Talk of the Devils: The Athletic FC's Manchester United show

If you were to try and identify Manchester United's worst first half performance this season you would have a lengthy queue of candidates, but the latest showing at Goodison Park might just be it.

In fact, the malaise dragged on for 70 minutes when, possibly fortunate to only be 2-0 down, the team were sparked into life by Bruno Fernandes. The captain beat Jordan Pickford with a free-kick but also dropped deeper in midfield to generate some momentum.

Manuel Ugarte's well taken equaliser was the end of the scoring, even if there was plenty of drama yet to come. But, with Kieran McKenna's Ipswich Town coming to Old Trafford on Wednesday, Laurie is doing some frantic sums!

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He's done it again, Bruno Fernandes may not be an alpha captain but as a player he leads by example and steps up whenever he is needed; especially when that stepping up is to a penalty kick.

Bruno holds quite a few Europa League records now, but in truth this was a team performance, one that will reassure Ruben Amorim that he can place his trust in some key players.

Ruud van Nistelrooy's Leicester City are up next, and it's difficult to take pleasure in saying they should not provide much of an obstacle to United's momentum.

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Andy Mitten and Laurie Whitwell join Ian Irving to discuss the latest goings on at Manchester United with Carl Anka reporting from the Womens' FA Cup Final at Wembley Stadium.

It was a frustrating afternoon for MUWFC and Marc Skinner who took the initiative against their more illustrious opponents, Chelsea, but were undone by a typically ruthless Sam Kerr.

Meanwhile, Alejandro Garnacho sealed a relatively comfortable Premier League win over Wolves at Old Trafford. The youngster is making a name for himself, but still has a lot to learn, so it's a real challenge to navigate his development.

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Our normal schedule resumes and we're back on some familiar subject matter, but not before another big interview courtesy of the team at The Athletic; this time, Charlotte Harpur sat down with Raphael Varane and while he spoke in a measured manner he was fairly candid about his time at the club.

Manchester United's accounts were published on Wednesday and, even for those versed in the club's financial problems, some alarming figures emerged. Debt repayments resulting from the Glazer family's leveraged takeover have now passed £1b.

On the pitch, it's the last ever trip to Goodison Park this week. After a long sustained period of success there, fortunes changed somewhat; a solid recent record might be threatened by a Blues side resurgent under the doubly familiar figure of David Moyes.

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It was the worst month for Manchester United in 95 years, yet it started with a four-nil victory and included a famous derby win.

We attempt to pick apart the problems of a team learning new patterns of play while negotiating a hectic festive programme and with their most valuable player deemed un-selectable, for the time being at least.

Is there much hope for improvement in the near future? We do our best, but it's tough when you're visiting Europe's best team (on form) and the Premier League's hottest attacker of all time.

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