Man United: Cristiano Ronaldo gives a thumbs up as he leads glum-faced arrivals at Carrington

Manchester United‘s players cut glum figures as they turned up at Carrington to start another week of scrutiny amid the crisis at the club.

The Red Devils sit bottom of the Premier League table following chastening defeats by Brighton at Old Trafford and Brentford in west London, making Erik ten Hag the first United manager in 101 years to have lost his first two league games in charge.

Their issues on the pitch have been played out among a backdrop of yet more frustration in the transfer market, with United having signed just three players this summer and having failed to sell those deemed surplus to requirements.

Matters do not get any easier for ten Hag’s men with Liverpool up next, and it appears the players realise the size of the challenge in front of them after they were seen driving into Carrington with expressionless faces.

Cristiano Ronaldo – whose future remains undecided after he expressed his desire to leave for a Champions League club earlier this summer – led the list of United stars making their way in on Tuesday morning, and did manage to give a thumbs up.

Centre-backs Harry Maguire and Lisandro Martinez – who faced plenty of criticism playing at the heart of defence despite his height – were also straight faced as they arrived, with the Argentine wearing a pair of trendy glasses.

David De Gea – whose errors virtually handed Brentford their first two goals on Saturday – and Marcus Rashford – another player heavily criticised for his lack of involvement in west London – were also snapped coming in to work.

With only injured players – including Anthony Martial – coming into Carrington on Monday, it represents the first time fit and available first-team stars have trained since they were hauled in for extra training on Sunday in the wake of their horror show 4-0 defeat.

After calling the performance ‘rubbish’, furious United boss ten Hag cancelled a planned day off and ordered the players to report to the club’s Carrington training base.

Ten Hag punished his team for running a total of eight-and-a-half miles less than Brentford by making them cover the same distance on Sunday in temperatures of over 30 degrees.  

The Dutchman decided to crack down on his under-achieving stars. He arrived early on Sunday before leading an inquest into the latest humiliation.

But matters are not going much better in the transfer market in a bid to strengthen the squad before the window slams shut. 

Sportsmail understands United could miss out on the signing of Matheus Cunha and Sasa Kalajdzic this summer despite showing interest in the pair earlier this week. 

Cunha only joined Atletico Madrid last summer after putting pen to paper on a five-year deal with the LaLiga giants. While Kalajdzic has been excelling in the Bundesliga for VfB Stuttgart. 

Ten Hag registered an interest in the signing the pair and began negotiations with their agents earlier this week. However, their representatives have hinted a deal may not happen this summer. 

The Red Devils have also been chasing Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong this summer but a deal for the 25-year-old is unlikely to take place.  

However, de Jong was reluctant to join the Red Devils because of the lack of Champions League football this season and it now appears that United’s offer for the midfielder has expired.

Ten Hag meanwhile has six days to pick his players up to face a Liverpool team that beat United by an aggregate score of 9-0 home and away last season.