Villa Old Trafford Shocker

On an Old Trafford evening of seething frustration, Manchester United squandered their chance to stand alongside Chelsea at the peak of the Premier League. One fine goal was all it took to send Aston Villa home in triumph to the West Midlands, leaving United to curse their fate and their failings.

Sir Alex Ferguson accepted defeat with decent grace. He has never been one of the game’s worst losers, and while he made an attempt to criticise the referee for a lack of added time, it was a token effort, nothing serious. He knew that the fault lay with his own players, that anything else was mere distraction.