Just when you thought it couldn't get worse for Manchester United, it did, with the first two English Premier League matches now looking like outstanding results when compared to what transpired at the Stadium mk in the Capital One Cup second round on Tuesday night.
Playing in the second round of the League Cup for the first time since 1995, Manchester United made it a night to forget, and then some, as League One side Milton Keynes Dons pulled off an incredible, scathing and thumping 4-0 victory.
Louis Van Gaal, on the day that Angel Di Maria finally completed his British record move, made ten changes to the side which drew 1-1 at Sunderland on Sunday, with only goalkeeper David De Gea staying in the starting XI, and the Dutchman might now be wondering just what he was thinking, as his young side put on a performance not even worthy of Sunday morning park football.
While much of the focus was on the youngsters of Manchester United, with the likes of Saidy Janko, Marnick Vemijl, Reece James, Michael Keane and Reece James all starting, it was two youngsters from MK Dons who stole the spotlight with Will Grigg, the 23-year-old Northern Irishman, and Benik Afobe, the on-loan Arsenal youngster, grabbing a brace each to hand United a humiliating defeat.
"I'm a little bit shocked to be walking off and seeing the scoreline," said MK Dons' 33-year-old manager Karl Robinson said. "It's ridiculous, it's something that dreams are made of for these players. Now we have to live up to our billing.
"I thought once we came to terms with the pace of the game we were comfortable, and we've showed everybody, journalists, those in the stadium and those who watched on TV, that we are a club going places. We had a game plan, and it helped that Coventry on Saturday also played with a back three."
The back three is clearly not working for Manchester United, even if most of the goals were conceded via horrible errors, with Jonny Evans, one of the most experienced players in the United lineup, kicking the error-train off in the 25h minute with a horrible pass to Ben Reeves, who then picked out Grigg for an easy finish.
Grigg then showed off some class that would not have looked out of place at Old Trafford wearing the home team's colours, wonderfully chesting home a cross from Reeves into the net on 63 minutes.
Afobe then made it 3-amazing-0 seven minutes later, latching onto a through ball from the excellent Reeves, to finish with aplomb. The rout was complete six minutes from time as the Arsenal striker bullied his way past the non-existent United defence to slot home and send the home fans into utter, dreamy, ecstatic delirium.
"It was a matter of making errors at wrong moments," Van Gaal told MUTV of the near unbelievable result. "When you see the goals against us, I believe there were big errors in the build-ups. When you make errors like that, you give the match away.
"It's difficult for the fans, I know that, but they have to believe in our philosophy. At the end, they can judge, but not now. I hope they shall maintain their confidence in the club and in our philosophy because that philosophy takes time. We are building up a team which you can't make in one month, even one year."
Other Results: Bournemouth 3-0 Northampton; Brentford 0-1 Fulham; Burnley 0-1 Sheffield Wednesday; Crewe 2-3 Bolton; Derby County 1-0 Charlton; Gillingham 0-1 Newcastle; Huddersfield 0-2 Nottingham Forest; Leicester City 0-1 Shrewsbury; Middlesbrough 3-1 Preston; Millwall 0-2 Southampton; Norwich City 3-1 Crawley; Port Vale 2-3 Cardiff City; Scunthorpe 0-1 Reading; Swansea 1-0 Rotherham; Swindon 2-4 Brighton; Walsall 0-3 Crystal Palace; Watford 1-2 Doncaster; West Ham 1-1 Sheffield United (Sheffield United win 5-4 on penalties); West Brom 1-1 Oxford United (West Brom win 7-6 on penalties).
