Manchester United manager David Moyes has suffered a stuttering start to life at Old Trafford but it could have been far worse for the Scot if he had failed to retain the services of striker Wayne Rooney.
A plethora of high-profile attacking signings had expectant Manchester United fans dreaming of a return to the upper echelons of European football, but their failure to identify their defensive problems is threatening to derail those hopes.
Willian's late strike snatched a 1-0 home win for Chelsea over a stubborn Everton side to maintain lead.
What a difference an international break makes. Before Europe's top domestic leagues were interrupted by players jetting off around the world to play for their countries, Manchester United's supposed new dawn under Louis van Gaal was obscured by dark clouds.
The Argentinian becomes the first brand ambassador of the company in its 70-year history.
Manchester City squandered a gilt-edged opportunity to close the gap on Premier League leaders Chelsea when they let slip a two-goal lead to draw 2-2 at home to struggling Burnley on Sunday.
European champions Bayern Munich led the charge into the last 16 of the Champions League when they beat Viktoria Plzen 1-0 to chalk up a record-equalling ninth straight victory in the competition on Tuesday.
Arsenal maintained their challenge for a first trophy in nine seasons when they beat Liverpool 2-0 at the Emirates Stadium to open up a five-point lead at the top of the Premier League on Saturday.
Leaders Chelsea have seen their lead reduced to just three points after a shock defeat, and a revival from defending champions Manchester City. Manchester United are back in third after a run of five straight wins. If Chelsea slip agains, City continue to pile on the pressure and United keep the winning momentum it will make EPL battle further interesting.
Manchester United are likely to welcome back captain Wayne Rooney from suspension for their visit to Premier League champions Manchester City on Sunday, hoping the striker can add to his record scoring tally in the derby.
This and more from the happenings in the world of footbal.
Manchester United dropped further down the table after losing 5-3 against newcomers Leicester City. Barcelona and Real Madrid scored 13 goals between them during a memorable La Liga weekend, when Cristiano Ronaldo netted a hat-trick.
Chelsea were declared the "autumn champions" by coach Jose Mourinho as they maintained their unbeaten start to the season with a 2-1 win at Anfield on Saturday that kept them four points clear of Southampton at the top of the Premier League.
Chelsea icon Frank Lampard scored for Manchester City to end his old club's perfect start to the Premier League season while Leicester City came from 3-1 down to beat Manchester United 5-3 on a remarkable day in the Premier League on Sunday.
The 20-time English Premier League champions are far from their best, but, in the final analysis, it is the results that matter, and at the moment they are on a winning spree, says Bikash Mohapatra
As Manchester United prepare to embark on a new era following Louis van Gaal;s departure, Bikash Mohapatra/Rediff.com offers a diagnosis of what went wrong with the most successful Premier League club after Sir Alex Ferguson called it a day.
Angel di Maria's move from Real Madrid to Old Trafford was such a disaster that Manchester United was more than willing to incur losses of more than 15 million pounds on their investment. Bikash Mohapatra/Rediff.com looks at the Argentina star's nightmare year at the 'Theatre of Dreams'.
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