The baton of United's history needs to be passed on - who will the men to grasp it? 

REMEMBERING SIR BOBBY CHARLTON: A giant banner in tribute to Sir Bobby Charlton during the Premier League match at Old Trafford, Manchester. 

On a day when poignant tributes to Sir Bobby Charlton framed the Manchester derby, the need to protect the golden thread of United history that runs all the way from Munich to 2023 is stronger than ever; and a predictable, depressing defeat against City only underlines the fact.

The pre-match tributes for United legend Charlton, in which City, to their credit, paid their own part, were painful, wistful and heartfelt in equal measure.

But there’s a huge onus now on this current United side not to allow the thread to fray - and to maintain the principles that have been in the club’s DNA since the Busby Babes played on the same turf all those years ago.

For too long, sadly, they have been ebbing away and standards on the field have slipped with them.

That’s why a 3-0 home defeat came as no real surprise and why City barely seemed to sweat as they won without needing to reach top gear.

Sir Bobby, of course, was the last of the Munich survivors, and many subsequent legends have spoken of the part he played in helping future generations at Manchester United understand the legacy of that team of 1958.

Without them United would not be the club they are now, with a history and global fanbase that is still the envy of even their greatest rivals; and there would be no Best, Law, Giggs, Keane, Beckham, Scholes, Cantona or Rooney to sing about, either.

The baton to remind new recruits and youth teamers of United’s history ,of the way they play and the people they play for, will need to be passed on to others now. You wonder who the men will be to grasp it.

What is certain is that it is too precious to lose. And the moment that people stop noticing that the Munich clock remains stopped at 3.04pm on February 6th, 1958, then United are in trouble.

There was no chance of forgetting that on a day like this, of course, but United have strayed away from many of their on-field principles in recent years and it’s time they go back to them.

Under a series of different managers since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement, we’ve seen United teams defending deep and playing on the break, United teams without wingers, United teams lumping it up to a big man, United teams unable to press, United teams failing to show passion – and even losing regularly at Old Trafford.

Going through all that whilst noisy neighbours City win trophy after trophy cannot have been easy for fans on the Stretford End, and the gulf between the sides, and the extent of United’s demise, was made painfully clear again this time as City cruised to victory.

With Bernardo Silva running the show, the visitors were never really in trouble. A penalty from and a thumping header from Haaland put them 2-0 up and by the time Phil Foden made it 3-0 it felt like there was nothing United could do about it all.

Their defence was woefully missing for the second and third of those goals, and Amrabat, Eriksen and McTominay all failed in their attempts to deal with Silva or to exert any influence on midfield whatsoever.

There had been examples in recent weeks of United once again showing some of the spirit and pizzazz of old.

Two Fergie-time goals against Brentford, a last-minute penalty save against Copenhagen, for instance. But sadly, it was missing here Roy Keane, perhaps encouraged by those recent escapes, warned ahead of the match: “If City underestimate United, a bit like they did last year, then they’ll get punished “ He was referring to United’s 2-1 victory in January when goals from Fernandes and Rashford temporarily saw City’s Treble bid stutter.

But there was no sign of history repeating itself and no sign that United have made any meaningful progress, despite the hundreds of millions of Euros spent on new players, and despite the perceived improvements achieved last season under Erik ten Hag.

Goalkeeper Andre Onana, perhaps, could be excepted. Building on that penalty stop against Copenhagen, he also produced a quite stunning save to keep out Haaland on the stroke of half time – and he repeated the act against the same player in the second half.

But in pretty every other area of the pitch, United were second best.

Second best up front where Rasmus Hojlund failed to make an impact other than giving away a penalty. Second best in midfield, where Eriksen was isolated and Amrabat was substituted at half time. And, certainly, second best in defence where the combination of Maguire and Evans wouldn’t make it any other team in the top six.

What’s worrying, too, is the attacking spirit of old is being left behind. Other teams show greater energy, press harder and attack with greater skill and intensity than United, and that’s unforgiveable.

In the last five home matches United have lost to Crystal Palace, Galatasaray and City – and been hugely fortunate to beat Copenhagen and Brentford. You don’t have to scroll too far back, either, to find a home defeat against Brighton, too.

By the time that Foden scored the third, set up by Haaland with 10 minutes to go, any hopes that United were on the verge of rediscovering their swagger were well and truly over.

Maybe it's time to cancel training and give up on tactical tweaking.

A week watching showreels of the way United teams are meant to play, with passion, energy, ambition and integrity, is what's really needed.

"It's a long way back for this team," was Roy Keane's verdict - and he was right.