Manchester United's Wild Inconsistency Will Deny Them Any Success This Season

Ahead of the game, it seemed highly unlikely that Manchester United and Newcastle United would play out an end-to-end 3-3 draw at St James' Park.

The Magpies had not scored in five games—and had not scored against a team that was not Aston Villa in six. Manchester United had laboured to a 1-0 win over Sheffield United and their problems in front of goal had been centre of attention.

Steve McClaren's Newcastle, though, did not follow the pattern of play so often implemented against Manchester United this season—including themselves at Old Trafford. WhoScored.com shared Wayne Rooney's stats:

But, having gone 2-0 down to goals from Rooney and Jesse Lingard, thanks to an impressive opening period from the Red Devils, Newcastle found Manchester United's defence entirely receptive to their advances.

It was all-too easy. Individual mistakes from Marouane Fellaini and Chris Smalling cost the visitors dearly. They fired themselves back into the lead through Rooney—who has finally hit some form of late.

However, in an outcome which somehow managed to be numbingly predictable and slightly shocking at the same time, Louis van Gaal's side threw away another lead and left the North-East with a solitary point.

The manager was not happy with the mistakes that had led to his side's undoing saying, per Louise Taylor of the Guardian: 

"

We have only ourselves to blame because we could have won this match.

We missed big chances to win it. We were the better team. We have scored three goals but only have one point. So now is the defence weak? No. We were unlucky in decisions of the referee and a deflected shot and we did not finish our chances.

We have given it away. I have told that to my players. When the referee gives a penalty for nothing - it is a duel I think and you cannot decide who is worse - but we gave it away.

"

Of course, in spite of Van Gaal's protestations, the finger of blame once again points in the manager's direction.

Although he is correct to point to Lingard and Fellaini's missed chances, the truth is, his makeshift back four was comprised of a centre-back, a midfielder playing at centre-back, a left-winger playing at right-back and a right-back playing at left-back. Squawka Football noted the impact of Fellaini's presence and absence on his team's win-lose streak:

His central midfield featured Fellaini—a player so imposing and useful when played further forward, but who has never shown any evidence he can be an effective defensive midfielder for Manchester United.

These were decisions the manager made both in terms of team selection and in terms of squad building that have come to haunt the team as much as Lingard's and Fellaini's misses or any refereeing errors.

The fact the Red Devils scored three times for the first time since their 3-0 win over Everton on October 17 2015 is, of course, something to be celebrated. Squawka shared Morgan Schneiderlin's stats vs. Newcastle:

Schneiderlin once again underlined his importance to United, Rooney's display was impressive and Ander Herrera's incisive through ball—that Rooney used to set up Lingard—was an example of why many fans are so keen on seeing him in the starting XI. Memphis Depay provided another heartening cameo.

However, Manchester United's inability to hold onto the lead, either at 2-0 or 3-2, is cause for alarm.

It is also another example of the profound inconsistency Van Gaal's side have displayed this season. They have lurched from impressive winning runs to drab streaks of draws and losses.

Often they have plodded ineffectively through games with a huge number of possessions. More than occasionally—against Wolfsburg, Norwich and Bournemouth for example—they have been the architects of their own demise through calamitous defensive errors. Paul Scholes was much more impressed with his former team's performance against Newcastle, per BT Sport Football:

They are so far from the finished products, and the trip to St James' Park was yet more evidence of that.

Next up is a trip to Anfield, a cause for some anxiety among Manchester United fans even when their team was at its imperious best, because it is a game fans care about more than others. Given the wild inconsistency that has typified the season, it is very hard to know what kind of display the Red Devils will muster.

That inconsistency has already cost them too many points for the league title to be a serious consideration, and it continues to undermine any hope of Van Gaal being remembered as a success when he eventually leaves Old Trafford. How imminently that departure comes could be influenced in one direction or another by which version of his side turns up at Anfield on Sunday.