Pressure is mounting on Ole Gunnar Solskjaer after Aston Villa became the second promoted side inside a week to take points from Manchester United. Just a week on from a 3-3 draw against Sheffield United, Dean Smith’s side left Old Trafford with a draw and believing they were the better side without taking full reward.
And in Jack Grealish, who scored a brilliant opener, could have added a second and would not have looked out of place in red, they had the best player on show.
If statistical evidence is needed about how much of a reboot this club appear to need, since his permanent appointment Solskjaer has won just six of the 22 games in the league.
It is a poor record – 18 points from 14 games so far – which compares unfavourably with Jose Mourinho’s United side who had 26 points from 17 games when he was sacked.
In addition they have lost 12 points from winning positions in the league this season, are ninth. And guess who is next up on Wednesday?
The January transfer window has long since looked key and it now looks massive with an alternative surely needed for Anthony Martial, a player who looks ill-equipped to lead them out of a slump.
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And while United, too, might point to chances later in the game – Martial chipped over from three yards – it was hard to escape the feeling that it was Villa who missed out.
United had no excuses for a slow start given all starters had been spared the 6,000 round trip to Kazakhstan for Thursday’s Europa League dead rubber against Astana.
But while the legs were not heavy the thinking was.
In contrast, Grealish had been at the heart of everything good about their win over Newcastle and he was right on it from the start here despite United doing their best to rough him up.
His opening goal was a peach, too, curling a shot inside David De Gea’s far post from the left side after a burst of pace from Anwar El Ghazi down the right flank delivered the ball at his feet.
Things will not get easier for Solskjaer with a resurgent Spurs and Mourinho here on Wednesday night with a point to prove and United still likely to be without Paul Pogba and Scott McTominay.
The feeling things could get worse before they get better is hard to escape.