Manchester United ended 2023 with a hugely disappointing performance and result at Nottingham Forest in the Premier League.
The 2-1 defeat was the first time Manchester United have lost to Nottingham Forest in the Premier League for 29 years and it was another miserable record Erik ten Hag did not want on his resume.
Defeat at The City Ground.#MUFC || #NFOMUN— Manchester United (@ManUtd) December 30, 2023
Defeat at The City Ground.#MUFC || #NFOMUN
The defeat at the City Ground leaves Manchester United 7th in the Premier League on 31 points, with the possibility they could drop to 9th place if results go against them before they play again in the league.
That is simply not good enough for Manchester United and with Sir Jim Ratcliffe's 25% purchase of the club, could we be about to see some substantial changes at Old Trafford in the New Year?
Sir Dave Brailsford, who is going to have a major say in the football side of the operation at Manchester United, was watching on as they team slumped to the 2-1 defeat at Nottingham Forest and will not have been impressed by what he saw on the pitch.
It was a woeful performance by Manchester United, who looked disjointed for much of the game and were presented their goal by an error in the Nottingham Forest defence.
Manchester United have already tasted defeat 14 times this season, which is the highest number of losses suffered by the club before the end of the year since 1930/31.
The Red Devils have lost 4 times in December and Ten Hag will not be looking forward to his meeting with Brailsford.
One of the key topics for discussion will be transfers and this is where Manchester United have failed in recent times.
Antony has yet to score a Premier League goal or register an assist this season despite playing 16 times.
Rasmus Højlund has scored 1 Premier League goals in 15 appearances, Jadon Sancho is currently out of favour, Mason Mount has been injured but made no impact in his 8 league appearances to date, Donny van de Beek has clearly been deemed not good enough for the first team and new goalkeeper, André Onana, has conceded 27 goals in 20 Premier League fixtures.
Manchester United have scored 22 goals in 20 Premier League matches this season.
Only Burnley and Sheffield United have scored fewer goals in the Premier League and they occupy the bottom two places in the division.
That tells you everything you need to know about the problems facing Manchester United and Ten Hag in 2024.
Will the new investors be willing to back Ten Hag in the January transfer window or will they look back at recent signings and think they need to move in a different direction?