There are positives for Manchester United to take from their 2-2 draw at Everton. Striker Benjamin Sesko scored his first goal of a season - the start to which has been delayed for longer than anticipated by a shin injury. Kobbie Mainoo has impressed in the campaign as a whole so far and shows no sign of being affected by his unhappy World Cup experience.
The same, in terms of his mental strength, could be said of goakeeper Senne Lammens. Marcus Rashford has returned to the club with a sense of purpose. After a European based pre-season that should have seen them hit the ground running, Michael Carrick's side have dropped five points from their first three Premier League games.
They have conceded twice in all three. Their opponents are two promoted teams and an Everton outfit whose fans are distraught following a botched deadline day. Now United must prepare for their Champions League return, against another banana skin-type opponent in Azerbaijan's Sabah FK.
After that it is Manchester City. It is the kind of week they craved 12 months ago. But already, the pressure is on.
"It's not that bad, you know," was Carrick's assessment of his side's start to the season. "We were that close to coming away with three points today. There were little moments we can deal with a bit better, but we'll be fine." Carrick got support in his assessment from his old friend Wayne Rooney, who analysed the Everton game for BBC Sport.
"I thought it was good away performance," he said. "Obviously, I'd be disappointed with the result, but I thought there was a lot more control in the performance. "The midfield three were really good.
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