Marouane Fellaini Says Underdogs Manchester United Can Challenge for EPL Crown
Manchester United midfielder Marouane Fellainiย insists the club can defy the odds and strip bitter rivals Manchester City of their Premier League crown this season.
The Red Devils were beaten to last season's title by 19 points and have already lost twice in four games this term. They are as long as 40-1 to win the title this time around, per Oddschecker. However, Fellaini has backed his team to challenge for the top prize, per ESPN FC's Rob Dawson:
"We have the quality, that's for sure. The season is long. It's the beginning of the season. The last two years we started very well. This season, a bit less, but the season is long so let's keep going.
"The next game is more important than this one so let's go with the national teams and come back very strong. In the Premier League everything is possible so let's see. Like I said, the next game is more important than this one."
Defeats to Tottenham Hotspur and Brighton & Hove Albion in successive games made this the club's worst start to a season in 26 years. BBC Sport'sย Simon Stoneย wrote that a loss at Burnley on Sunday would have made it their worst since 1986.
The Red Devils responded with a rousing 2-0 victory despite finishing the match with 10 men after Marcus Rashford received the first red card of his career. What's more, WhoScored.com pointed out all is not lost, as United showed a similar pattern of results in 1992-93, when they won the title:
Jose Mourinho's men moved back into the Premier League's top half following victory at Turf Moor and sit 10th after four games, already four points behind titleholders City and six points off the table's summit.
The team's first testย after the international breakย is a trip to face Watford, one of three teams that have yet to drop a point this term. They came from behind to beat Spurs 2-1 on Sunday.
The fixture at Vicarage Road has become a more pressurised encounter than it seemed at the start of the season, and Mourinho would win a significant battle if he managed to halt the Hornets' unbeaten run.
Now in his third season at Old Trafford, Mourinho is fighting to disprove the curse that's often seen him leave clubs at this stage in the past. City counterpart Pep Guardiola has offered his support, asย Omnisport shared:
Fellaini is hoping for a second successive start at Watford after having a positive impact against Burnley, with the Belgium international seeking his first Premier League crown after five seasons at the club.
The early results suggest United will again be off the pace of their Premier League peers in the title race, but ex-Red Devil Rio Ferdinand knows the fight it takes over the course of a season and told BT Sport nothing is guaranteed:
The bookmakers don't appear to believe a comeback is on the cards, but belief like that shown by Fellaini is what's needed.
