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7 months ago
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Manchester United fans may feel as though Europe is slipping away from the once more - in a sight they have become far too accustomed to in the last few years.
Erik Ten Hag's side currently sit sixth in the league, 11 points adrift from both fourth-placed Tottenham and fifth-placed Aston Villa.
The task to of trying to catch up to their competition is becoming more and more of an uphill battle.
United have failed to win any of their last three league games and with seven games left to play a top-four finish is fading into the distance.
Despite this, they could still miraculously qualify for the Champions League, even if the Red Devils finish sixth thanks to a UEFA rule change.
Despite sitting in sixth and being 11 points adrift from fourth-place Tottenham, United can still qualify for the Champions League even if they finish in sixth
There is still hope for Man United to make the Champions League thanks to a new rule change made by UEFA in correlation with the expansion of the competition
Thanks to a new rule introduced by UEFA this year, England are poised to receive an additional spot in next year's Champions League.
Due to the expansion of the Champions League two leagues will earn an extra place in Europe's top club competition.
The new rule change states that the two leagues with the best UEFA co-efficient will earn an extra slot in the competiton.
As it stands England and Italy are set to earn the two spots.
This means that the team that finishes fifth in the Premier League is set to qualify for the Champions League - but this will likely benefit either Tottenham or Aston Villa.
However, there is still a narrow chance that Man United could qualify for the Champions League, even if they miss out on fifth and finish sixth.
In order for this to happen though, a lot has to go their way. Here is how the rest of the season would have to unfold.
Erik Ten Hag will be looking closely at West Ham's performances over the coming weeks as a Europa League win and fifth-place League finish would help United in their bid for Champions League football
United's Champions League fate lies largely in the hands of former manager David Moyes and his current side West Ham.
If the Hammers manage to clinch fifth place and also win the Europa League, with United finishing sixth, Ten Hags men would be poised to play in the Champions League next season.
David Moyes' side currently sit 12 points behind fifth-place Villa and are one point behind United in seventh.
The Hammers face no easy task if they are to win the Europa League and finish in fifth, although if they were to complete the feat, it would free up another Champions League spot for an English club.
If West Ham manage to win the Europa League and finish fifth in the League, a Champions League spot would open up for United if they finished behind them in sixth
West Ham completing both tasks would be a big ask as their next opponents in the Europa League Bayer Leverkusen are unbeaten in all competitions this year
As the additional place only applies to a domestic league finish and it does not account for Champions league or Europa League winners.
This means that theoretically, if the winners of both the Champions League and Europa League are English clubs that end the season outside of the top four in the Premier League, a seventh place finish for United would be enough to see them qualify for next year's European tournament.
However this won't be possible this season as Manchester City and Arsenal, the two remaining teams in the Champions League are all but guaranteed a top four spot.
That would leave Ten Hag's side hoping West Ham can leapfrog both themselves and either Aston Villa or Tottenham.
Even if David Moyes' side pulled off that feat, they still have a mountaint to climb in the Europa League as they face a Bayer Leverkusen side undefeated in the Bundesliga this season as they march towards the title.
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