Manchester United’s woes continue today at Old Trafford, with the hosts already falling behind before five minutes were up. Despite Stoke having just four goals on the season before their visit to Manchester, the visitors have somehow managed to get on the scoreboard.
Stoke left back Erik Pieters took the ball up the left side before sending in a cross. Jonny Evans, attempting to divert the danger, sent the ball straight in to Peter Crouch. The ball then bounced off the big forward, past David De Gea and into the back of the net.
The error is Evans’, but the United defense continues to be in shambles. Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand remain injured, and the midfield remains too ineffective to destroy opposition attacks. Should the reigning champions want to lift themselves into the top four -- reaching the title seems an insurmountable challenge -- David Moyes must change his game plan, and soon.
Of course, we can’t forget that Craig Gardner put Sunderland ahead in the fifth minute just a few weeks ago. Perhaps Moyes should put on Adnan Januzaj right now, to get United back in this match?