Damien Delaney has poured cold water on the idea that Manchester United might challenge Liverpool and Manchester City next season.
The mood at Old Trafford has been buoyant ever since the 2-0 win over Manchester City in their derby last weekend, with fans daring to dream that they might come close to what they once were.
But Delaney believes that United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is going to struggle to get them to that level and that the situation now is nothing like when the Norwegian was winning titles with United as a player.
"The bar was set extremely low with the first half of the season and he has improved on that no end," said Delaney.
"He has stemmed the bleeding and got them moving in the right direction. But they are still a million miles away from competing.
Solskjaer believes that United are four players away from being where they want to be - but Delaney disagrees.
"No, they are not. They are a counter-attacking team they have some players there that are not up to scratch.
"Winning the league now is not like winning the league when Manchester United were winning the league in the 1990s and 2000s, where 75 to 80 points was enough.
"That means that you could afford to drop points, carry a couple of players and have a couple of off days.
"The two teams that you have at the moment have changed that - it is a sprint from the get-go.
"I think [it will always be like that now.] I think that these guys can keep throwing money at it - Manchester City, certainly.
"Liverpool have put themselves in such a good position financially that they are almost starting from a clean slate.
"Manchester United still have so much money wasted - can they keep adding three, four or five players? Particularly when they are not necessarily going to have the ability to re-sell a lot of what they have.
"You might have some money back for Paul Pogba, but it is a sprint from the get-go."
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