Former Liverpool defender Graeme Souness has said that Manchester United remain "a country mile away being a proper team," following their 2-0 defeat to Manchester City in the Manchester derby on Saturday lunchtime.
Less than a fortnight after their 5-0 battering at the hands of Liverpool, United produced another flat and lethargic performance, with an own-goal from Eric Bailly and close-range finish from Bernardo Silva proving to be enough to secure a comfortable win for City.
United were second best in every department and offered next to nothing in the final third to concern City's defenders or goalkeeper Ederson.
The Reds failed to offer any sign of any improvements from the defeat to Liverpool 13 days ago, once again increasing the pressure on manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
Having produced another forgettable display, Sky Sports pundit Souness slammed United in his post-match assessment, insisting their performance was "another reminder" of how far away they are from being a team that has realistic aspirations of challenging for the Premier League title.
Souness told Sky Sports : "It’s a wake up call. They had a shock against Liverpool and they’ve had another one.
"It was a horrible 90 minutes if you’re a United player. They were not putting a mark on them. It was another reminder how far United are from there they want to be.
"City were fabulous throughout and played in a controlled manner. They worked so hard to get the ball back and were dominant.
"If you're in the United dressing room, it was a wake up call. They are a country mile away from being a proper team."
As well as delivering a damning assessment of where United currently find themselves, Souness also criticised Bruno Fernandes for his role in City's opening goal. The Portugal international failed to stop fellow countryman Joao Cancelo from sending over cross by casually jogging towards the City defender, opposed to rushing and making himself as big as possible.
Souness accused Fernandes' actions as not being "professional football."
Souness added: "You’d imagine the United bench shouting at Fernandes to stop the cross, but he doesn’t. He jogs out. Sprint to him son, sprint to him.
"That is not professional football at the highest level. That is not the attitude to have in that. For the second goal it was the exact same.
"It’s not professional football at the highest level. I tell you what you see with the City team. Last year they were 16th for putting crosses in and this season they’re second."
Sign up to our United newsletter so you never miss an update from Old Trafford this season.
