Manchester United's Capital One Cup Loss Highlights Squad Limitations

The sting of Manchester United's fourth-round Capital One Cup loss will fade if Louis van Gaal's side are successful elsewhere this season. It was clear the Dutchman's priorities lay elsewhere as soon as the first name on the teamsheet was read out and Sergio Romero was announced as United's goalkeeper for the evening.

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However, in the disjointed and disheartening display at Old Trafford, there were hints of some of the issues currently facing United's squad.

Van Gaal played a stronger side when his team met Ipswich Town in the previous round. This time, though, he rotated heavily, with nine changes from Sunday's draw with Manchester City.

It was not entirely surprising he did so. Ahead of the game against Middlesbrough, Van Gaal said, per Jamie Jackson of the Guardian, "I have a lot of players in the red zone because we have had a lot of matches and we have a lot of matches to play."

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Romero's presence in place of David De Gea was emblematic. It was the first time in Van Gaal's entire United tenure he had rotated his No. 1. Of course, De Gea was left out during the transfer window, but that was not to rest him for other competitions.

Three of the front four were made up of academy graduates—pleasing for those with a care for United's youth system. The misfiring Memphis Depay also returned to the side. That combination, and the midfield pairing of Michael Carrick and Marouane Fellaini, gave United's XI a thrown-together feel.

Expecting those players to jell and perform at their best when they have not played together before was a big ask. Equally, expecting some of those individuals to perform when they have had little first-team action either in recent weeks or across the season as a whole was perhaps hoping for too much.

Van Gaal will not be judged on the League Cup. However, given United have won no silverware since David Moyes engineered a victory over Wigan Athletic in the 2013 Community Shield, the Red Devils cannot afford to be snobbish about which trophies they contest.

Andreas Pereira has had no minutes of league football this season, though he did feature in the League Cup and—briefly—in the Champions League. James Wilson had eight minutes of first-team football to his name this season before Wednesday night.

Jesse Lingard has been involved in first-team action in recent weeks but still has just 168 minutes of league football and 80 minutes in the Champions League under his belt.

Fellaini ranks 19th in United's squad for league minutes played. If Van Gaal wants his squad players to perform when required, he may need to involve them a little more often.

The League Cup could have provided a valuable platform for some of these players had the Dutchman navigated it more successfully. As it was, there were simply too many changes made, and too few of the players who needed to take this chance succeeded in doing so.

Memphis really struggled, unable to make an impact until he was eventually replaced by Anthony Martial. These struggles are not unique to the League Cup. The Netherlands international's early United career is certainly not going to plan—this was an example of an ongoing problem rearing its head.

Wilson picked up an injury, and Van Gaal opted to replace him at half-time with Wayne Rooney—a player whose form has been so dismal it seemed unlikely he would make a substantial impact. That form is another subject that is not confined to the League Cup.

This game weighed perhaps more heavily on fans than it would have done had it not followed two frustrating draws against CSKA Moscow and Manchester City. Following a run of fixtures in which United frequently scored three goals, they have now scored one in three games.

Van Gaal will need to address the issues present on Wednesday to affect the season as a whole—Memphis' form, Rooney's form and the lack of involvement of the cameo performers in the squad.

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Over-rotation and a lack of quality at vital moments from key players cost the Red Devils one of their chances of a trophy this season.

If Van Gaal can engineer success in another competition, it will have been a worthwhile sacrifice. Whether he will do so remains in the balance.

All advanced statistics per WhoScored.com.