Man United risks relegation, says Amorim

Fifty years after Manchester United were relegated, head coach Ruben Amorim is foreseeing another danger this season.

Manchester United were beaten 2-0 by Newcastle United at Old Trafford on Monday night, leaving the Red Devils in 14th place and seven points above the relegation zone.

Asked by BBC Sport if the club were in a battle to avoid the drop, Amorim said: “I think that it is a possibility. We have to be clear with our fans.”

United were last relegated from the top flight 50 years ago, at the end of the 1973-74 season.

The landscape in English football is vastly different now given the financial muscle of teams at the top.

United are one of six Premier League teams never to have been relegated since the competition’s launch in 1992, but how likely is it now that the club could drop into the Championship?

The defeat to Newcastle was Manchester United’s third Premier League loss in a row and their fifth in the last six league matches.

It has left the Red Devils in 14th position and seven points above Ipswich, who occupy the closest relegation slot to safety following their 2-0 win against Chelsea at Portman Road on Monday night.

It is the lowest position United have been in at the turn of the year since 1989, when they were 15th on New Year’s Eve. They finished that season in 13th position under Sir Alex Ferguson – and won the FA Cup.

Since Amorim’s appointment in November, United have collected just seven points from a possible 24, having won twice, drawn once and lost five times in eight Premier League matches.

The numbers do not make for happy reading for United fans.

Manchester United lost six games in all competitions in December, only the third month in their history in which they have lost so many and the first since