Manchester United 3-0 Stoke City
First, the bad news.
Stoke City are in the danger zone and, judging by events of the past week, sacked Mark Hughes without foolishly having a replacement lined up.
Now, the good news.
They won’t have to face football games like this every week and are more than capable of climbing out of the drop zone and being a sports betting survivor.
Indeed, a significant bonus could await new boss Paul Lambert should he guide the Potters to Premier League safety.
After the club suffered a number of setbacks with Martin O’Neill, Quique Sanchez Flores and Gary Rowett all reportedly rejecting the job, Lambert watched his new charges from the stands at Old Trafford before he officially takes the reins in the next 24 hours.
Then the real work begins.
What he will have learned from this encounter – in which United opened up a three-point lead over Liverpool and Chelsea – is that he has inherited some talented footballers who should not be involved in a relegation battle.
That they are is because half a dozen or so underperformed for Hughes, and Lambert has to ensure they improve their efforts for him.
In this regard, it was hard to gauge any telling signs from a contest in which Antonio Valencia and Anthony Martial scored with impressive long-range strikes in the first half before Romelu Lukaku capped off a 3-0 triumph to ultimately make light work of the Potters.
What he will also have learned is that he needs defenders back quickly.
This was a match in which Stoke became the first side in Europe’s top five leagues to concede 50 goals this season.
If Lambert has the misfortune which affected Hughes, their cause certainly won’t be helped.
While Kevin Wimmer came back into the squad at Old Trafford and new signing Moritz Bauer made his debut, injured duo Ryan Shawcross and Erik Pieters were still missing.
Again, on the plus side, Lambert will have seen that Stoke did create chances which, if taken, would have made this a much closer game – proof they are more than capable of troubling even the top sides and firing their way out of trouble.
So all in all, it’s a mixed bag for a manager who has a proven top-flight experience, has never been relegated (keeping both Norwich and Aston Villa in the Premier League) and has extensive knowledge of English football.
He may not have been the club’s first, second or even third choice but should he guide Stoke to safety – and there is no reason why he shouldn’t – then perhaps this proud club will be smiling again.
The real work starts tomorrow and then, with games against fellow strugglers Huddersfield, Watford, Bournemouth and Brighton to come, the destiny is in their own hands.
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