Manchester United Without Wayne Rooney

The last time Manchester United lost three games in a row was in 2001. Derby, Southampton and Tottenham defeated a United side, who had already won the Premier League title.

Tonight, United once more face the prospect of three straight defeats. This time, though, a defeat could mean the end of their season.

On Saturday past, Chelsea arrived at Old Trafford on the back of a 5-0 victory over Portsmouth and a 7-1 thumping of Aston Villa. Their confidence was high and they were buoyed by the absence of Wayne Rooney.

For much of the game, they were the better side and, despite Drogba's obvious offside goal, were deserved winners. United, on the other hand, laboured for much of the match and clearly missed their 34-goal striker.

United had reason to be optimistic, however. They'd won 10 of their last 11 without their star man. However, most of those came when Carlos Tevez and Cristiano Ronaldo were still plying their trade at Old Trafford.

Without Rooney, United looked an ordinary side. Berbatov fluffed a chance for an equaliser, and it would have been harsh on Chelsea had he scored.

United continued on from their woeful display of passing against Bayern, to an equally bad one against their main rivals. The worrying thing was that they did it at Old Trafford. 

In the last four seasons, United have lost only six games at Old Trafford. They've come to dominate teams at the Theatre of Dreams. They control possession and pass the ball around at will.

Against Chelsea, they capitulated. In the second half, they looked somewhat akin to a half-decent Manchester United side. But without their talisman up front, they provided no real threat to Petr Cech's goal.

Let's not take anything away from their season. They've done brilliantly to be where they are right now.

But on Saturday, the frailties that Wayne Rooney's incredible performances have papered ove,r were laid bare for everyone to see. Take away his goals and United would be in a fight for a fourth-place finish with their city rivals.

Tonight, Manchester United have a chance to remind the footballing world that they aren't a one-man team.

If they are to progress against Louis van Gaal's Bayern Munich, they will need to perform a lot better than they did against Chelsea. The one comfort Sir Alex Ferguson will have is that Rooney may be on the bench.

The young man's incredible ability to recover in double-quick time from injuries is a major boost to the remainder of United's season. With Chelsea still having to travel to Anfield, Rooney may yet return to fire United to glory in their remaining five league games.

It's likely he won't make the bench tonight, which gives Dimitar Berbatov another opportunity to justify his huge price tag. The Bulgarian has been a shadow of his former self since becoming United's most expensive player.

But if past experiences are anything to go by, one good performance could mark a return to form. It's time for him to repay Ferguson for his patience, and step out of the shadow of Rooney and Ronaldo.

He will never be, as some people might have believed, another Cantona. But tonight, he has an opportunity to win back the hearts of the fans he has let down.

Manchester United are not the same team without Rooney, but they should still have enough to see off Bayern Munich tonight.

If Rooney doesn't play a part, Nani and Valencia will need to provide Berbatov with quality service if the Premier League champions are to progress into their fourth successive Champions' League semi-final.