United fall apart against five-star Foxes

A highly contentious penalty proved the turning point as Leicester City emphatically exposed Manchester United's defensive frailties with a shock 5-3 victory at Filbert Way.

The game characterised the very best and worst of United during 90 bizarre minutes which saw the travelling Red Army go through a host of emotions.

Louis van Gaal's attacking line-up raced into a two-goal lead, with United picking up where they left off following the recent 4-0 demolition of Queens Park Rangers.

A stunning cross from Radamel Falcao found the head of Robin van Persie to break the deadlock, before Angel Di Maria fired home a brilliant chip.

The hosts reduced the arrears almost immediately as Leonardo Ulloa's fantastic header met Jamie Vardy's cross to the delight of the home support, who had now witnessed three goals in little over four first- half minutes.

Anders Herrera's classy backheel, however, looked to have re-established United's dominance after the break. His quick thinking saw him cheekily flick home a Di Maria effort as United opened up a 3-1 lead.

The game, however, turned on 62 minutes as referee Mark Clattenburg awarded the posts a dubious penalty.

Rafael was barged over by Vardy outside the Foxes box. The Brazilian climbed to his feet and made what appeared to be a far lighter challenge on his opponent, only for the referee to point to the spot. David Nugent fired home from twelve yards, and United fell to pieces.

Having watched van Gaal's attacking charges craft some stunning attacking moves in the first-half, United's travelling fans watched on as the team's long-standing defensive weaknesses were painfully clear to see in the closing half-an-hour.

Esteban Cambiasso turned home the equaliser, before ex-Red Ritchie de Laet cut open United's backline with a fine through ball which Vardy latched onto and drilled a composed effort beyond David de Gea.

Having looked so formidable in the opening stages, United's attack suddenly lacked ideas and belief as Leicester continued to threaten. The home win was sealed from the penalty spot; Tyler Blackett dismissed for a foul on Vardy with Ulloa subsequently making no mistake from twelve yards.

It all went wrong for United after the penalty - but it would be wrong to solely blame an arguably poor decision for this defeat. Despite spending a small fortune on the transfer market, United have leaked five goals against a newly-promoted side and, from 2-3 onwards, looked devoid of ideas. Things must improve.

David Moyes gained a reputation for chalking up unwanted records at the helm of the club. Yet, in this defeat, van Gaal becomes the first manager to oversee a Premier League loss for United after boasting a two-goal lead. After five LVG top-flight games, we boast only five points. At this stage under Moyes, we had seven.

Full Time - Leicester City 5-3 Manchester United
Attendance - 31,784