Juan Mata has made it clear that Manchester United can no longer afford not to score.

The Red Devils have lost their past three Premier League matches to Chelsea, Everton and West Bromwich Albion without hitting the back of the net and Mata believes it is not good enough, especially with fifth-placed Liverpool closing them down in the race for a Champions League berth.

"The weekend wasn't good for several reasons," the Spanish playmaker wrote in his weekly blog, 'One Hour Behind'.

"Obviously the 0-1 at Old Trafford is a tough score for us and we are forced to win as soon as possible: our rivals ahead keep adding points, and also the teams behind are getting closer.

"It's the tendency of the last few weeks: we have more ball possession than our opponent and create chances but we aren't able to take them.

"We must focus on being effective because we haven't scored in the last few games and we can't afford it any longer. On Saturday we tried until the end but their goalkeeper was brilliant."

Fourth-placed United are currently four points clear of Liverpool with three fixtures remaining in the 2014/15 season.