Peter Schmeichel makes bold claim about where United will finish in the PL this season

Manchester United remain third in the Premier League following their 3-1 win over Aston Villa on Sunday, 15 March, at Old Trafford. Goals from Casemiro, Matheus Cunha and Benjamin Sesko secured all three points for the Red Devils, who are now three points clear of the Villans in fourth place with eight games left in the season. United have rediscovered their old swagger following the arrival of caretaker manager Michael Carrick, who replaced former head coach Ruben Amorim at the Theatre of Dreams in January. In the nine games under the English manager, the Red Devils have registered seven wins and one loss. United are targeting a top-four finish as they look to return to the Champions League next season. Carrick’s team are also six points ahead of Chelsea in sixth, with a fifth-place finish likely to be enough to secure qualification for the premier European club competition. Meanwhile, this weekend’s win has also taken United within seven points of Manchester City in second place in the league table. Former United goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel reckons the Red Devils can pip their bitter rivals to second place in the Premier League. United on better form than City Speaking on Viaplay, as cited by Metro, Schmeichel argued that United are in a better run of form compared to City. He said: “It’s been painful. We’ve had two periods of 27 and 26 years, hopefully we’re not going to wait that long [for the title]. Manchester United have come from not playing very well, not winning games, and then all of sudden, playing better and having some really good games, but getting some points on the board.” “I’m looking and I’m serious, I think we can catch Man City. I think we can do that. Our form is much better, our winning form is much better. If you put all of that confidence into the squad, give Michael Carrick the job. Let him pick the players that he wants and I don’t think it necessarily is such a big gap to close. We could be talking one year, two year, three years before they’re competitive.” While United still have to face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge and Liverpool at home in the league before the end of the season, they are not involved in other competitions. The Red Devils’ relaxed fixture list could work to their favour as they enter the business end of the season. In contrast, City have to face Chelsea, Arsenal, and Aston Villa in the league, while they also have to prepare for the EFL Cup final against the Gunners and an FA Cup quarter-final against Liverpool. They next face Real Madrid in the Champions League Round of 16 second leg later this week, so one cannot entirely rule out fatigue creeping in. Meanwhile, Carrick started his caretaker tenure with a stunning 2-0 win over the Cityzens at Old Trafford in January. The Englishman has been put in charge until the end of this campaign, but Schmeichel is convinced that he is the right man for the permanent position. Michael Carrick Managerial Career Stats TeamFromToGames PlayedGames WonGames DrawnGames LostWin % Manchester United (caretaker)21 November 20212 December 2021321066.7 Middlesbrough24 October 20224 June 202513663244946.3 Manchester United13 January 2026Present971177.8 Total–14872265048.6 Source: Wikipedia. Carrick for permanent job? The former Danish goalkeeper went on to urge United to make Carrick’s stay permanent. He said: “We’ve tried everything, we’ve tried all the big names, we’ve tried all the guys with the clever systems. We’ve tried all of that! Keep it simple. He knows the club and that would be simple for the players.” “At the moment, I’d say there are about 11 players that probably have a really long future at the club so there’s also a really, really big job. We don’t know how good Michael Carrick is at that but what he’s done fantastically well is to take those players that he’s had available and made them play good football.” Final Thoughts United return to action on Friday, 20 March, when they travel to the Vitality Stadium to face 10th-place Bournemouth in the league. Despite their recent rise, the Red Devils cannot afford to become complacent, and must ensure the reins of the top-four race remain firmly in their hands. The Peoples Person has been one of the world’s leading Man United news sites for over a decade. Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social Deepungsu Pandit Deepungsu has been a Manchester United fan since 2000. In his playing days, he was an attacking midfielder with a proclivity for the back heel. Right now, however, he prefers to operate as a regista. Deepungsu has been writing about the Red Devils, Football, and other things since 2009. He has worked for over seven years with Sportskeeda, writing football reviews, opinions and news articles. Deepungsu also maintains a blog, The Thinking Me, where he writes about life and things that interest him. His favourite Manchester United player is Paul Scholes.