The former Manchester United stalwart Ryan Giggs has backed the club’s manager Jose Mourinho to turn things around at the club.
The Portuguese had predicted that his side would be in the top four reckoning by May 2019 but another putrid performance in a scoreless draw with Crystal Palace at Old Trafford has left that looking fanciful.
Giggs, though, is not of the mind that a managerial switch will cure all the club’s ills.
"I don't see why changing the manager at this stage will change anything," Giggs told Sky Sports News.
"Everyone knows what a successful manager he's been over the years. I believe that bit of stability we've not had over the years - we need to stick with him.
"But results also need to change. I think we've got the manager, the players to do that."
United now sit in seventh place in the league one twenty-one points, closer to the bottom of the table than they are to the top.
More painful for them, still, is the fact that it’s neighbours Manchester City and old rivals Liverpool that set the pace. Both are unbeaten, with the Sky Blues shading matters.
Slow and steady, though, is the way to win the race, according to the Wales national team manager Giggs.
"Manchester City and Liverpool, the teams up there, they are consistent," he said.
"When your nearest rivals are that far ahead of you it's hard to take. It's still 13 games into the season, time to claw it back.
"But the only way of doing that is going on a run of seven or eight games unbeaten - small steps to build that confidence back up."
What Giggs describes as a series of baby steps begins with a continental clash against Young Boys midweek before a trip to the south coast to face Southampton.
