Rio Ferdinand has said that Manchester United should aim to finish between sixth and eighth in the Premier League next season.
This is coming after MUFC’s dismal performance in the 2024/25 season, which saw the club finish 15th in the Premier League, their lowest finish in the history of the competition.
Speaking during an interview with Mirror Sport, Ferdinand shared that despite last season’s failures, MUFC should be aiming for no less than eighth place in the next campaign.
According to him, if top six is achievable for Ruben Amorim and his players, that would be great, but anything below the top eight in the EPL would raise more questions about the future of the club.
Rio maintained that Manchester United cannot afford another terrible season because that would only tarnish the image of what was once a great footballing institution, further.
“I think if you finish 15th this year, United have got to be looking to finish in at least the top eight, top six.
I don’t think you should be looking outside of that. And that’s from someone who only thought about winning the league at United. So it’s a big come-down in that sense,” he said.
Hearing a MUFC legend talk about mid-table finishes as a realistic goal for the club reflects how low the red half of Manchester has sunk in recent years.
It was not long ago that club co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe was planning for an EPL title win by 2028, a goal that looks increasingly unlikely at this stage.
Without quality reinforcements to the squad this summer, Ferdinand’s realistic goal of finishing in the top 8 might even begin to appear unrealistic after the first set of matches.
