Roy Keane’s bold Manchester United prediction before Gary Neville warned him

Roy Keane has predicted that Manchester United could still qualify for the Champions League next season following their 3-0 win over West Ham on Sunday.

Rasmus Højlund‘s outstanding goal and two additional strikes by Alejandro Garnacho propelled Manchester United to victory over West Ham in the Premier League on a lively Sunday afternoon at Old Trafford.

Despite several false starts earlier in the season, indicating the team’s struggle to reverse poor results, it appears that Erik ten Hag‘s side is now finding their rhythm, evidenced by scoring 11 goals in their last three matches.

Read More: Roy Keane and Gary Neville agree on Man United star after West Ham win

Speaking to Sky Sports after the game, former United captain Roy Keane believes that United could still qualify for the Champions League.

“I still believe they can get fifth. They’re still in the FA Cup,” he said. “I think they’ve got one or two important players back, the balance of the team is better.

“More importantly, they’re starting to score goals again. Yes, they’re obviously still conceding and giving away some sloppy goals.

“But the fact attacking players are scoring goals will be a big boost to them. They look like they’re back in form now from that point of view.”

However, shortly after this, Keane was warned by his former teammate Gary Neville that although optimism surrounding Champions League qualification is returning, the side needs to stop conceding so many goals.

“I think so [optimism is returning] because the players are back,” Neville added.

“They’re conceding goals – Newport scored two, Wolves scored three – so that’s something that needs to be dealt with, but I think generally the football is starting to look better.”

For Manchester United to qualify for the Champions League in fifth place, it would be through the “European Performance Spots” – this is where two of the nations who had the best collective performances from their clubs in the previous season’s European competitions will be granted an extra space each.

This, of course, is not yet confirmed, and with Newcastle and United both crashing out of Europe in the group stages, the club would have to rely on others still in Europe, such as Manchester City, to perform well in the competition.