The slump, the £200m receipt and the only department passing
Dropped points and a derby lost with a man advantage are not nerve, and no damages payment from City addresses what actually broke us.
Good morning. A month of football has resolved into one story, and it landed on the day the league found City guilty on 114 of 115 charges.
The slump is the chance problem arriving
Dropped points, a first-round cup exit and a derby lost with a man advantage are being filed under nerve. They aren't. This is the chance-creation problem from Thursday's update arriving in the results column: a side that cannot manufacture a good chance on purpose cannot close a game out either.
Blowing a two-goal home lead reads as a bottle job, and ESPN's recap of the Brighton exit gives the size of it.
The result marked the first time in the Premier League era (1992-93) that Man United lost a home game in which they led by two goals in all competitions -- and the first time in 50 years going back to a 3-2 loss to Tottenham in 1976.