Manchester United 0-1 West Brom: 3 things that went wrong for the Red Devils

Manchester United slumped to a 1-0 defeat to relegation battlers West Brom at Old Trafford on Sunday.

Jay Rodriguez pounced on a bad clearance from Nemanja Matic following a corner kick in the 73rd minute to hand the Baggies a much-required lead. Caretaker manager Darren Moore was obviously pretty pleased with the win as his side put in an astute defensive display in the dying minutes of the game.

The win also confirmed Manchester City as the Premier League winners. Jose Mourinho's side went from beating the best in the league to losing against the worst team in the division.

So, what went wrong for the Red Devils? Let's have a look.

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#3 Lack of aggression

Manchester United delivered a display of monotonous football

Manchester United took to the field expecting to extend their league winning streak to 6 games in a row. Well, they did beat Chelsea Liverpool and Manchester City in the previous five games and were obviously brimming with confidence. However, the style of play was far from what the fans would've expected.

In spite of enjoying the maximum amount of possession during the 90 minutes, Mourinho's men delivered monotonous football, incurring the wrath of the United faithful. They lacked the required flair and cutting edge up front and failed to deliver the required results in the end.

They started the first 45 minutes on a sloppy note, with the desire to score goals visibly missing as they played. On an individual level, the likes of Pogba, Sanchez and Lukaku failed to produce the spark and unlock West Brom's stellar defence. The substitutions of Martial and Lingard did little to improve the conditions.

Apart from the results, the quality of football at Old Trafford has fallen; an issue that needs to be addressed soon.

Mourinho's defensive-minded philosophy has been fairly brilliant at times, but ineffective in a considerable number of games. The Portuguese gaffer needs to rethink his ways if he wishes to win silverware with the club and live up to the expectations of the United faithful.

#2 Wayward finishing

Romelu Lukaku missed crucial chances

Romelu Lukaku had been impressive for United in the last few weeks but failed to make the difference against West Brom. The Belgian missed easy chances in the first half and had he found the net, United could have capped the night off with another win.

Ben Foster had a night to remember as he put in a solid performance, also denying a crucial Chris Smalling header in the second half.

Another issue to address upfront for Mourinho next season is to find a suitable backup striker. With Zlatan gone and the Special One visibly reluctant on using either of Martial or Rashford as the spearhead of United attack, roping in a decent forward will be an important task during the summer transfer window.

#1 When will United find the consistency?

Will Jose ever get United playing consistently well?

If there's anything that has frustrated the United faithful other than the monotonous style of play, it is how intermittent the Red Devils have been throughout the season.

Lack of consistency is a major reason why United are miles behind City in the points table despite having the best squad since Sir Alex retired.

Mourinho is yet to get the best out of Paul Pogba and Alexis Sanchez. Should it take more time for the Portuguese gaffer to set up a fluent system that delivers on a consistent basis, he could end up losing his job as the Manchester United coach.

The Red Devils will play away to Bournemouth next weekend followed by a crucial first leg FA Cup semi-final tie against Tottenham. All we can hope is the team finds the right balance, leaving behind the mess of last night.