Antony's performance against Real Sociedad, which they lost 1-0, was not nearly as strong as it had been against Arsenal the previous weekend, where he made his debut for the club. However, such a significant drop in performance level so soon after his debut was startling.

Ten Hag was reminded of the work he still needs to accomplish as a result of the deflating results of the Europa League match on Thursday. The Brazilian newcomer and Cristiano Ronaldo were among the primary culprits in the match.

David Silva came back to haunt the Red Devils, but it was in a dubious way. The former Manchester City player gained a penalty in the second half after his shot hit the arm of Lisandro Martinez, which led to the Red Devils conceding the penalty. After that, Brais Mendez took the penalty kick to convert the point.

In the Premier League, Manchester United had been on a roll, winning their previous four games.

They can now see that integrating Antony into their system will be a process, and they face new questions about whether Cristiano Ronaldo can thrive under Ten Hag. The 37-year-old missed two golden opportunities to score, and this raises new doubts about whether Ronaldo can thrive under Ten Hag.