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Erik ten Hag warned Manchester United “are still far away” from challenging the Premier League elite, despite beating Arsenal on Sunday to make it four wins in a row.
Two second-half goals from Marcus Rashford, after Bukayo Saka cancelled out debutant Antony’s opener, gave United a 3-1 victory over their old foes at Old Trafford.
The Red Devils have collected a maximum 12 points from their past four matches in their best run of form in the league since April 2021 under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
United have defeated Arsenal and Liverpool during a streak that has taken them from bottom of the division into fifth, but Ten Hag does not believe his side are title contenders.
“We have to get better if you want to win trophies in the end,” Ten Hag said.
“I understand fans that they dream and, of course, the standards of Man United has to be high, but we are all in the start of a process. We are still far away.
“We have to get doing things much better than we do now. And that is an investment. We have to go that way together every day, bringing that high standard to [the training ground at] Carrington.
“The players know we have to get better if you want to win trophies in the end. What we have to do is win every game.”
Ten Hag made a change to his starting line-up for the first time in four matches by bringing in new signing Antony in place of Anthony Elanga.
United had less possession (39.5 per cent) than Arsenal and a smaller expected goals (xG) return of 1.35 compared to 1.45 for their opponents.
The hosts managed to pick up another victory, however, and Ten Hag feels his side will only get stronger after spending more time together on the training ground.
“We have to invest in training and in meetings in order to get that in games,” the Dutchman said. “We are just at the start of a process.
“Casemiro has only just arrived; Antony has just got here; Cristiano Ronaldo missed pre-season, so we have to get that practice in.
“Once we do that we’ll be able to control games better. In the process we will dictate games. There’s a long way to go but we are going in the right direction.”
United’s improved form comes on the back of losing their opening two matches against Brighton and Hove Albion and Brentford, conceding six times and scoring just once.
They are only the third side in Premier League history to win four in a row after losing their opening two, after Tottenham in the 2011-12 season and Arsenal in 2018-19.
“From day one we have set high standards and values,” Ten Hag added of his side’s recent performances. “We work hard to create a winning culture.
“I’m not now thinking we are at that point, but we are on our way, heading in a good direction and have to keep this going.
“We’ll continue pushing the attitude and mentality by setting high standards every day. Good is not good enough – we have to do better and I think there’s room for improvement.”
