Sir Jim Ratcliffe's Manchester United plan might be dictated in 15 decisive days

Manchester United moved to within eight points of the top four with a hard-fought 2-0 triumph over Everton at Old Trafford on Saturday.

First half penalties from Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford sealed a much-needed three points for the Reds, who will put their top four assault to one side this weekend and focus on their FA Cup quarter-final showdown with Liverpool instead. The FA Cup represents United's last hope of winning a trophy this season, meaning it could be a defining game in shaping Erik ten Hag's future.

The Dutchman is under mounting pressure at Old Trafford amid the uncertainty that surrounds their top four hopes. Despite reducing the gap to the final Champions League berth on Saturday, they are still playing catch-up.

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Tottenham beat Aston Villa, who are currently fourth, 4-0 on Sunday to move to within two points of Unai Emery's men in pursuit of the final guaranteed Champions League spot. Spurs are currently six points ahead of United in the standings.

It means, as we head towards the business end of the season, United are very much at the back of the race to secure the goal they so desperately crave. Their 10 remaining fixtures feature a wide variety of challenges, ranging from home games against title challengers Liverpool and Arsenal to clashes with relegation-threatened Burnley and Sheffield United.

Tottenham and Villa face similar fixture difficulty levels. Spurs are still to face Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City. The Londoners have 11 games left in comparison to United's and Villa's tallies of 10. Their game in hand is against London rivals