Stoke City condemned Man Utd to a 4th straight defeat #MUFC Van Gaal Rooney Depay Martial

Stoke City condemned Manchester United to a fourth straight defeat to increase the pressure on manager Louis van Gaal.

Bojan Krkic broke the deadlock after a poor header back to David de Gea from Memphis Depay allowed Glen Johnson to play it back to the Spanish forward.
Stoke went 2-0 ahead through Marko Arnautovic's 25-yard finish after Bojan's free-kick had hit the wall


Van Gaal dropped captain Wayne Rooney, who came on as a half-time substitute, and United struggled to create chances.
Stoke, who climbed three places to eighth in the Premier League, were superior throughout and could have won by more.
Arnautovic missed a great chance to add to United's misery when clean through, while Potters keeper Jack Butland denied Marouane Fellaini, Anthony Martial and Juan Mata.

Rooney decision backfires badly on Van Gaal
Van Gaal was already under pressure before kick-off after a poor run of form but the manner of United's defeat at the Britannia Stadium - together with the manager's decision to leave out England skipper Rooney - is bound to raise more questions about the Dutchman's future.
United rarely looked like getting back into the game after falling behind and showed little desire and leadership as they found themselves outmuscled and outfought by an impressive Stoke side.
They were already 2-0 behind after an awful first-half display when Rooney, starting on the bench in a league match for the first time since 28 January 2014, was introduced at the start of the second period.
They improved after the break, but Stoke, managed by former United forward Mark Hughes, deserved their victory.
Can't score, can't defend
United's lack of goals- seven in the past nine league games - has been well documented yet their latest downfall was caused by alarming mistakes at the back.
Depay's intended header back to his keeper De Gea was far too short and Bojan made the visitors pay with a close-range finish in the 19th minute after Johnson seized on the error to set up the former Barcelona player.
It was 2-0 seven minutes later when Bojan's free-kick rebounded off the wall and Arnautovic, who was quickest to react, produced a sublime finish from outside the area.
United had hardly tested Butland when Austria international Arnautovic got the better of Phil Jones after a delightful pass from Bojan only to fire wide when clean through.

Man of the match - Bojan Krkic
There were several candidates in Stoke shirts but the Spaniard was a thorn in United's defence from start to finish - a real team player who showed desire on and off the ball. He now has two goals in two games.
The stats you need to know
Marko Arnautovic has now scored more Premier League goals this season (6) than his previous two combined (5).

The last time Manchester United lost four competitive games in a row was between May-August 2001.

United have lost four competitive matches in a row within a single season for the first time since October-November 1961.

United lost a Premier League game on Boxing Day for the first time since 2002 (1-3 at Middlesbrough) and only for the second time overall in the competition (P22 W18 D2 L2).

Louis van Gaal's side have averaged just 1.22 goals per game in the league this season (22 goals in 18 games) - United's lowest average in a league campaign since 1989-90 (1.21).

Stoke have kept a clean sheet in eight of their last 11 Premier League games.

Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand posted this message during the game