Manchester United defender Chris Smalling has insisted that a place in the top four is a must for the club this season.
United finished 22 points off Premier League winners Manchester City last season and failed to qualify for the Champions League or Europa League.
However, Louis van Gaal’s arrival at the club has seen several changes and a hard fought victory over Arsenal on Sunday has seen United become buoyed about their resurgence under the Dutch boss.
The win at the Emirates stadium lifted United in to the top four for the first time this season and young English central defender Smalling insists that the club must secure a top four finish.
“We showed a lot of character, we did not play that well and we will go through the video to see what we could have done better, but it will be on the back of having taken three points,” he told reporters.
“Given the manager and the players we have got, we should be playing better than we are, with more points.
“We have to take each game as it comes, that is our first away win. We know we have two home games coming up, and we need six points, then we can have a look at where we are in the table. We need to win our games.
“The manager has said we worked hard and we need to make sure we take maximum points from our next two home games, then we can look at it from there. The top four is always a minimum for this club.”