Manchester United worst defeats in Premier League history

Football is a game which requires a lot of consistency and even a legendary team like Manchester United has its own share of humiliating defeats in the history of the Premier League. Manchester United are arguably the biggest and most iconic Premier League team alongside Liverpool considering their numerous accolades and dominance. Ever since the inception of the Premier League in 1992, Manchester United have garnered the most PL titles till date ( 13 ). This was under the era of legend Sir Alex Ferguson who has forged his own legacy at Manchester United.

However, each team has it’s downfall, a change in squad and management as well which has changed Manchester United a lot. Ever since Sir Alex Ferguson left Manchester United, they have struggled to qualify for the top four at times let alone contend for titles. Many matches post Sir Alex Ferguson era are some of Man Utd’s biggest defeats in the Premier League. Overall Manchester United have had some horrible losses in the Premier League. Let’s take a look at some of Manchester United’s worst defeats in the history of the Premier League.

Newcastle United 5-0 Manchester United

Newcastle were strong contenders for the Premier League title in the 1996/1997 season. Alan Shearer led the helm for Newcastle United as they were set to face Manchester United at home. Alan Shearer, David Ginola, Les Ferdinand and Philippe Albert made their way onto the scoresheet. Newcastle United won the match comfortably with 5 goals to none against the mighty Manchester United.

Although Manchester United did manage to win the Premier League title at the end of the season, the 5-0 loss against Newcastle definitely comes in the list of Man Utd’s worst defeats.

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Manchester United 3-0 Manchester City

David Moyes was under a lot of pressure to fill the boots of legend Sir Alex Ferguson after he left Manchester United in 2013. Moyes was managing Everton before joining Manchester United and was the first manager post Sir Alex Ferguson era. Moyes had already lost 4-1 to Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium in match-week three in the same season. To make things more worse, Manchester United then faced Manchester City at Old Trafford again in the season. Unfortunately Manchester United could not avenge themselves as they lost 3-0 in that match.

Edin Dzeko scored the opening goal in the first minute for Manchester City which gave his team the momentum. Dzeko scored one more goal when the match was near the 30 minute mark. Yaya Toure also managed to score a goal which completely sealed the deal for Manchester City handing Manchester United a very humiliating defeat.

Manchester United 1-6 Tottenham Hotspurs

One of Man Utd’s biggest defeats in the Premier League came in the 2020/2021 season under manager Ole Solskjaer. Bruno Fernandes score the opening goal in less than two minutes and everything was looking lively for Manchester United for the rest of the game. Unfortunately, Manchester United could not hold onto the lead and conceded a goal almost immediately after scoring. Scoring goal after goal, Tottenham Hotspurs eventually won the match 6-1.

Tanguy N’dombele scored for Tottenham almost immediately after conceding. Just a few minutes later, Son-Heung Min scored to make the score 2-1. Eventually, Son and Kane ended up with 2 goals each and Serge Aurier scored as well to make the score 6-1.

Manchester United 0-5 Liverpool

Many United fans consider this defeat as one of if not the worst Manchester United defeat in history. This is due to a few major factors. First, the rivalry between Liverpool and Manchester United has always been intense. These two clubs are very close to each other in terms of most titles and much more. Secondly, the match was at Manchester United’s home stadium Old Trafford which made matters even worse.

The 2021/2022 Premier League season for Manchester United was completely in shambles because of their poor results in September and October. Man United had lost to Aston Villa, drew against Everton, and lost 4-2 against Leicester City before facing Liverpool. Mohamed Salah scored a brilliant hat-trick whilst Naby Keita and Diogo Jota grabbed a goal each as Liverpool had a comfortable 5-0 lead in just 50 minutes.

Manchester United 1-6 Manchester City

The 2011/2012 Premier League season had one of the best title races ever. Manchester United were at par with Manchester City club in points and it all came down to the famous Manchester Derby. Sir Alex Ferguson started the season with Man Utd on an eight-game unbeaten run and were set to face Manchester City at Old Trafford. In what seemed like an easy win, Manchester City shocked everyone beating Manchester Utd 6-1 at Old Trafford.

The match was barely in contention as up until the 60th when minute Balotelli scored another goal to make the score 2-0. City managed to score four more goals in the last 30 minutes with Darren Fletcher scoring a consolation goal for Manchester United to make the score 6-1. The defeat proved to be very costly for Manchester United as ultimately Manchester City won the 2011/2012 Premier League title on goal difference.

Liverpool 7-0 Manchester United

This is arguably not only Man U’s biggest loss but also Manchester United’s worst defeat in the history of the Premier League as well. Every team faces a lot of pressure whilst playing at Liverpool’s stadium Anfield because of its electrifying atmosphere. In the 2023/2024 season, Manchester United faced Liverpool in an away game at Anfield. Surprisingly, Manchester United held their own for the first 40 minutes and were doing quite well. However, a late goal in the first half of the match from Cody Gakpo put Manchester United in shambles.

Liverpool scored a staggering six goals in the second half with Mohamed Salah and Darwin Nunez scoring two goals each and Bobby Firmino scoring a goal. Mohamed Salah was once again the star of the match against Man Utd as he not only scored a brace but was a consistent and constant threat to Man Utd’s defense throughout the game. Eventually, the match ended 7-0, whilst Liverpool could have scored more, their dominant 7-0 win is Man U’s biggest defeat in the history of the Premier League.

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