Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has spent the majority of the season in apparent crisis.
Pep Guardiola, meanwhile, spoke this week of his confidence that Manchester City would win an unprecedented fourth Premier League title in a row.
How quickly fortunes can change in soccer. Just three points now separate the rivals after United beat Chelsea 2-1 and the defending champions lost 1-0 at Aston Villa on Wednesday to extend their winless run in the league to four games.
“We are on a journey. We keep calm… We are going in the right direction,” Ten Hag said after he put a difficult few day behind him with a morale-boosting win.
The Dutch coach had gone into the game on the back of a 10th defeat of the season at Newcastle over the weekend and reports of player unrest in the locker room.
“(We) Don’t get distracted from criticism around us, but we are very critical of ourselves,” he said. “We know we are not satisfied and happy. We always want to do things better.’
Two goals from Scott McTominay secured the win and moved United up to sixth — three points off fourth-placed City.
Ten Hag will likely face much greater tests than a Chelsea team that is still struggling from the hangover of a chaotic first season under the ownership of Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital. Not least against Bayern Munich next week, with a place in the Champions League knockout stage hanging by a thread.
