carabao Cup and on the verge of being dumped out of the Champions League as well.

The bottom line is that United should be doing better for all the money they have spent and the perceived solid foundations they laid last season. Yet, there has also been some mitigation.

United have been hampered by rotten injury luck that has left key players sidelined and the team struggling for consistency. That in turn has affected their attempts to establish a style of play; new signings have struggled to adapt to a regularly changing side, and they have been unable to build confidence.

MATCH PREVIEW: Three first-teamers could return tonight

LUCKHURST: I pointed out dressing room issues and was banned

It is a vicious cycle with no clear end in sight. United need to start winning games to ease the pressure and then once they have found some momentum, they can take a look at trying to improve their performances along the way.

In order to do that, they need consistency, something Erik ten Hag has been quick to point out. A month ago, the United manager suggested his side needed a core group of up to 13 players to embark on a winning run.

"What we have to work on is a stable starting XI, at least with 12 or 13 players," Ten Hag explained, "then the routines will be better and more chances will be coming."

United were without seven injured players for their last match against Newcastle, though only two of them would be candidates to get into their strongest side at the moment. Even then, Lisandro