Arsene Wenger claims Man Utd have "no hope" with scathing Man City assessment

30 October 2023 , 09:15

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Former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger (Image: beINSPORTS_EN/Twitter)

Arsene Wenger has laid into Manchester United after they lost 3-0 to rivals Manchester City, claiming they have "no hope" and have "lost confidence, quality and even spirit".

City outclassed United at Old Trafford on Sunday, with a brace from Erling Haaland and a late strike from Phil Foden earning Pep Guardiola's side all three points. The defeat ends a run of three consecutive victories in all competitions and leaves Erik ten Hag's men eighth in the league.

And Wenger believes there is a lack of "individual quality" in United's squad, highlighting their struggles playing out from the back and suggesting that made "the whole team uncertain and lack confidence".

The former Arsenal boss said on beIN Sports: "I would say the gulf between the two teams became bigger and bigger as the game went on. In the end, for such a big club you felt sorry for Man United because there's no hope there in the team.

"I don't see where they can improve, basically. This team has lost confidence, quality and even spirit today. I would say it was not a great fighting spirit from Man United, on top of that.

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"I believe where Man United suffers a lot, first of all is about the quality, the individual quality of the players. And I felt today they were very poor to build the game up from the back. They gave the ball so many times to the goalkeeper when they had possibilities to play forward.

"I would say it started there. Then you make the whole team uncertain and lack confidence because when you feel the fear is behind, they do not want the ball." Wenger also stated that United were "not compact enough" which meant they struggled to win the ball back against City.

Manchester United were beaten 3-0 by rivals Manchester City (Getty Images)

"I would say the second part of their big problem today was the distances between the striker and the defenders was huge," he added. "There were situations where the strikers were closing down, trying to pressure, and the defenders were 20 metres behind the halfway line.

"You cannot win the ball back against a team like Man City when the distances are too big. The team was not compact enough, after that the difference of individual quality. If you tell me tonight how many players who get in the first XI of Man City?

"For me that sums it up. Usually, in a big game or a big derby you'd say I would take three or four from here and there. That sums up the problem of Man United, basically."

Matthew Cooper