After Wayne Rooney's scoring drought continued in Manchester United's goalless draw with Newcastle, Nick Wright analyses his performance...
"I've had one bad game this season and everyone's all over it." So said a bullish Wayne Rooney in the build-up to their meeting with Newcastle, but another 90 minutes without a goal has only provided more fuel for his critics.
Rooney should not be held solely responsible for this laboured, unimaginative Manchester United performance, but the lack of goal threat from the man charged with leading their attack is becoming a serious cause for concern.
The statistics do not make pretty reading. Rooney has not scored for United since a 3-1 win against Aston Villa in April. It is a barren run that spans 10 games and 858 minutes, and it is his worst since 2007.
It could have been a different story were it not for a marginal offside call ruling out his fourth-minute strike, but Rooney's performance soon reverted to type after an encouraging start. He did manage his first two shots on target of the season, but that achievement merely serves to highlight his current malaise.
Indeed, this was the only the second time in 21 Premier League appearances that he has mustered more than one shot on target. Louis van Gaal described United's performance as "fantastic" and rued Rooney's disallowed goal in his post-match press conference, but on a day when they had 70 per cent possession and failed to score, their lack of cutting edge in and around the box was a glaring deficiency.
It was supposed to be so different. This summer, the departures of Robin van Persie and Radamel Falcao cleared the way for Rooney's first full season as a central striker since his superb 27-goal campaign in 2011/12, but he looks a shadow of his old, deadly self.
So what is going wrong? Having been shunted around the pitch to accommodate others in recent years, there was evidence against Newcastle to suggest Rooney's natural striking instincts have suffered.
The England man was forever dropping deep in search of the ball against Steve McClaren's side, and Opta's tacking data shows his average position was far deeper than that of Memphis and about level with that of Adnan Januzaj, who was operating as their No 10.
Rooney's desperation to make an impact is proving counter-productive. United desperately need a focal point for their attack, and Rooney would best served concentrating on his striking duties. Newcastle's centre-back pairing of Steven Taylor and Fabricio Coloccini are hardly blessed with great pace, but Rooney's reluctance to play off the last man ensured they were rarely tested.
His touchmap provides further evidence. Rooney had more touches in the centre circle than in Newcastle's box, and the touchmap also shows his tendency to drift into wide positions and abandon his responsibilities as United's central striker.
In his defence, Rooney was not the only United player who found it tough going against Newcastle. Memphis showed his class with two stunning goals in Wednesday's Champions League victory over Club Brugge, but he couldn't provide the same inspiration here.
In July, the Dutch winger spoke of the need to forge a partnership with Rooney. "We have to form a duo and I have the right feeling with him," he said. But the pair only exchanged passes six times in 90 minutes against the Magpies, and Depay also lost possession on 35 occasions - 14 more times than any other outfield player.
United's attacking unit is clearly a work in progress, but with Javier Hernandez and James Wilson as the only options behind Rooney, Van Gaal has little room for manoeuvre.
Despite that, the Dutchman refuted suggestions that United need to buy another striker before the closure of the transfer window. "Because we were three times the best team [in the league this season]," he explained. "My worry is that we have to dominate the opponent.
"We did it today, we did it against Aston Villa and against Tottenham, against Tottenham was less but against Villa, Brugge and today we dominate."
But United rarely looked like making their dominance count against Newcastle, and privately Van Gaal must be considering his options. Seven points and three clean sheets represent a satisfactory start to the Premier League campaign, but their issues at the other end of the pitch are impossible to ignore.
Rooney's frustration boiled over with a furious tirade against referee Craig Pawson in the closing stages. He looks like he is feeling the pressure, and it will only increase if United fail to bring in help before the end of the transfer window.