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Premier League roundup: Another bad day at the office for Louis van Gaal's Manchester United

Garry Monk's Swansea side showed once again that they may well be a force to be reckoned with thi...



Premier League roundup: Anothe...
Soccer

Premier League roundup: Another bad day at the office for Louis van Gaal's Manchester United

Garry Monk's Swansea side showed once again that they may well be a force to be reckoned with this season, while Southampton are back to winning ways. 

Southampton 3-0 Norwich

It was a first-half red card that caused all the damage for Alex Neil's Norwich today as Steven Whittaker picked up a second yellow for bundling over Dusan Tadic near the halfway line. He needlessly got his name in the book first time around for trying to stop a quick throw in, and both he and his side paid dearly for that error in judgement. 

Neil had to make a quick tactical adjustment, sacrificing Ireland's Wes Hoolahan to bring on a defender in Andre Wisdom, but that had little effect on the final scoreline. 

Graziano Pellè opened the scoring, getting himself on the end of a cross from Saido Mané. 

It was then the turn of Tadic to pop up, and haivng been very critical of his side's tactics during the week, he was making sure that he held up his end of the bargain after he grabbed two goals in quick succession to put the result beyond doubt. 

Mané was particularly strong for the home side, setting up all of his side's goals, which won't make pleasant viewing for Ireland manager Martin O'Neill. The Senegalese winger skinned Robbie Brady on a number of occasions, leaving the Irishman looking rather foolish. 

It will be a welcome return to winning ways for Ronald Koeman's side, who looked to lack creativity and pace in their opening few games. Going into the international break with a win will ease his worries, and give him time to pinpoint the best way for his new-look side to play.  

Swansea 2-1 Manchester United

It wasn't a classic in the first half, with little of note going on. Manchester United once again concentrated on short passing and holding possession, but from the start of the second half, things really kicked into high gear. 

A Juan Mata goal saw Manchester United take the lead, as he ghosted in at the back post to slot home a chance.

That seemed only to spur Swansea into life themselves who scored two goals within a couple of minutes, the first of which came through an Andre Ayew header. 

Manchester United's goalkeeping problems have been much publicised in recent weeks, and questions will definitely be asked of Sergio Romero who really didn't cover himself in glory for the second Swansea goal, being beaten low down at his near post by Bafétimbi Gomis. 

In the closing stages, United's defence looked to be completely shapeless and were in fact lucky that a call from the linesman went their way when Shelvey would have been clear through on goal with the option of shooting or playing in Gomis for a tap in. 

They lost their shape and their discipline, and resorted to long diagonal balls to try and put the home side under pressure, but a returning Marouane Fellaini was ineffectual, and Swansea were first to every ball, showing up Manchester United's lack of sharpness and desire. 

There are a number of problems that Van Gaal will need to address sooner rather than later however, and having already been very busy in the transfer market, he can no longer point the finger of blame at his squad. 

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