Sky Sports pundit Paul Merson believes Manchester United "have no chance" of winning the Premier League this season.
United lost 1-0 at home to Aston Villa on Saturday, their first league defeat of the campaign. It completed a miserable week for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side after they also lost by the same score line to West Ham in the Carabao Cup.
Former Arsenal midfielder Merson is adamant the Red Devils would be legitimate title contenders if they had a proven winner in charge.
"This is the way I look at it - if Thomas Tuchel, Jurgen Klopp or Pep Guardiola were at Man Utd, they would have every single chance of winning the Premier League," he told Sky Sports.
“But I've said from day one they have no chance of winning the Premier League."
Merson also questioned Solskjaer’s decision to play with two holding midfielders against Villa and the balance of United’s attack after re-signing Cristiano Ronaldo.
He added: "There is no need at Old Trafford to be playing two holding midfielders against Villa.
"Take the game to Villa straight away, if I'm them, that is telling me they are worried about us.
"I can understand if they were playing City, or Chelsea, but Villa are a mid-table team and you are playing two holding midfield players.
"The balance is all wrong and I said when Cristiano Ronaldo came he would not be the same player, and did Ole Gunnar Solskjaer really need him?
"They did everything to sign Jadon Sancho and three games in, he is not playing - would he have played if Ronaldo was not there? So this is the problem and Marcus Rashford is still to come back from injury."
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