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Time For Arsenal To Turn To Mr Charisma

So here we are again. It's late November, Arsenal are in crisis and that sound you can hear is Hewlett-Packards furiously printing 'Wenger Out' on A4 sheet after A4 sheet. Perhaps the chap who threw red wine at the Man United bench even bothers to laminate. This is what football reduces us to: middle-aged men spending their short winter evenings carefully conveying their frustration in glorious Comic Sans. No you can't finish your school project, Thierry. Daddy's got some very important work to do.

It does seem that Arsenal are crawling towards a crossroads at which point Arsene Wenger may very politely be begged to move upstairs, or leave, or just stop making the same exasperating mistakes year after year. Eventually the time will come when Ivan Gazidis must pluck up the courage to grab a quick word. Surely it has to.

Arsenal have been a living fossil for the past decade, perfectly captured by the last week which brought a soul-crushingly predictable defeat to United and news of Abou Diaby's inclusion in the Champions League squad ahead of Olivier Giroud. Forget the prognosis of the striker's ankle injury, presuming that Diaby is going to be fitter than any other human at any given time is the sort of farcical show of faith that landed the club in this mess. It's admirable that Wenger affords that level of trust, but it's also death by a thousand cuts.

Despite Alisher Usmanov's tasty comments on Monday, Arsenal are likely to stick with the man they handed a new three-year contract back in the summer when he was sowing seeds of sadness by failing to address the defensive shortage and lack of steel in midfield. We're sure Wenger had a long list of star names he thought about buying, but we'll hear all about that in four or five years' time.

There is a tempting alternative to persisting with Wenger and his ouroboros, however, which appears to be considered with all the solemnity of the nuclear option at the Emirates. No, not Owen Coyle. Never Owen Coyle, no-one drops nukes on themselves. To crack open the DNA of a fossil, you need a maverick, a man ostracised by science, football's very own John Hammond. You need Jürgen Klopp.

One of the greatest things about the game is its tendency to throw up 'sliding doors' moments. On Wednesday, Arsenal and Klopp will meet at the Emirates. Perhaps they'll brush hands, perhaps Klopp will get all giggly and say something Arsenal finds adorable. Who knows? But there has been no better opportunity for the two to get romantically entwined.

On the previous occasions Klopp has managed against Arsenal, his commitment to Dortmund has been unyielding. But then Bayern scorched the earth, Dortmund stopped winning, relegation became an unexpected yet suddenly very real possibility and Klopp said this: "I think it (England) is the only country where I should work, because it's the only country I know the language a little bit and I need the language for my work. If somebody will call me, then we will talk about it."

That's right, he actually said it. For once it isn't conjecture or something conjured up by superbrilliantfootierumours.net (who also do a great trade in Vines and amusing tweets you've already read on Twitter), Jürgen Klopp genuinely said those words, issuing a pretty unequivocal come-and-get-me plea to the Premier League.

Of course, Arsenal may have concerns over Dortmund's current Bundesliga form, but it would be deliberately obtuse to ignore Klopp's success over the past six seasons. Despite Bayern dwarfing Dortmund's spending power, Klopp has led the club to two Bundesliga crowns, something called the DFB-Pokal, two DFL Supercups and the Champions League final, where they were yet again kicked in the balls by Bayern. And all this was achieved with a brand of enthralling flowing football that used to be Arsenal's hallmark.

With Liverpool also thought to be monitoring his situation, this may be Arsenal's only chance to capture theoretically the ideal replacement for Wenger. This isn't United following Sir Alex Ferguson with David Moyes; Klopp possesses the power of personality to walk into the Emirates as Wenger did Highbury in 1996, embrace the club's culture, and yet be strong enough to impose his own ideas. Ideas that have been successful elsewhere at the highest level.

In truth, this should no longer be the big decision that has been billed. If Gazidis has any sense, he'll throw a net over Klopp on Wednesday night and get him to dot the Us there and then. If Arsenal lose again, it will be difficult to stem the tide of anti-Wenger sentiment. Change is needed and, after making himself available, Klopp is the man to bring it.

Matt Stanger

Chelsea v Burnley

Nestled between the abandoned cotton mills and rows of tightly packed terraces in this small pocket of East Lancashire, Chelsea taught Burnley a harsh lesson in what to expect on their return to the Premier League.

“We give the players a lot of education. I'm not a nightclub bouncer, I just look like one,” said Sean Dyche before the game, but none of his teachings can match the manner of Chelsea’s 3-1 victory for thoroughness.

It started so well for Burnley when Scott Arfield rifled them into the lead in the 14th minute. As his team-mates stepped out from a corner, John Terry was caught daydreaming about whatever John Terry daydreams about, allowing Matt Taylor to break clear and cross for Arfield to score. It was a sweet strike from a player who epitomises Dyche’s school of hard knocks, having been released by Huddersfield in the summer of 2013 before winning promotion with the Clarets 12 months later.

But from that moment it was all Chelsea, as the Blues answered Mourinho’s demand that they prove their credentials as title challengers. “We have the squad that we want to have,” he said last week. “It is a squad for tomorrow, for next season and also a squad with big possibilities for the next five or ten years.” Most managers are happy to see their team mount one assault on the championship, but this is a league Mourinho has won on two previous occasions. Now he’s aiming for domination.

Mourinho will feel that opportunity knocks, too, with the Premier League experiencing its greatest ever period of uncertainty following Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement. The top four is becoming a more changeable beast and, although Manchester City stole United’s perch last season, Chelsea have laid the foundations to try and make top spot their own for the foreseeable future. Watching the speed and intelligence of their play on Monday, it’s no wonder they have been installed as early favourites for the title in Mourinho’s second season in charge.

Everything seems to accelerate in Mourinho’s second seasons. At Internazionale he led the club to a historic Treble in 2010 and two years later he ended Barcelona’s possession of La Liga’s crown with Real Madrid. And now, in the second year of his second spell at Chelsea, he is confident his team can escape its flaws of the previous campaign, which saw them fail in several tests similar to the one posed by Burnley. A year older, a year wiser and with four solid signings completed in record time, this is a side to fear in 2014/15.

A brilliant team performance reinforced that argument at Turf Moor, but it was the telling contributions of several individuals that will particularly please Mourinho. Cesc Fabregas was superb throughout, pulling strings and playing with a point to prove after his unexpected difficulties at Barcelona, while Diego Costa - with both names on his shirt, just in case you forget - led the line like the Didier Drogba of old, bullying Burnley’s defence and continuing to wreak havoc as he did in Spain for Atletico Madrid.

It was Andre Schurrle, however, who really toasted Chelsea’s transition under Mourinho. Often on the periphery of the first XI last season, here he was central to the Blues’ constant attacking threat and persistent targeting of Burnley left-back Ben Mee. In the opening stages, Schurrle linked intuitively with Oscar - the two clearly back on speaking terms after that night in Belo Horizonte - before breaking the hosts’ off-side trap and driving a low cross that was cleared for a corner. It was a sign of things to come, but Burnley failed to heed the warning.

After Costa mopped up some sloppy defending to score his first goal in England and Chelsea’s equaliser, Schurrle soon spotted another gap to exploit on the right, darting in to connect with Fabregas’s sublime pass and finish first time. He may have departed for Brazil with his club role uncertain, but the German has returned a World Cup winner ready to play a leading part in Chelsea’s season.

Branislav Ivanovic ensured the points were safe before half time and, although the Ginger Mourinho pushed his team forward after the break, they were kept at arm’s length by one of the toughest opponents they will face this season. “We are, perhaps, the biggest underdogs in the history of the league,” wrote Dyche in his programme notes. “But that is something to relish, not fear.”

After watching a Chelsea side already displaying an ominous swagger, you have the feeling this is a campaign Mourinho is also relishing.

Rodgers' Selection v Real Madrid

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti wasn't the only person to raise an eyebrow at Liverpool's starting line-up on Tuesday evening as Brendan Rodgers named a second-string side for the tough trip to Real Madrid.

Steven Gerrard was left on the bench along with Raheem Sterling, Jordan Henderson and summer signings Dejan Lovren and Mario Balotelli. This wasn't one eye on Saturday's clash with Chelsea, Rodgers was struck with tunnel vision.

There is certainly logic to the manager's gamble. After watching a full strength team, excluding Daniel Sturridge, be comprehensively outclassed in a 3-0 defeat at Anfield two weeks ago the chances of victory, or even a draw, were always slim. And perhaps the 1-0 defeat will turn out to be inconsequential - surely Real will gain maximum points against Basel and Ludogorets in their final two group matches, leaving the other three teams in a dogfight for second place.

But it is still difficult to shake the feeling that Rodgers made an error of judgement, despite Liverpool's reserves giving a good account of themselves. "Every single game at this level is massive when you're Liverpool manager," he said before the match. "If it's a defining game for me then great." Despite his optimism, he may not be so happy about the definition many have in mind.

There is a thin line between bravery and folly in football, and Rodgers left himself open to interpretation with his bold call on Tuesday. Were the game not driven by emotion, then his logic would prevail. But the manager's thought process is likely to fall on deaf ears when explained to the Liverpool fans who made an expensive journey to cheer on a League Cup XI. They paid to see the stars, but were left watching the best efforts of the 'B' team.

The reaction of the supporters is not the only thing Rodgers has to worry about. After their impressive efforts last season to help the club return to the Champions League for the first time in five years, the likes of Gerrard, Sterling, Henderson and Glen Johnson would expect to enjoy the fruits of their labour. Instead, they were left to watch Fabio Borini, who spent last year at Sunderland, and a host of youngsters savour the occasion. After playing 120 minutes against Middlesbrough in September, it must have been a bitter pill for Sterling to swallow.

The 19-year-old was introduced to loud cheers from the travelling support in the second half, along with Gerrard, but it was too late to reverse Rodgers' decision. The manager was pleased with a positive performance at full time but, perhaps rather perversely, the nature of Liverpool's narrow 1-0 defeat may have piled on more pressure - just what could the Reds have achieved against a somewhat out-of-sorts Real Madrid had Sterling and Co been on the pitch from the start?

In truth, whether Rodgers' gamble is actually meaningful or not doesn't really matter. As is often the case in football, how it is perceived will decide if the manager escapes with his reputation intact or is forever accused of forfeiting Liverpool's biggest game of the season. Even if it the result proves to be inconsequential, there are some who will still remember Rodgers as the man who picked a reserve team against Real Madrid.

While Rodgers deserves some credit for his gutsy selection, there is something strange about putting in all that effort to qualify, and then choosing not to enjoy the moment when it comes for fear of not reaching it again next year. Instead of resting his star players in Spain, a better break for Liverpool's leading line-up might have been telling them to enjoy the product of their hard work, bottle up that feeling of playing the Champions League holders, and make sure they give everything to get back there next year. In that respect, perhaps this was an opportunity missed.

Jovetic Shoots Down Liverpool

When asked what Mario Balotelli will bring to Liverpool before a pulsating encounter at the Etihad, Brendan Rodgers joked on Sky Sports: "Trouble." But it was the Italian's replacement at Manchester City that posed the biggest problem for the Reds on a night that saw City reassert their superiority.

Stevan Jovetic was a ghost in City's squad last season, collecting a Premier League winner's medal despite making only 13 appearances for the champions. Injuries disrupted a frustrating campaign, but Manuel Pellegrini never lost faith in the forward. "He had a number of different injuries last season but now he is fully fit," said Pellegrini in pre-season. "If he's fit all the year, he will be a very important player for us." On Monday, Jovetic began to reward his manager's patience.

With Balotelli watching in the stands at his former stomping ground, Jovetic provided the sort of lively display that his predecessor frequently failed to deliver. Developing on the flashes of quality he exhibited in the Community Shield and at Newcastle on the opening weekend, Jovetic's contribution once again emphasised the remarkable depth of City's squad. The best attack in the Premier League has been strengthened without even having to dip into the transfer market, although 'dip' is rarely the right word when it comes to City's spending power.

Jovetic faced being the fourth wheel among City's strikers after a nightmare debut campaign, but Alvaro Negredo's foot injury and Sergio Aguero's steady return to fitness have afforded him an unexpected opportunity to stake a claim for a starting spot. And it is one he clearly intends to seize in the manner in which he pounced on Alberto Moreno's hesitation to fire City into the lead.

More than anything else, a fully fit Jovetic offers movement and, after pulling Liverpool's defenders out of position with his darting runs, the forward capitalised on Moreno's momentary lapse to rifle the ball through Simon Mignolet. His second goal revealed even more of his talent, as the 24-year-old flicked a delightful through-ball to Samir Nasri before connecting with his team-mate's return pass to put City firmly in control. By this stage the hosts were cruising, and Aguero's introduction in the 68th minute was followed by the Argentine grabbing the third goal in the 69th.

The home support gloated that Balotelli is destined to win nothing with his new club, but the Italian will have been impressed by several aspects of Liverpool's performance, despite the Reds suffering a frustrating defeat. That is more than can be said for Angel Di Maria had he seen Manchester United's drab display in their draw with Sunderland on Sunday, and there is still plenty of encouragement for Liverpool that they can keep their rivals at arm's length in the race for the top four.

However, on this evidence City remain a level above the Reds, and it will require yet more rapid development under Rodgers to rein in the champions. With Jovetic adding another dimension to City's attack, and Fernando proving a fine alternative to Fernandinho in central midfield, Pellegrini still possesses by far the strongest squad in the league. If Liverpool are to prove they can bridge the gap, Balotelli will have to contribute much more than he ever managed at City.

Balotelli Struggles v QPR

It isn't often that a team wins 3-2 despite only scoring once but Liverpool profited from a huge slice of fortune at QPR thanks to own goals from Richard Dunne and Steven Caulker.

As the saying goes, if you can't be good, be lucky, and Brendan Rodgers' side certainly lived a charmed life at Loftus Road as they climbed to fifth in the Premier League.

"We had no complaints today if we came away with nothing; we'd have no complaints if we came away with a point. I think we were very lucky to come away with three points," admitted Steven Gerrard in his post-match interview. "Our performance needs to be better. The only credit we can give ourselves is that we never gave up. But all round it needs improving."

The captain's words were echoed by his former teammate Jamie Carragher on Sky Sports, who added: "Liverpool were awful. I can't think of a player who'd be really pleased with his performance." There were none who should be more disappointed with their contribution than Mario Balotelli, who was at his very worst on an afternoon when the result barely hid his teammates' frustration.

Although Balotelli has been tasked with filling the void left by Luis Suarez, the two strikers have only one trait in common: selfishness. In Suarez's case this was often to Liverpool's advantage, but with Balotelli it is an enduring point of frustration. The 24-year-old has now had 30 shots in the Premier League without finding the net, while his total number of top-flight assists still stands at one over two spells. For all his selfishness leading the line for Liverpool, Suarez provided 12 alongside his 31-goal haul last year.

Balotelli's struggle to strike an understanding with his new teammates has never been more evident than in the first half of Sunday's frantic encounter. On one occasion, as Liverpool burst forward at speed to try and take the lead, the striker received the ball near the edge of the box, turned and promptly fired well wide of the post. Adam Lallana, who had been expecting the ball after making a good run down the left, raised his head to the heavens in exasperation.

And this came before Balotelli's horrendous miss in the second half; before his over-elaborate back-heel attempt as Liverpool strived for much-needed breathing space against their committed-but-error-prone opponents. While the rest of the team huffed and puffed, Balotelli scuffed, having only two fewer shots at goal than his total number of completed passes. It looks like the Reds' £16m gamble is backfiring.

A target man is supposed to act as a vehicle allowing quicker, more creative players to operate, but Rodgers' front man has failed to get out of first gear in his eight matches so far. There is an argument that he could still form a convincing partnership with Daniel Sturridge, which Liverpool's 3-0 win over Tottenham in August hinted at, but the Italian has to start delivering to earn that chance following Sturridge's protracted return.

The problem with being lucky is that you eventually get found out and, in Liverpool's case, that's likely to come against Real Madrid on Wednesday. As well as Balotelli's infuriating display, Rodgers will be concerned by his defence's failure to control Bobby Zamora - a forward not quite in the same class as Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema - and several shaky moments for Simon Mignolet.

Rodgers is a believer in teams making their own luck but confessed afterwards that QPR "certainly didn't deserve to lose". He will know that Liverpool won't be afforded the same fortune against the Champions League holders on Wednesday, and faces a difficult three days' preparation. At the moment, the Reds lack both the incision and the resolve to gain the result they crave.

Spurs Top The Winners

Winners

Tottenham Top of the table for the first time since 2009 and one of only two sides not to have conceded a goal after two rounds, with Manchester City playing Liverpool on Monday evening. It is not necessarily the results against two of their weaker London rivals that have drawn attention to Spurs, rather the nature of their performances under new manager Mauricio Pochettino which suggest this could be a quicker transition than first expected.

Against QPR, the biggest difference from last season was the level of pressing and speed to Tottenham's play, two aspects which Pochettino also focused on at Southampton. Under Andre Villas-Boas, Spurs were resilient, but often too slow to be entertaining, whereas Tim Sherwood tried to inject urgency but failed in organisation. On Sunday, there was balance between the two.

That was evident on TV, but even more encouraging for Spurs fans was this tweet from Jack Pitt-Brooke, a journalist for The Independent who attended the game: 'Early days obvs but Spurs' speed on the break today after winning the ball back was a bit Borussia Dortmund.' If that's the way in which Pochettino aims to develop the team, then supporters can hope to finally see the best of the attacking talents signed last summer.

The real punchline to the jokes about Spurs' recruits in 2013 is that many of them could still prove people wrong. There has never been much doubt over Erik Lamela, who just needed to remain fit to show what he can do, but Nacer Chadli's two-goal display on Sunday - and standing ovation when he was substituted - was entirely unexpected of a player reportedly offered to PSV two weeks ago as a makeweight for Memphis Depay. Similarly, Etienne Capoue is also beginning to pay back his transfer fee after a proposed move to Napoli broke down.

Sherwood will have allowed himself a wry smile at Nabil Bentaleb's composed performance alongside Capoue in midfield, but it was Lamela who really brought White Hart Lane to the edge of their seats. The club's record signing made only nine Premier League appearances in his first season, and surpassed his assists total with two against QPR, the second a perfect chipped cross following an incisive diagonal run. It seems his compatriot knows how to get the best out of the 22-year-old by increasing the tempo of Spurs' play and thus providing Lamela with space to exploit.

"It is true that Lamela can improve a lot. He is still young and when a young player arrives in a different country it is hard to adapt," said Pochettino after the game. "We all know his skills and we are very pleased for him and for all of the squad - today was a very good day."

However, it is this quote from the manager that provides the most encouragement: "We work a lot on the training ground but it is important that the players are free in their minds because they are creative players. You cannot put the players like that in the shade, you need to provide the organisation but after that they are free."

Maintaining Sunday's balance is clearly the priority for Pochettino, and he could prove to be the perfect blend of the contrasting positives under Villas-Boas and Sherwood.

Sam Allardyce A much-needed result for the favourite in the sack race (he's till favourite in the football betting), as West Ham scored as many goals against Crystal Palace as they managed in their previous six Premier League matches.

The crucial change from the opening-day defeat to Tottenham was Mauro Zarate's involvement in attack as Kevin Nolan missed out with a fractured shoulder. The Argentine didn't play a single minute against Spurs but made the most of his opportunity at Palace with a fine strike in a lively performance.

Allardyce bemoaned Nolan's anticipated six-week absence on Saturday, but also conceded: "It didn't affect us at Palace and maybe that's a sign there's more to come. So perhaps this might be the best and strongest squad I've put together at the club."

With £12m signing Enner Valencia an unused sub along with Ravel Morrison, and £24m duo Matt Jarvis and Andy Carroll missing through injury, as well as Carl Jenkinson, that might be the most incongruous use of 'perhaps' we hear this season.

Swansea A promising start with back-to-back victories, following only six wins in 24 matches at the back end of the previous campaign. Swansea have an opportunity to build on their early form with a run of fixtures that sees them face just one opponent that finished in the top seven last year (Chelsea) in the next seven matches. They will need to pick up points before a testing November.

Chelsea They got there in the end, but Jose Mourinho was understandably less than impressed with Chelsea's laboured performance against Leicester. "We didn't play well first half," said Mourinho. "Leicester showed great defensive intensity, and came with fast transitions, trying to scare us on the counter-attack.

"We were a bit slow - slow moving the ball, slow thinking - and we needed to change. Sometimes you don't need to change players, just your attitude towards the game. And we did that."

It was perhaps a helpful reminder of the challenge the Blues face after the praise they received for a brilliant display against Burnley. While they repeatedly found gaps to exploit at Turf Moor last Monday, Leicester provided much more stubborn resistance, and even threatened to take the lead through several quick counter-attacks.

However, there was encouragement in Diego Costa scoring a second well-taken goal in two games - although he was guilty of some sloppy build-up play - while Cesc Fabregas already has as many assists (three) as all but one Manchester United player (Wayne Rooney) last season. It remains a mystery why Louis van Gaal reportedly pulled the plug on another move for the midfielder, along with Toni Kroos.

Chelsea face a difficult test at Everton in the teatime kick-off on Saturday, having lost on four of their last five trips to Goodison in the Premier League. That should prove a more accurate barometer of where they currently stand after two opening games against promoted sides.

Losers

Petr Cech After Thibaut Courtois rewarded Mourinho's faith with an excellent performance against Leicester, Cech is left with a week to decide his future. Will he really want to follow in Carlo Cudicini's footsteps at the Bridge?

Sunderland While Sunderland's draw with Manchester United has been reported as an impressive result for the hosts in some quarters, the truth is they blew their best chance to beat United at home for the first time since March 1997. They may not get a better opportunity to end that 17-year run.

Liam Bridcutt Stuck on the bench as Lee Cattermole's back-up despite Gus Poyet saying when Bridcutt arrived in January: "If I was coach of Real (Madrid) I would take him because he deserves to go to the highest level."

It might be a long journey.

Everton Another worrying collapse after promising so much in the first period. I wrote about Everton's fitness concerns last week and it was a similar story on Saturday, with the Blues recording only two attempts in the second half after surging into a 2-0 lead.

"The first-half performance is what we want to be doing," said Roberto Martinez. "But we ran out of legs a little bit and Arsenal, as you would expect, threw everything forward and you get into a position where the third goal is going to be vital."

Another drop off against Chelsea would point to an alarming trend that Martinez needs to address.

Arsenal's 'false nine' formation A determined fight-back against Everton, but Arsene Wenger has a great deal to ponder as he searches for an alternative to starting Olivier Giroud. The Gunners have signed the joint-fewest number of players in the Premier League this summer, which should reinforce calls for Wenger to recruit another striker.

For more on Saturday's match, click here.

QPR, Glenn Hoddle and Harry Redknapp If anyone still believed that Glenn Hoddle and Harry Redknapp should be candidates to manage England, QPR's display against Tottenham should have given them a rude awakening. The R's may finally be showing some semblance of sense off the pitch, but their performances on it are a very different matter.

It's difficult to know what Redknapp and Hoddle are thinking in their idea that QPR can play a back three with Rio Ferdinand and Richard Dunne. Dunne would probably have struggled in the system at his peak, so to ask him to adapt at 34 is simply ridiculous. The same too for Ferdinand, whose injuries and age have stolen the pace he used to possess.

'My feeling is that the back three is a system that is back in fashion for good reasons,' wrote Hoddle in his column for the Mail on Sunday. 'I've always been an advocate of its strengths, playing it with Swindon, Chelsea and England and now Harry Redknapp has introduced it at QPR, where I'm coaching.

'I think the World Cup demonstrated that it is very much a system for the modern game. I don't think there is any other system that is so flexible in allowing you to get into different shapes and formations so quickly.'

That might be true, but the only shape that QPR got themselves into on Sunday was a mangled mess as Spurs ruthlessly exposed their lack of pace at the back. Surely Hoddle and Redknapp should know that you need players who are suited to the system; it's quite clear that QPR are facing relegation if they persist with their current formation.

Southampton A lack of cutting edge in a fixture they would have expected to win. Similar to a £12m move for Shane Long, it's unlikely that paying the same for Andros Townsend (three goals, two assists in 43 PL appearances) will solve Southampton's problems.

Manchester United '86'- Time is running out at the Stadium of Light and, in truth, Sunderland look the more likely winners at the moment.'

Even the Manchester United Twitter account wasn't confident that Louis van Gaal's side could pull off a late victory against Sunderland. It was difficult to blame them after what had come before. United were laboured in possession and struggled to create chances in a fixture they haven't lost for 17 years. As Van Gaal said afterwards: "We have one point and that is not good enough for Manchester United."

The manager also claimed over the weekend that it would be a 'miracle' if his team win the league, reinforcing the view that signing Angel Di Maria for £64m is not a quick fix. At the moment, Van Gaal is playing with a Rubik's Cube of problems concerning who he should sign, who he should sell, how the team should play and where everyone will fit. "Now, this selection here was not in balance," he said before the draw with Sunderland. "There are five No.9s, six No.10s and so on. And we don't have defenders."

That will be a priority over the next week once a record-breaking deal for Di Maria is completed. Luring a player who was named man of the match in the Champions League final in May is undoubtedly a huge coup, but it won't suddenly transform United into title challengers which, for a fee of £64m, is what would normally be expected. As with Juan Mata, there is a possibility that Di Maria's impact will be hindered by the gaps that remain elsewhere.

What is clear, though, is that this is United's big shot at breaking back into the top four. Di Maria's arrival will take their spending to an unprecedented £200m in 12 months - a level of expenditure that the Glazers surely have no interest in maintaining. The squad that Van Gaal is building now is the squad that United can expect to continue with for the foreseeable future.

It is therefore alarming that United still won't look guaranteed of a Champions League place even with Di Maria on board. The hope for fans is that the team will soon be unrecognisable after going through Van Gaal's three-month detox, but after two unconvincing displays so far, the manager may decide to re-write his prognosis. United need at least one more centre-back, everyone fit, and Di Maria to hit the ground running to ensure that a gap doesn't open up between them and fourth place.

There is reason to trust in Van Gaal, and reason to be excited about Di Maria, but this is an era of pragmatism at United, even if their outlay in the transfer market opposes everything they used to promote.

Crystal Palace A 3-1 defeat to end a week of turmoil. A new manager is required as soon as possible to move on from the furore surrounding their attempts to appoint Malky Mackay.

Treat Balotelli With Care

"I think in terms of goals, he needs to improve. It is as simple as that. At this moment, he has not hit the numbers he will have wanted."

After Brendan Rodgers' midweek appraisal of Mario Balotelli, it was perhaps inevitable that the striker would find himself benched on Saturday. Having scored only once in seven appearances, the Italian was overlooked in favour of a first Premier League start for Rickie Lambert.

The outcome was largely inconsequential, with Liverpool's midfield responsible for a 2-1 victory, but the impact on Balotelli's confidence may be hugely detrimental.

Liverpool return to action on Sunday 19 October at QPR and, despite his struggles, the Italian will be well backed in the football betting to get on the scoresheet.

Rodgers must be careful that he doesn't turn Balotelli into a scapegoat for Liverpool's poor form.

In a week spent clutching at straws - before eventually admitting that the club's supporters should expect more setbacks - the manager has allowed his £16million capture from AC Milan to be singled out for attention. History tells us that placing Balotelli under the spotlight isn't normally conducive to getting the best out of him.

"We had attempts for other strikers that didn't materialise for one reason or another," said Rodgers, suggesting that Balotelli was a last resort.

"So it left us right at the end of the window with a decision on whether just to go with what we had, when experience told us we were too light, or take a calculated risk on a player who has quality and then could we get it out of him consistently?"

That consistency is clearly lacking at the moment, but there are mitigating factors which should be taken into account.

Liverpool have lacked the incision they displayed last season, with Balotelli often starved of sufficient service. Before Saturday, Adam Lallana and Philippe Coutinho had created just three chances each in three and four appearances respectively, while Lazar Markovic's struggles have been apparent.

"The quality of our service (against Basel) wasn't up to the standard it should be," Rodgers conceded. "You also have to make and create goals yourself and he didn't do that."

It boils down to a chicken and egg dilemma: Is Balotelli responsible for the team performing badly or vice-versa?

Taking the 24-year-old out of the equation on Saturday did no harm to the Italian's cause, with Liverpool's listlessness continuing despite their 2-1 lead at the point of Balotelli's introduction. He certainly offered more than Lambert in his half-hour cameo, testing Ben Foster with a low drive from an acute angle.

It may be claimed that this was simple squad rotation, but Balotelli's omission from the latest Italy squad means there was no need to rest him, while Rodgers' comments have made the striker's absence an issue.

"Roberto (Mancini) will know the same as me that the way to get the best out of Mario is to love him," said Zlatan Ibrahimovic during his former team-mate's spell at Manchester City.

It is yet to be seen whether Rodgers' tough love has the same success.

There is hope yet that the forward will spark into life. He was impressive on his debut against Tottenham, acting as a target man with Daniel Sturridge and Raheem Sterling running beyond him, while he has shown an appetite to work hard and help the midfield.

Perhaps he has been too eager to track back, failing to get on the end of attacking moves against Basel and Everton after dropping deep to win back the ball.

As always with Balotelli, his future will be decided by the success of his relationships - both with the manager and his team-mates.

Sturridge's anticipated return may be the missing ingredient to unlocking the striker's potential, but Rodgers must be careful not to sour his own understanding with Balotelli if he wants his calculated risk to pay off.

Arsenal's False Nine Fails First Test

"A team is life and life is movement. That means the team doesn't stand still, we move forward and improve. We have a good opportunity on Saturday to show that we have moved forward and that we are stronger than last year."

After a sluggish first half against Everton, Arsene Wenger could be forgiven for feeling that the more things change, the more they stay the same at Arsenal. The Gunners had won every match in the Premier League since their 3-0 thrashing at Goodison Park in April, but on their return to the scene of the crime signs of progress initially appeared as false as the manager's striker-less formation.

This was the first time Wenger has tested a 'false nine' system following the arrival of £35m forward Alexis Sanchez, but the experiment lasted only 45 minutes before the anonymous Chilean was replaced by Olivier Giroud. In a first half that saw Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain strike all five of Arsenal's attempts - and all off-target - Sanchez had fewer touches than every outfield player other than Mathieu Debuchy.

Despite Sanchez's quiet display, it was a surprise to see him hooked at the interval as Wenger renewed his faith in Giroud. The Frenchman struggled to make an impact in the midweek draw with Besiktas, but against Everton Arsenal's real No.9 proved the perfect Plan B as his introduction helped to change the game. With Giroud now offering a focal point for the attack to build around, Arsenal became much more direct, probing the Toffees' defence before rescuing a point in the last eight minutes.

This desire to fight to the end, which was also apparent against Crystal Palace on the opening day, will provide encouragement to Wenger amid a slow start to the season in terms of his team finding their rhythm. However, the manager will also be concerned that simple lessons have not been learned in the five months following Arsenal's last meeting with Everton.

In packing central midfield with Jack Wilshere, Aaron Ramsey and Mathieu Flamini, Wenger showed a level of respect to the hosts that was perhaps missing when the Toffees threatened to pinch the Gunners' Champions League spot in the spring. On this occasion, Everton would not be allowed to breeze forward without resistance and surge into an early lead. At least that was the plan.

Instead, the same Arsenal flaws were revealed, with Mesut Ozil switching off in the 19th minute to allow Seamus Coleman to sneak in and open the scoring. The second goal was unfortunate - Romelu Lukaku appearing to foul Per Mertesacker in the build-up and Steven Naismith benefiting from a close off-side call - but Wenger will be more worried about his team's weary start in one of the toughest away trips of the season.

Despite defensive concerns being revived, the biggest issue for the manager to address is a lack of cutting edge which saw Everton hold on until the 90th minute and Palace survive to the 92nd. Wenger has made clear his intention to persist with his current striking options - awarding Yaya Sanogo a starting role at home to Palace and against Manchester City in the Community Shield - but watching the Gunners in the first half on Saturday, he may have doubted that decision.

His resolve will be further tested by news of an injury to Giroud, who appeared to turn his ankle in the closing stages. "We have a big game on Wednesday - I hope we haven't lost Giroud," said Wenger afterwards. "It doesn't look good."

With the Frenchman possibly facing a period on the sidelines, and the early trials of a false nine formation not proving a success, the focus returns to Wenger's insistence that he doesn't need another striker. It seems such an obvious missing piece of the jigsaw for Arsenal and, if the Gunners are to prove they are stronger than last year, Wenger may be required to adapt his original plans.

Patience, Probing But No Penetration For City

"I am absolutely sure that Manchester City will eventually win the Champions League," said Manuel Pellegrini before City's 1-1 draw with Roma. The key word being 'eventually'. On this evidence, City's date with destiny still lies far in the future. They were second best for long spells against a Roma side inspired by Francesco Totti and remain third in Group E with just one point from their opening two games.

Pellegrini implored his players to start strong against Roma, recognising the importance of a match already billed as a play-off for second place behind Bayern Munich. "We must try our hardest to start like we did at the KC Stadium," wrote the manager in his programme notes. "It seemed there that we had taken off the handbrake and found our rhythm in the opposition penalty area." When Maicon hauled Sergio Aguero over in the box in the fourth minute, allowing the Argentine to give the hosts the lead from the spot, it looked like they would maintain the tempo of their four-goal display against Hull. It was the Brazilian's biggest contribution for City despite spending a year at the club in 2012/13.

With Roma's record in England reading much like the eternal pity - they have now won only once in 15 visits - Aguero's strike offered hope that City's night was done. But Rudi Garcia's team are a crafty, resilient outfit, led by arch schemer Totti. The Serie A runners-up had won six out of six in all competitions before Tuesday - thrashing CSKA Moscow 5-1 in their Champions League opener - and were soon back on level terms when Totti collected Radja Nainggolan's through-ball before taking advantage of Joe Hart's unfortunate slip. The 38-year-old's finish was sublime - a cute chip from a player who oozes subtlety.

The rest of the first half belonged to Roma. The Italians frequently left City chasing shadows with their sharp passing and quick counter-attacking through Gervinho, and almost took the lead when the former Arsenal forward slammed a shot at Hart from a narrow angle. While Gervinho's pace was proving a problem, Jesus Navas was barely given a sniff against Ashley Cole on City's right flank. The Spaniard was replaced by James Milner at the interval after Cole once again asserted his enduring class.

Milner's arrival injected purpose into City's play, with the England winger barking encouragement at his teammates at the start of the second half. Frank Lampard was then called upon as Pellegrini sought the decisive goal, but for all City's possession around the edge of the penalty area, penetration was lacking. Despite David Silva's best efforts, Samir Nasri's absence was telling. Miralem Pjanic's guile could have secured victory for Roma, but Hart reacted quickly to smother the playmaker's shot after a jinking run through City's midfield.

"It's not the death of the club if we don't win the Champions League this year. But I hope that this year we improve again," said Pellegrini on Monday. His calls for calm are understandable, but this is the competition the club's hierarchy have set their hearts on winning. Nothing short of maximum points in back-to-back games against CSKA Moscow is now required if Pellegrini is to achieve the improvement he craves, and also ensure he isn't the next victim of City's lofty ambitions.

United v Swansea

"Do what we have agreed. And then we will win."

This was Louis van Gaal's final pact with his players before kick-off in his first competitive match as Manchester United manager. A prophetic statement to herald a new era with a new system and renewed sense of belief. But 90 minutes later it was clear that Van Gaal's force of personality alone cannot stop the rot at Old Trafford. As United stumbled through a performance to rival any of last year's frustrations, even the man who boasted the Midas touch at the World Cup was powerless to find a solution.

It was United's first home defeat on the opening day since 1972, the sort of record that David Moyes used to break with unerring frequency during his brief reign. Van Gaal's arrival was supposed to draw a line in the history books; no more statistical water torture and being bullied by the underdogs, United would now return to setting records for the right reasons.

Instead, Van Gaal's brave new world came crashing down around him as Swansea battled to their first ever league win at Old Trafford. The manager's 3-5-2 formation lasted for all of 45 minutes before he was forced to adapt his decimated first XI and, while his substitutions were a key feature of the Netherlands' success in Brazil, here they failed to inject life into a dour display. United's defeat was characterised by an absence of invention in attack and vulnerability on the counter, a combination always destined to cause problems.

"Of course it's very disappointing, for the players, the fans, for me, for my staff," said Van Gaal in his post-match press conference. "When you have preparation time and you win everything and then the first match you lose, it cannot be worse. We have built up a lot of confidence and then it shall be smashed down because of this result."

The biggest disappointment for the manager was that the players failed to adhere to their pre-match agreement. Juan Mata, operating in his favoured central role, was hugely ineffective, while Javier Hernandez, starting on the opening day for the first time, was hauled off at the interval for Nani. Although Ander Herrera showed flashes of the skill and competitive nature that persuaded United to invest around £26m in his signature, his debut was cut short by Marouane Fellaini's introduction shortly before Swansea scored their second.

It was not the stuttering start Van Gaal or the supporters expected, and yet no-one was left surprised by the underlying truth the result revealed. United need new players, and fast, regardless of the wealth of talent missing on Saturday. Van Gaal's shopping list was the main point of discussion after the game, but the manager straight-batted concerns about his squad by answering that he had already highlighted the areas which need strengthening. "I know in what positions we need better players," he said. "We have to wait and see."

Patience isn't normally a virtue for which football fans are famed, but if there is any consolation to United's following after this defeat, it is that Van Gaal will now truly understand the size of the task he is facing. "Because of our wins in the United States and our win against Valencia, the expectations are so high, and that I have seen in the first half - a lot of players were very nervous and making the wrong choices," he continued. "(But) that's Manchester United, you have to cope with that pressure."

It is now up to the manager to find players who can bear the responsibility. It is almost two months since United last made a signing while four members of the first-team squad have departed. With only two weeks of the transfer window remaining, time is running out to find the right additions.

"Do I look nervous?" Van Gaal asked journalists on Friday before his first taste of the Premier League. No-one would dare say it, but had the same question been proffered at 3pm on Saturday, the answer would have been yes.

Ozil Starts To Answer Critics

It has been a testing week for Mesut Ozil. After his subdued performance against Borussia Dortmund, growing criticism of Arsenal's record signing peaked in a flurry of disparaging newspaper columns. 'Who wants a playmaker who cannot influence the game?' asked the Daily Mail. 'At some point soon, the Arsenal boss must consider whether to cut his losses.' Incidentally, the Mail also ran the angle 'Ozil fails to sparkle' following Germany's 7-1 win over Brazil at the World Cup before hastily removing the article. Even for their SEO-driven obsession, it was a step too far.

'I would suggest he needs to pull his finger out,' mused Robbie Savage in the Daily Mirror, repeating his claim that Ozil should be dropped if Arsenal are to get over their inconsistent start to the season. However, if you thought this was merely another case of a foreign import being ridiculed for not having enough bottle, you'd be wrong. German paper Bild awarded Ozil the lowest rating of every player involved in Dortmund's 2-0 win on Tuesday, an embarrassment retweeted with relish. It's quite a bemusing predicament for someone who played an integral role for Germany's weltmeisters only two months ago.

On Saturday, Ozil started to answer his critics with a devastating display to defeat Aston Villa. Within the space of two first-half minutes he opened the scoring after receiving a pass from Danny Welbeck, then repaid the favour with a whipped cross from the left for the striker to open his Arsenal account. A third strike came courtesy of an Aly Cissokho own goal, watched by Roy Keane in all his bearded fury, and by half time the contest was over. It was a position of relative luxury for Arsenal, and perhaps a surprise given Villa's impressive form.

Ozil's telling impact will not have come as a surprise to Wenger, however, after the manager launched a fierce defence of his playmaker on Friday. "Why should he be a scapegoat? For what?" asked Wenger. "What is difficult to manage today is that everybody knows absolutely everything and everybody judges people definitely on one game. You have to accept that football is played by human beings who have ups and downs like you have in your life." It is a pertinent point that also relates to Manuel Pellegrini's explanation for Yaya Toure's recent troubles.

But Ozil may feel he has not always been helped by his manager. Following Alexis Sanchez's arrival for £35m in July, last summer's blockbuster recruit has been relegated to the sidelines by Wenger in quite a literal sense. Deployed on the left wing, and switched to the right against Dortmund, Ozil didn't manage a single goal or assist in his first four appearances this season. Such tangible evidence is essential in this era of analysis by numbers, and on Saturday the German international satisfied this demand emphatically - also covering more ground (over 11kms) than any of his teammates. It seems he has indeed pulled his finger out.

Ozil's recent displays have hardly been easy on the eye, but his efforts against Villa underlined his obvious talent. The old adage that form is temporary, class is permanent still applies. Few players possess the vision, composure and ruthless ability to interpret a developing attack that the 25-year-old demonstrated in Arsenal's victory. Frequently drifting into dangerous areas behind Welbeck, Ozil was pivotal in the blitz that brushed Villa aside before helping the Gunners see out the second half with a minimum amount of fuss - an aspect of their game which has required improvement.

The question now for Wenger is how to accommodate both the German and Sanchez - left out at the weekend - in his first XI along with Welbeck, who made it three goals in his last two visits to Villa Park. Similar to Shinji Kagawa during his spell at Manchester United, Ozil has expressed a reluctance to play on the flank, with Wenger conceding in his post-match interview: "Ozil wants to play in the middle, but I can show you ten players in my squad who want to play in the middle."

With Kagawa it almost felt that his struggles became a self-fulfilling prophecy, but the challenge at the biggest clubs is always the same: adapt or die. On Saturday, Ozil exhibited the skill and appetite required to succeed. "I wanted Ozil to play behind their midfield. It was important for him to find space between the lines and it worked," said Wenger. "He can play anywhere."

If Ozil can maintain his progress when Sanchez returns from his rest, Arsenal could soon be over their rocky start.

Does Carroll Feature In Hammers' Future?

As well as featuring on billboards in Times Square as part of his new modelling contract, Andy Carroll has clearly been doing his homework on West Ham's form ahead of his return to first-team action. The striker hasn't played this season after tearing ankle ligaments in the summer - appearing only 16 times since his £15m move from Liverpool in 2013 - but has been pencilled in for a return against Aston Villa on November 8.

"I think we can push right on for Europe," Carroll told the Hammers' official website. "The gaffer has signed some great players and we're showing the quality we've got with the goals we're scoring. That's why we are where we are in the league."

While Enner Valencia and Diafra Sakho have hogged the headlines with their goalscoring heroics, Carroll is confident in his own ability to contribute and is relishing the opportunity to benefit from the improved service to the attack. The striker has been particularly impressed with Aaron Cresswell, whom he singled out as a key reason for the Hammers' rise.

"We scored three headers at Burnley and another on Saturday, with Cresswell crossing the ball in," he said. "He whips them in and puts them on a plate. The service that everyone is putting in the box to create chances has been great. That's what I thrive on. I can't wait to be involved with that."

It sounds like the perfect match - a full-back who loves to bomb forward and whip dangerous deliveries into the penalty area and a centre-forward who offers a commanding aerial presence to take advantage. But West Ham's resurgence is founded on much more than Cresswell's crossing, with the dynamic displays of Valencia and Sakho crucial to the considerable increase in the team's intensity.

As I wrote in Winners and Losers on Monday, it's interesting to note that the Hammers' playing style hasn't changed enormously despite a discernible improvement in performances. They average just one fewer long ball per match compared to last year, a minimal amount more possession and fewer dribbles following Mohamed Diame's departure to Hull. The main difference is that Valencia and Sakho defend from the front, unlike Carroll or Carlton Cole in a lone striker system last season.

In his post-match analysis for Sky Sports on Saturday, Adam Bate emphasised Sakho and Valencia's involvement with several enlightening statistics. 'In the 1054 minutes that Sakho and Valencia have played so far, they have made 17 tackles and 10 interceptions between them,' writes Bate. 'Carroll's 1,093 minutes last season brought just eight tackles and one interception. The old line about defenders 'knowing they've been in a game' has seldom seemed so appropriate.'

Defenders equally know when they have been bullied by Carroll for 90 minutes, but his style is somewhat different to the approach Sam Allardyce is belatedly advocating. While Cresswell's crossing and Sakho's power in the air has often been the end-game to the Hammers scoring goals and climbing to within a point of Manchester City, the relentless workrate of the forwards is a crucial building block in chances eventually being created.

As Teddy Sheringham said last week, before Sakho grabbed his seventh goal in seven consecutive matches: "He is up there in the right or left wing position, up the middle and then tracking back to the full-back positions. He pops up everywhere doing something for the team, which makes him invaluable. When you look up front and see two boys working their socks off to close people down and stop their full-backs getting out, then it's invaluable for the team and you get a boost from that."

His comments should be a concern to Carroll, whose lumbering presence contradicts the exciting movement of Sakho and Valencia. While the striker is looking forward to making his mark, he will also know that his future hangs in the balance amid rumours of a move back to Newcastle. Injuries have sadly made him an unreliable option for Allardyce.

The question that will ultimately dictate Carroll's future is how much Allardyce willing to regress. There are only so many occasions when Carroll may now be deemed to be the best fit in attack, with West Ham achieving a record-breaking start in his absence. His return to full fitness may not be far off, but it could be a long time before Carroll finally convinces West Ham of his worth.

Is Inflexibility Harming Henderson's Impact?

You know the drill; after every England match one player is picked to face the music. Negative news sells, as does big club rivalry, so the likes of Wayne Rooney, Steven Gerrard and Jack Wilshere have all featured regularly on the unlucky sods list over the past few years. Rather than acknowledge a general lack of quality, it's seemingly much more fun to berate the only talent we have.

Often the criticism is superficial, but this week, as Jordan Henderson's name was picked from the hat, there is a thread of truth to the accusations. An own goal and a dismal display against Slovenia made Henderson the stand-out candidate for a rough ride in the media, but scratch beneath the surface of Saturday's performance and bigger questions over the midfielder's role begin to appear.

Now 17 caps into his England career, it is difficult to pinpoint a single impressive appearance the 24-year-old has made for his country. He looked out of his depth on his debut against France in 2010 after being fast-tracked into the team under Fabio Capello, and didn't return for 18 months until the warm-up games for Euro 2012, where he played just 33 minutes.

The next two years followed a similar pattern as Roy Hodgson remained unconvinced. Henderson's first cap after the Euros came 17 months later in a 2-0 defeat to Chile in November 2013. But from that point on he has been a regular. Benefiting from his partnership with Steven Gerrard at Liverpool, and then the captain's retirement, Henderson started his first competitive match in the loss to Italy at the World Cup and is now one of the first names on the team sheet. The question is if he's ready, or will ever be ready, for that responsibility.

There is clearly a significant drop in quality to Henderson from Gerrard and Frank Lampard, and the midfielder was repeatedly damned with faint praise during Liverpool's success last season. While others made the headlines, Henderson was regarded as a functional presence in the Reds' midfield, affording brighter talents the platform to perform. "If you look at his game he has got mobility and physicality," said Brendan Rodgers in December. Useful attributes, but hardly traits that prove a decisive factor.

Indeed, there is an argument that Henderson gained more from his reputation as a selfless provider than his teammates, reinforced by Liverpool's struggles since Luis Suarez's departure and Daniel Sturridge's injury. While Henderson quietly fit in when things were going well, he now stands out as a struggler, failing to impose himself on matches as mobility and physicality cry out for end product.

There have been fleeting moments of quality - such as a brilliant assist for Daniel Sturridge on the opening day and a match-winning performance against West Brom - but Henderson's display on Saturday emphasised his poor form. As well as nodding into his own net, he recorded the lowest pass accuracy of any starting outfield player for England - and worse than seven Slovenians - as well as losing possession 21 times. That he made more passes to Gary Cahill than to any of England's forwards is indicative of a player keeping it safe for fear of committing another mistake.

But what is causing Henderson's struggles? It may be founded in an apparent tactical inflexibility that followed the midfielder from Sunderland to Liverpool and, in turn, to England. "Now he can go into a game and tactically he won't be found out," continued Rodgers in December. "He understands football better. Now he is more mature."

While that is true of last season - when Henderson complemented a dynamic Liverpool attack with his driving runs from deep - this year, with Mario Balotelli a stationary target man, his impact has been minimal. It has been the same throughout his England career. Perhaps, having dedicated himself to fulfilling Rodgers' expectations in the previous campaign, Henderson is now failing to adapt to changes in his responsibilities.

The result sees the 24-year-old facing an uncertain future for club and country unless he figures out how to improve his contribution. At the moment, a paucity of alternatives has forced Hodgson's hand, but Fabian Delph's recent inclusion should act as a warning to Henderson. It may seem unlikely now, but it will only take a spurt of form from Michael Carrick - who's set to benefit from Daley Blind's injury - Jack Rodwell or even James Ward-Prowse for the Liverpool midfielder to head back where he started.

Henderson came from nowhere in a short space of time for England; he will be wary of returning just as quick.

Burnley 0 Man United 0

The last time Manchester United travelled to Burnley in August 2009, the hosts inflicted a memorable upset on the reigning champions, gaining a 1-0 victory thanks to Robbie Blake's stunning strike.

It was one of the Premier League's greatest giant-killing acts and a result that ultimately proved crucial for United as they missed out on the title to Chelsea by a single point.

On Saturday lunchtime there would not have been the same feeling of shock had Burnley broken the deadlock. United's laboured performances are becoming increasingly familiar, with Louis van Gaal's vision for the team remaining in limbo. Despite the efforts of new signing Angel di Maria, the visitors toiled to a 0-0 draw at the same ground where Chelsea laid down a marker two weeks ago. It was only Burnley's fourth clean sheet in 41 Premier League matches - two of which have come against United - and rarely did it look like their backline would be breached.

United, on the other hand, frequently found their patchwork defence under threat. Jonny Evans continued where he left off in a shambolic display against MK Dons, gifting Lukas Jutkiewicz an early chance with a weak back-pass to David de Gea. Ashley Young again looked uncomfortable at left wing-back while Scott Arfield exposed Tyler Blackett's inexperience when he turned the defender inside the box in the second half. Van Gaal must fear the ease with which one of the division's heavyweights could cut through his struggling side.

It was supposed to be an easy start to the season, with United first facing an opponent who finished in last year's top ten on 5th October, when Everton visit Old Trafford. But thus far they have taken just two points as the players contend with the manager's new system. It will clearly require a great deal of time and patience for United to meet the requirements of playing a three-man defence, but that is time the club cannot afford as they bid to return to the UEFA Champions League.

Van Gaal remains confident of getting his message across, and he warned journalists on Friday that slow starts at Barcelona and Bayern Munich proved deceiving. He won the title in his first season at both clubs, but it will take a drastic change in fortunes to see those feats repeated in the current campaign. United's priority is still to regain their place in the top four, but, on the evidence of Saturday's performance, they are a long way from achieving that aim.

"They will play with a lot of passion, a lot of long balls," said Van Gaal before the game, but given the manner in which his team approached the match, it is difficult to tell whether he was talking about Burnley or United. The visitors were quick to look long, often bypassing a midfield which featured two record-breaking signings that have arrived in the last eight months. While Di Maria's performance offered promise, Juan Mata was again a point of frustration.

There are mitigating factors for United's predicament, specifically a mounting injury list and the delay over Marcos Rojo's work permit, but the biggest concern is how quickly the squad can adapt to playing with a back three. Van Gaal has admitted that a number of players could leave before Monday's transfer deadline, so it seems strange that he is persisting with the current formation when the team could look very different after the international break.

It is even more peculiar when you consider that he has shown a preference for 4-3-3 throughout his career, only altering the Netherlands' setup for the World Cup following Kevin Strootman's knee injury. "You have to play as a team and not as individuals," said Van Gaal before Strootman was ruled out. "That's why I'm always going back to the vision, then the team, and then which players fit in my system, a 1-4-3-3, because I'm always playing that."

Van Gaal has now adopted a different approach, but at the moment the players he has available cannot satisfy the demands of the system. Young and Antonio Valencia remain wingers rather than wing-backs, while Darren Fletcher's powers have unsurprisingly been diminished by illness. It was Di Maria who had to drop deep to collect the ball off the centre-backs in the first half, and his driving runs through midfield were United's only hope of mounting an attack without Blackett or Evans launching the ball long to Rooney.

The state of the United team is reminiscent of a cadavre exquis, with each of the club's last three managers responsible for contributing a different part of the whole. Sir Alex Ferguson signed Van Persie to partner Rooney before realising they lack the natural chemistry to play as a pair, while David Moyes recruited Mata to build a bond between midfield and attack. Van Gaal is now left to knit the separate limbs together and bolster a defence that lacks protection and has not developed at the rate initially forecast. Daley Blind's arrival should be the start, while Rojo, Rafael and Luke Shaw are yet to feature.

"We will have to see where we are in a month or so," said Van Gaal after another disappointing result. "Di Maria did not look like the world-class player we have seen either, but you cannot expect that straightaway. He has to adapt to a new league, and the team needs time to adapt to his style of playing."

It is not what supporters will want to hear after four games without a win, but their patience will be tested longer than they might have expected.

Van Gaal Serving Deconstructed Cheesecake

"I'm very disappointed as we played our best match of the season, and the result is not good enough. I think we could have won - but that doesn't count in our world. So that's why I'm disappointed."

If that was Manchester United's best performance of the season, they have a long way to go to prove they are worthy of a place in the top four. This was supposed to be a yardstick of the team's progress, Louis van Gaal's self-inflicted three-month barometer. But instead of recording a third win in succession to draw a bold line under a stuttering start, the manager was left echoing David Moyes' desperation following a 1-0 defeat to Liverpool in September 2013. "It's the best we've played this season," said Moyes. It didn't get much better.

There are plenty of reasons to believe Van Gaal won't follow the same path but the power of persuasion is waning. United created chances on Monday - 22, with seven shots on target - but it wasn't the total domination the stats suggest. They continued to look vulnerable on the counter-attack, twice going behind as West Brom broke at speed and exploited the huge gaps in the visitors' defence. In the final third, United's play was often aimless. Marouane Fellaini was thrown on at half-time to take advantage of Angel Di Maria's crossing, but the Argentine found a teammate with only three of 20 hopeful balls into the box. It was hardly the best use of his talents.

Despite stumbling into sixth place - a point ahead of Arsenal and Tottenham - United clearly remain a work in progress. In their first eight fixtures, Van Gaal's side have faced just one team that finished in the top ten last season and yet they have still won only three games. Tougher tests await, with Chelsea travelling to Old Trafford on Sunday before a home clash against Crystal Palace is sandwiched by trips to Manchester City and Arsenal.

"It was very stupid to say three months because then the media are only talking about three months," said Van Gaal of the team's slow progress on Monday and, judging by this display, he needs a lot more time to start delivering on his promises. At the moment United resemble an over-thought, over-priced deconstructed cheesecake served on a cold slate in a snooty restaurant. It might look pretty and it might be rich, but the form is all wrong.

The message in the summer was that Van Gaal wanted his players to play 'less intuitively'. "The way I train and coach is in the brains and not the legs," he said in July. "A lot of players are playing intuitively and I want them to think and know why they do something."

The intuition might have unravelled, but the next stage in building a new thought process has stalled. United pumped 42 crosses into the box on Monday - with only seven reaching a teammate - and relied on using Fellaini as a target man to break down the Baggies' defence. Much more was expected at this stage of Van Gaal's reign. Chelsea and City will be ready to capitalise.

W&L: Rooney Worst Of Bad Bunch

Winners

Arsenal A leap of three places up the table and the gap to Chelsea cut to four points. With the Blues and Manchester City sharing the spoils on Sunday, and Liverpool and Manchester United both losing, it was a good weekend all round for Arsenal. And it all started with a telling contribution from Mesut Ozil at Villa Park.

With the playmaker moving back into a supporting role behind Danny Welbeck, he influenced proceedings in the manner one would expect. In the space of two first-half minutes, Ozil opened the scoring and set up Welbeck for his first Arsenal goal. It was a devastating display that Arsene Wenger will hope to see much more of in the coming weeks.

As I wrote here, Wenger is still working on his best system after deciding to rest Alexis Sanchez against Villa. Ozil may feel that he has done enough to prise a central role from the Chilean, but Wenger was typically coy about his plans post-match. "Ozil wants to play in the middle, but I can show you ten players in my squad who want to play in the middle," he said. It certainly seems to be a recurring theme with Ozil, Sanchez, Welbeck, Theo Walcott and Lukas Podolski all expressing a preference to play centrally at one stage or another.

In many ways it is a pleasing headache to have, with the paucity of options in defence likely to prove more problematic for Wenger. With the club's latest financial report revealing cash reserves of £173m (until May 31, 2014) it really is a wonder why Arsenal failed to strengthen sufficiently. Even more frustrating for supporters is the 3% rise in ticket prices this season, which now seems wholly unnecessary.

Leicester It has become a running joke at F365 Towers that this column (or, more accurately, its author) always seems to forget one club each season. In 2012/13 it was Reading, last year Cardiff barely received a mention, and this season Leicester were strong candidates to be unintentionally ignored. That is until Sunday's superb fight-back.

In truth, the Foxes' displays before their victory over United have deserved more recognition. A team many tipped for relegation are sitting comfortably in seventh, having scored more goals than 13 of their Premier League rivals. Considering their first five opponents all finished in the top half last season - and four in the top seven - it has been an enormously impressive effort from Nigel Pearson's side.

With five points gained from losing positions - including the three earned after trailing 3-1 on Sunday - Leicester have shown all the necessary fighting spirit to survive.

Leonardo Ulloa It's rare that an expensive plunge back into the Championship to recruit a new striker works out so well for newly promoted clubs, but Ulloa is bucking the trend with his early form. With five goals in five matches so far, the big Argentine is proving to be worth every penny of his £7m transfer fee, although he'll face better defences than the one he met on Sunday. No, I'm not talking about Liverpool.

Southampton Their best start to a Premier League season sees Saints sitting second with ten points from five matches. Remember when people were tipping them to go down in the summer?

West Ham A surprise victory for Sam Allardici's side over one of the division's heavyweights that came after the manager made sure he got his excuses in about having to trim the length of the grass at Upton Park. "There is only a certain grass height that we now have to stick to," said Allardyce on Friday. "I don't know what the next thing is that we will be instructed to do. I just think that they take those small little things too far." It's clear that even he wasn't expecting his team to deliver such an impressive display.

The Hammers' victory owed much to Allardyce's diamond formation - imitating the system Brendan Rodgers has made popular again - and particularly Stewart Downing's performance. The former Liverpool winger was superb in a central role, creating more chances than any of his opponents and sliding in Morgan Amalfitano to score the hosts' third.

Papiss Cisse Two goals to keep Alan Pardew hanging on for another week. Actually, should he really be in the winners?

Manchester City A point rescued from the jaws of defeat after Andre Schurrle looked to have secured victory for Chelsea following Pablo Zabaleta's sending off. After suffering a late defeat in Munich in midweek, getting a result on Sunday was vital for City's confidence. Still, that's now four matches without a victory, and the first time that has happened in two years.

For more on the game, read Daniel Storey's 16 Conclusions.

James Milner The irony of people praising James Milner is that it's never more effusive than saying he isn't boring, which in itself is incredibly dull.

Alan Irvine A deserved victory for his West Brom side, who limited Spurs to just a single shot on target. Irvine will want to follow up with three points against Burnley on Sunday before supposedly tricky fixtures against Liverpool and Manchester United.

Crystal Palace A second successive 3-2 victory away to Everton to record their first win of the campaign and the first for Neil Warnock in his second spell at the club.

James Morrison I once convinced a friend that the footballer and the singer were the same person, so it's always enjoyable when Morrison (the footballer) scores to remind me of that occasion. Colin, if you're reading this, I hope you feel very stupid. And no, there isn't still time for Jermaine Jenas to win the Balon d'Or. Pay up.

Losers

Burnley A third 0-0 draw in five matches. If they maintain their current attacking form, Burnley will end the season on eight goals.

Chelsea Daniel Storey was perhaps a bit too kind to Chelsea in his 16 Conclusions. Considering the praise Jose Mourinho usually receives for his side's defensive resolve, the Blues were incredibly wasteful to let a 1-0 lead slip in the closing stages - especially when the goal came from a player they know better than anyone. Frank Lampard arriving in the box to meet a cross - who could have seen that coming?

After all the premature talk of Chelsea cruising to the title, the forecast looks decidedly greyer following four dropped points in a week - two against City and two in Europe. The Blues are undoubtedly a stronger outfit this season, but that by no means guarantees a first Premier League crown in five years.

Wilfried Bony A sending off so avoidable that it suggests Bony may have double booked himself at the weekend. My bet is that he's singing for the Dunvant male choir in the annual patrons concert. And yes, I do have a spare ticket.

Tim Howard The US Secretary of Defense cost Everton on Sunday with another erratic display. One stat that popped up on Twitter during the game stated that Howard has now conceded more goals (12) than he has made saves (eight) so far this season. I'm no goalkeeping expert, but that can't be good.

Everton Evian, in France's Ligue 1, are the only team to have conceded more goals than the Toffees in Europe's top five leagues this season. Bobby Martinez has plenty of work to do to emulate last year's achievements.

Tottenham It hasn't been a good month. Amid talk of the club looking for a new owner and a temporary home during the new stadium build, performances on the pitch have left much to be desired. The 3-0 capitulation against Liverpool - who have since proven to be very beatable - emphasised that it will take time for Mauricio Pochettino to develop a team capable of cracking the top four. Twice throwing away the lead at Sunderland and losing at home to West Brom underlines that Spurs are destined for another season on the fringes.

Meanwhile, Emmanuel Adebayor's performance on Sunday - one shot (off-target) and six passess completed in 90 minutes - compounds the nagging frustrations of Spurs fans over the club's failure to sign another striker.

Liverpool 'Carnival at the front, circus at the back' was the line to sum up Liverpool's displays last season. Sadly, the carnival has been forced to close but, hey, if you like watching a dozen clowns pile out of a mini, you're in luck my friend.

The image of Sam Allardyce in a top hat and cape shouting 'roll up, roll up to see an incredible show of buffoonery' seems rather fitting in light of what we witnessed at Upton Park. Liverpool's defence was calamitous throughout, a nervous blend of hesitation and misunderstanding, which included Mamadou Sakho leaving Dejan Lovren with stitches in a head wound.

The worry for supporters is that Brendan Rodgers has thus far done little to suggest he is capable of stemming the tide. Without Daniel Sturridge on Saturday (and Luis Suarez, to return to that point), Liverpool's defensive ineptitude was horribly exposed, like a hideous creature born in a laboratory and brought into daylight for the first time, shrieking and soiling itself.

Rodgers said pretty much the same afterwards: "The standard of our play was nowhere near what we would expect. Our passing and composure today was too short, there were too many long passes and overall our performance wasn't at the required level."

With a League Cup against Middlesbrough followed by the Merseyside derby, followed by a Champions League trip to Basel, the games are starting to pile up for Liverpool, with a double header against Real Madrid also coming in the next two weeks. Given Real's 8-2 victory at the weekend, it's a terrible thought what Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale, Karim Benzema and James Rodriguez might do to the Reds. Rodgers has much to resolve if he is to avoid further embarrassment.

Man United A 5-3 defeat that signalled the first time United have lost in the Premier League when leading by two goals. Even David Moyes didn't oversee a match in which United conceded FIVE.

There were complaints from some supporters that the result hinged on Mark Clattenburg's failure to spot Jamie Vardy's shove on Rafael before awarding the striker a penalty following the Brazilian's foul. That may have been the spark to Leicester's momentum, but it certainly fails to answer how United conceded three further goals in utter capitulation.

There were complaints from Wayne Rooney that his teammates weren't doing their jobs after Esteban Cambiasso rifled home the equaliser. The red-faced striker marched around the pitch in a manner reminiscent of Roberto Mancini's self-combustion on the final day in 2012, barking at everyone and no-one. But Rooney was more to blame for United's performance than anyone.

Indeed, the captain's display reinforced that he is vastly inferior to the other attacking talents now available to Louis van Gaal. His touch was poor, his speed of thought absent, and his passing careless. It was nothing out of the ordinary, leaving United fans scratching their heads at Van Gaal's insistence that his captain "shall always play".

Rooney largely ignored his own errors post-match - such as the one that led to Cambiasso's strike - but his criticism of the defence is obviously justified to a point - whether it will encourage improvement is another matter. With two separate players conceding penalties, a red card for Tyler Blackett, Jonny Evans limping off and Marcos Rojo struggling against Vardy, it was another alarming display at the back.

It will not be easy for Van Gaal to fix either, considering the personnel he is left with. It's hardly enlightening analysis to recognise that United should have invested further in their defence during the summer splurge, but that only makes it more damning that the club failed to strengthen such a vital area of the team. Throwing stacks of cash at Falcao and Angel Di Maria doesn't prove that Ed Woodward is up to a job for which many deem him unsuitable.

What it does mean is that there was a silver lining to United's defeat, with Di Maria in particular oozing class over the first half. His finish to make it 2-0 was sublime, while an opportunistic effort from Falcao almost caught Kasper Schmeichel off his line again after the break, the striker's shot crashing off the cross bar. It's difficult to understand why both were replaced while Rooney remained the focal point of United's attack until the end.

"I have played Rooney as a striker, before Falcao came, but he thinks his best position is behind," said Van Gaal before the match. On Sunday's evidence, it's clear that Rooney should no longer be allowed to call the shots, especially when Juan Mata promises much of the quality his teammate lacks in the No.10 role.

It should also be remembered that Rooney moaned about not playing as a striker following Robin van Persie's arrival - a player's indecision over their best position often hints at a desperate attempt to halt an unstoppable decline. United would surely be stronger without Rooney starting at this stage.

There's A Long Way To Go Yet...

Despite Chelsea's ominous start at the top of the Premier League, their visit to Crystal Palace in two weeks provides a timely reminder that the title race is far from over. John Terry's own goal saw the Blues slip to a shock 1-0 defeat at Selhurst Park in March and allowed Manchester City to profit from their two games in hand. As City won five matches in succession to seal a second championship in three years, Jose Mourinho was left exasperated by a home defeat to Sunderland and stalemate against Norwich. It was the first time in his career that the Portuguese finished consecutive seasons without silverware.

That bitter memory will linger in Mourinho's mind as he plots Chelsea's bid to bring the title back to Stamford Bridge for the first time in five years. The manager has been in bullish mood in recent weeks, but he might note that Roberto Di Matteo held an identical record at this stage two years ago. The Italian's downfall came in a winless November that was cut short by a 3-0 defeat to Juventus. On that evening, the club's failure to recruit an alternative to Fernando Torres was woefully exposed, with Di Matteo preferring Eden Hazard to the Spaniard as a false nine and becoming Roman Abramovich's false ninth as a result, lasting only five months of a two-year contract.

Persisting with Torres may have been a different proposition to building a new team around Diego Costa, but the over-reliance on the fortunes of one player is strikingly familiar. If Chelsea are to succeed this year, it will depend enormously on Costa maintaining his form and fitness throughout the next eight months. He has already eclipsed Torres' highest Premier League total for the Blues in a single season, and no striker has managed more top-flight goals for the club since Daniel Sturridge hit 11 in 2011/12. Costa's performances emphasise why Mourinho was so desperate to recruit him as the missing piece of the jigsaw, but they also hint at the detrimental impact his absence would have on Chelsea's momentum.

This may be true of all clubs and their best players but the point is particularly pertinent when it comes to Costa owing to his nagging hamstring problem. The 26-year-old sustained the injury in Atletico Madrid's hectic run-in last season, playing just nine minutes of the Champions League final after being rushed back into the team. He was clearly not 100% at the World Cup, leading the line for Spain as they crashed out in the group stage, and the issue returned ahead of his call-up this week. "If he doesn't go to the national team and stays here for 15 days just on treatment, he has the perfect chance to be top for Chelsea and top for the national team," said Mourinho. "If he doesn't have this period, it will be always, plays one game, the other is in trouble, the muscle is tight, the muscle is in danger of rupture. He cannot be on top of his game. He's doing almost nothing in training. He's just resting and recovering from the tight muscle he has."

Mourinho's fears are obvious, but Costa's involvement in a pivotal week for Chelsea has underlined the manager's reliance on the striker. Having said that Costa is not fit enough to play three times in seven days, the Portuguese started his No.9 against Aston Villa, Sporting Lisbon and Arsenal as he sought to enter the international break in a commanding position. That aim was achieved as the Brazilian scored twice in three crucial victories, but Mourinho admitted his selection was a gamble: "There is a risk, yes. But we accept that risk."

That Mourinho felt unable to substitute Costa in the narrow win over Sporting says much about his confidence in Loic Remy, who was signed as an afterthought from QPR after the manager had previously revealed Chelsea's business was done. "Loïc Rémy's learning how to play with us - his movement is good, his pace is good, he can get behind defenders and he is not bad in the air - but I would prefer to play Diego," said Mourinho last week. Remy already has one goal to his name despite playing just 27 minutes in the Premier League, but it is clear he must bide his time until Mourinho is willing to rotate his squad and allow Costa a well-earned rest.

Whereas Manchester City and Manchester United possess striking talent in abundance, Mourinho will have to be incredibly shrewd over his use of the three forwards in Chelsea's squad. Should Costa fail to last the pace and spend any amount of time in the treatment room, it is essential that Remy or Didier Drogba can prove a convincing replacement, but it is unlikely they will be prepared if they continue to be starved of competitive action. Although Demba Ba scored a number of important goals towards the end of last season, it was clear that his bit-part role knocked his confidence. "Sometimes when you are at a club with a lot of big stars, the name counts for more than the statistics," he said after joining Besiktas. "Unfortunately, it was like that in my case."

Mourinho's reluctance to turn to Remy and Drogba is understandable, with both leaving much to be desired compared to Costa's all-round game. But this is likely to be a telling factor in the title race, and casts considerable doubt over claims it is Chelsea's championship to lose. The Blues' rivals will no doubt be paying close attention to their striker situation, encouraged by Vicente Del Boque's insistence that Costa is fit to play for Spain in their Euro 2016 qualifying double header this week. Should he suffer another setback, then City, and possibly United and Arsenal, will be ready to capitalise. The title race is not over yet, not by any stretch of the imagination.

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