Manchester United continue to struggle under Ruben Amorim after Monday's 2-0 defeat to Newcastle left them seven points above the relegation zone.

The Reds were hoping for an immediate improvement after sacking Erik ten Hag in October, but the club's struggles have continued with four defeats in a row across all competitions. United have also lost three successive home league games for the first time since 1979.

United will also finish the year 14th in the table, their lowest position since 1989. And concern at Old Trafford is only likely to grow ahead of Sunday's daunting trip to league leaders Liverpool, where United have not won since 2016.

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There will now be genuine fears at M16 that the Reds could be sucked into an unthinkable relegation battle. Amorim himself has admitted that his team could be in a possible scrap at the foot of the table.

But could the Reds really be relegated? Writers at the Manchester Evening News have had their say below...

Isaac Seelochan

It's amazing to think that Manchester United could find themselves in a relegation battle. We've seen similar examples with big clubs across Europe, such as Borussia Dortmund under Jurgen Klopp in 2015, but nothing like this from a team that has been so expensively assembled.

Thankfully for the Reds, though, there should be three teams worse than them. Southampton look doomed already, while Ipswich and Leicester City probably do not have the quality to string a run of results to keep them up.

I'm sure many United fans would take a season in the Championship, though, if it meant they saw the back of several underperforming stars. Whilst Amorim is not totally blameless, most of these players have been poor under several managers, and the embarrassment of a relegation on their CV would be fitting.

Hannah Pinnock

The fact this is even a topic of debate is extremely damning for United and where they are as a club. They simply don’t have the players to match up with the manager’s philosophy and style of play, which means they just have to survive until the summer.

My gut feeling says relegation is impossible and they will find a way to surive. But, it’s worth noting this is an extremely interesting league season.

Besides Southampton, there aren't three nailed on teams destined to go down. Ipswich Town proved on Monday they can take points off the top teams, while Leicester City have looked promising in some moments.

It almost feels like the entire bottom half of the table are at risk of being dragged into a battle they do not want if they suffer a run of poor form given how few points separate them all. You can never say never, but United surely have enough to survive.

Bruna Reis

Man United being involved in a relegation battle is something completely unheard of. While United’s current squad of players might not fit into Ruben Amorim’s style of play, I believe they will have enough to survive until the end of the season if signings are made in the New Year.

It's clear most of the players are underperforming and while new signings would help, they might have to sell before buying - with little to no money available to spend in the January transfer window. If the club manage to get one or two signings through the door, that could make a massive difference.

With that said and apart from Southampton, whose fate appears to be obvious, Ipswich Town secured a huge win over Chelsea on Monday and Leicester City are capable of picking up important wins along the way. That should come as a warning to the Reds.

Amie Wilson

At the start of the season, even having this debate would have been unthinkable for fans of United and the people at the club. But football does have a way of bringing up some surprises, and here we are.

There’s no hiding from it, United were outclassed by Newcastle on Monday. Next they face the daunting prospect of facing Liverpool, who do look unbeatable at the moment.

Lose that game and it’s five losses in a row in all competitions - for any side that is going to damage confidence, which is crucial in the Premier League.

Looking towards the bottom of the table, Southampton look to be the most likely to go down, but it does feel like there will be a big fight to stay out of the remaining two positions. Ipswich showed they can pick up the odd surprise result, while Leicester’s performances look to be improving under Ruud van Nistelrooy.

My gut instinct says that United will have too much to avoid getting dragged into the dog fight. But history has punished clubs who probably thought they were too good to go down before, United must be aware of that.

Kieran King

Although Manchester United are in a real slump right now, I give them next to no chance of getting relegated.

I don't see how 20th-place Southampton - who are nine points adrift of safety - stay up from this position, while Leicester in 19th and Ipswich in 18th are the two that could drag United into a relegation dogfight. United sit in 14th on 22 points, eight above the Foxes (14) and seven ahead of the Tractor Boys (15). Wolves (16), Everton (17) and Crystal Palace (20) are the other three sides that lie behind Ruben Amorim's side at the moment.

At this rate, I think 34 points is going to be enough to stay in the Premier League this season. For United, that is just four more wins from their remaining 19 matches. Even despite how poor United have been, I cannot see how Amorim's men do not collect the required number of points to survive. Putting them in that conversation does feel weird, but United are not going down and I think they will end up finishing 10th.

Matty Hewitt

I would be left absolutely shocked if Manchester United were relegated this season. Fortunately for them, I think there's worse teams in the league, with several currently below them in the table.

But, the fact that it's even a discussion shows how far the club have fallen since the great Sir Alex Ferguson. Had you told me United would be in this mess back then, I would have laughed in your face.

Of course, the Reds are completely different club now compared to back then, just as football itself has moved on. I think it's more realistic they finish in the bottom half, just as Chelsea did a few years back in 2022/23.

The example of the London club is one that United can take confidence from. While things may be pretty rough at the moment, if they get it right they could be back competing at the top end of the Premier League in no time.

Admittedly, that's tough to see at current moment in time and with no January signings on the horizon, it's difficult to see how Amorim turns the current crisis around.