MANCHESTER: Manchester United manager Eric ten Hag has said his side cannot be considered Premier League title contenders so far in this season, but his confidence in the team was boosted by yet another win over Bournemouth on Tuesday. Goals from Casemiro, Luke Shaw and Marcus Rashford at Old Trafford lifted United to a fourth straight win in championship, reducing the gap to leaders Arsenal to nine points. United had their worst ever point total in Premier League last season and have not won the top-flight title since 2013, when Alex Ferguson was at the helm of the team. Ten Hag said in response to a question about United’s presence in the title race: “This is a big step.. I don’t think United are among the title contenders, but my confidence in the team is growing and that’s a good sign. We must be 100% committed in every match. If we keep this philosophy it is possible (to fight for the title).” He added: “We have a lot of work ahead of us. It’s still January and we’re not even halfway through the season yet. The next game came quickly against Everton, so we’ll enjoy 24 hours before focusing on the next battle.” United have won four successive Premier League home games without conceding, for the first time since a run of six games between May and October 2017. Didn’t concede a goal in home in championship since a 3-1 win against Arsenal in September. Goalkeeper David De Gea made several good saves to keep another clean sheet on Tuesday, earning particular praise from Ten Hag. The coach added: “We remain strong in defense only if we do our job and do 100% of what is required in every situation. (De Gea) played an excellent match. He made some great saves. De Gea is one of the reasons we stayed in away game without conceding goals in more than one occasion. I remember his massive save against West Ham, for example. In general, we don’t concede many chances on our goals.
