Premier League: Why it is folly to write off Man United

Man United have previous for winning titles after early defeats

Michael Lintorn recalls five wonderful teams who won titles convincingly despite opening-day setbacks...

Man United's 1-2 home defeat to Swansea has seen their Premier League winner price drift to 10.09/1 and those who were tipping them in pre-season subjected to ridicule. However, it is ill-advised to give too much weight to what happens on the opening weekend, as these five brilliant champions who kicked off with a stinker proved...

Aston Villa 3-1 Man United (1995/96)
Three months after surrendering the Premier League title for the first time to Blackburn, Man United made a hideous start to the campaign, inspiring the most iconic moment in Match of the Day history: Alan Hansen's "you can't win anything with kids" line. Of course, the kids in question were some of the finest that the division has ever seen and, complimented by an experienced spine, they won the next five games and 25 of their overall 38 to return to the top of the table.

Numancia 1-0 Barcelona (2008/09)
Pep Guardiola enjoyed surely the most successful ever first season in senior management as coach of Barcelona in 2008/09, culminating in a treble triumph. The Camp Nou legend certainly didn't oversee one of the all-time great dugout debuts though, with his soon-to-be history-makers suffering a 0-1 defeat against one of the sides who would be marooned in the drop zone come May.

AZ Alkmaar 1-2 NAC Breda (2008/09)
The feat that Louis van Gaal describes as "my greatest little masterpiece", halting 28 years of Ajax, PSV and Feyenoord Eredivisie control, started off remarkably similarly to his Man United experience, recovering from 0-1 down only to lose all over again at home to NAC Breda. His unfancied squad, which finished 11th the term before, were beaten once more in week two by ADO Den Haag before unleashing a run of 24 victories and four draws in the next 28 fixtures to blitz clear of all rivals.

Borussia Dortmund 0-2 Bayer Leverkusen (2010/11)
Overhauling van Gaal's Bayern Munich looked a gruelling task for the Bundesliga's other 17 teams after Germany's biggest club combined a title with a Champions League final appearance in 2009/10, so losing the opener definitely wasn't advisable. Jurgen Klopp's men compensated by collecting 43 of the next 45 points offered to them to build an insurmountable 11-point lead before Christmas.

Everton 1-0 Man United (2012/13)
Having surrendered an eight-point advantage over Man City in the final six matches of 2011/12, Man United's follow-up effort got off to the worst possible start owing to a Marouane Fellaini-inflicted reverse at Goodison Park. While the critics predicted their downfall, Sir Alex Ferguson decided that could wait a year, guiding the Red Devils to 25 wins in their next 29 games. By May, Man City were 11 points behind them and their previously-heralded manager Roberto Mancini was out of work.