2 Bournemouth
1 Manchester United
at Dean Court

THIS is getting all too familiar for Manchester United fans. As Louis van Gaal addressed the media on Saturday following United’s 2-1 defeat to Bournemouth, his eyes were focussed not on the journalists asking him questions but the TV screen behind them.

Sky Sports were showing Manchester City’s 2-1 victory over Swansea, where the Manchester side scored a late winner, something the red half of the city were renowned for under Alex Ferguson.

As he half-heartedly attempted to fool those in attendance that United dominated the first half and were outdone by two set-pieces, it sounded like he was running out of ideas.

At no point did the away side look like taking all three points, even when Marouane Fellaini cancelled out Junior Stanislas’s second-minute opener which came direct from a corner.

And when Joshua King, once of United, scored midway through the second half to give the Cherries all three points, the joke that is now Manchester United became even funnier.

Because an hour before kick-off, James Wilson, on loan at Brighton, had given them the lead.

And as United chased the game, Javier Hernandez, who was sold in the summer to Bayern Leverkusen, was scoring a hat-trick which put him on 13 goals in 11 games.

United desperately lack goals, among a host of other things, and the players that are capable of doing something about it have been dismissed from the club.

Van Gaal spoke about the injury crisis which forced United to start the match with Guillermo Varela, Paddy McNair and Cameron Borthwick-Jackson in the back four. Three youngsters who would be nowhere near the first team if Van Gaal wasn’t desperate.

But this wasn’t the week to raise this point given that his opposing manager Eddie Howe is going through an injury crisis himself.

Goalscorers King and Stanislas would not be playing if Max Gradel and Callum Wilson hadn’t picked up injuries which will force them to watch most of this Premier League campaign from the treatment table.

Howe said afterward that he hadn’t allowed his players to hide behind their unfortunate injury situation.

And though Van Gaal dismissed the suggestion that he was making up excuses, the fact that he brought up United missing key players when asked about how he was going to turn United’s run of five games without a win is telling.