Man City loss killed Manchester United optimism and increased Liverpool & Champions League fear

It's a hard time to be a Manchester United fan right now.

Yet another rebuild under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer collapsed late last year and now Ralf Rangnick has been left to pick up the pieces ahead of a summer where United have promised they'll start all over again and get it right this time.

There has been quite an obvious improvement under Rangnick and the blame does not lie on his shoulders, with the team having a clear defensive shape and creating more chances than under Solskjaer, but the same old problems are rearing their heads and catastrophically so.

Both Cristiano Ronaldo and Edinson Cavani are starting to show the limitations of their age both on the pitch and now in their limited availability. The duo sitting out the Manchester derby - whatever the actual reasons - left United strikerless.

Issues in defensive midfielder are well documented, with Scott McTominay failing to truly grasp the role. United do not seem to know what their best XI is, with players' form varying wildly week on week. Those selected on derby day paid a steep price.

Each game is starting to follow a familiar pattern. United dominate or look well in with a chance of winning the game in the first half before it all begins to fall apart under the slightest amount of pressure in the second. With each passing poor result the team's chances of top four or silverware slip further away.

As they say though, it's the hope that kills and why do we watch football if not to hope that our team will come out victorious in the end?

But that result against City has completely crushed any optimism fans had left. Nothing is going to significantly change before the summer when United appoint the next permanent manager make signings to address several problem