Can we at least claim to be the best of the rest?

No Red in his right mind should have been surprised when the final whistle blew last night. A week ago, I bluntly concluded here: “Defeat is the likeliest outcome for a Pogba-free United; I’d snatch your hand off for a draw.”

We labour under no illusions.

Indeed, the night before the game, the local weather forecast briefly suggested we might be in for eight inches of snow at Old Trafford, which would have seen the game called off — thus allowing Pogba to play in the rearranged fixture. Some Reds secretly hoped for the snowfall. Instead, the weather front went south — along with United’s last remaining title chances, perhaps?