Manchester United ruthlessly brought the axe down on David Moyes’ reign just 10 months into his six-year contract. The Scot's ill-fated stint at Old Trafford involved a series of disappointing defeats from the defending Premier League champions as they failed to qualify for the UEFA Champions League for the first time since 1995.
These milestones put United's underwhelming season in perspective:
► United are guaranteed to finish the season with their lowest ever Premier League points tally. Their lowest total is 75, which they posted in 1996-97 and 2003-04. They will only finish on 69 provided they win their remaining four games.
► They have suffered 11 Premier League defeats this season, their worst total since 1992.
► Suffered more home defeats (six), then in any other Premier League campaign.
► First ever home defeat to Swansea (2-1 in the FA Cup third round).
► First home defeat to Newcastle (1-0) since 1972.
► First home defeat to West Brom (2-1) since 1978.
► First league defeat to Stoke (2-1) since 1984 (below).
► First time Everton, Manchester City and Liverpool have beaten United home and away since 1992.
► First time Everton have beaten United home and away since 1970.
► First time Merseyside duo Everton and Liverpool have ever completed a league double over Manchester United in the same season.
The above statistics make for grim reading for United fans, who could never have envisaged their first post-Alex Ferguson season going so disastrously wrong.
Here, Sport360° chronicles where and when it all went wrong for Moyes:
► September 1: United suffer their first defeat under David Moyes as Daniel Sturridge gives Liverpool a 1-0 victory at Anfield. Wayne Rooney misses the game after being kicked in the head by Phil Jones in training.
► September 22: Hammered 4-1 at Manchester City (below). This time Robin van Persie is absent with a thigh injury.
► September 28: United lose 2-1 at home to West Brom, ending the Baggies’ 35-year wait for an Old Trafford victory.
► October 19: Concede last-minute Adam Lallana equaliser against Southampton at Old Trafford.
► December 4: Bryan Oviedo scores four minutes from time as Moyes’ former club Everton end their 21- year wait for an away win over United.
► December 6: Rio Ferdinand criticises Moyes’ policy of leaving it late to pick his teams, telling BT Sport: “It turns you into a madman.”
► December 7: Yohan Cabaye scores the only goal as Newcastle win at Old Trafford for the first time since 1972.
► December 10: Van Persie suffers a thigh injury taking a corner against Shakhtar Donetsk and is ruled out for seven weeks.
► January 1: Rooney plays in the defeat by Tottenham but is then ruled out for four weeks with a groin injury.
► January 5: Swansea win at Old Trafford for the first time as Wilfried Bony’s late goal sends United out of the FA Cup at the third-round stage for only the second time in 30 years (below).
► January 7: Defeat in League Cup semi-final, first leg at Sunderland means a third straight loss for the first time since May 2001.
► January 19: Captain Nemanja Vidic is sent off as United crash to defeat at Chelsea.
► January 22: United beat Sunderland 2-1 in the League Cup semi-final return leg but come off worst in the penalty shootout with only Darren Fletcher scoring from their five kicks.
► February 1: Stoke end their long wait for a win against United. Charlie Adam’s double gives them their first since 1984.
► February 7: Vidic says he will leave at the end of the season.
► February 9: United lead bottom side Fulham at Old Trafford, but Darren Bent’s stoppage-time equaliser ensures a 2-2 draw. Moyes describes the result as being ‘as bad as it gets’.
► February 25: A poor performance in the Champions League last 16 sees United beaten 2-0 at Olympiakos (below).
► March 16: Two Steven Gerrard penalties and a Luis Suárez strike earn Liverpool a crushing 3-0 win at Old Trafford while Gerrard also hits the post with another penalty
► March 25: United lose 3-0 as Manchester City do the double over them. The result ensured United are guaranteed to end the season with their lowest points total in Premier League history.
► April 9: Despite an encouraging 1-1 draw in the first leg, the Red Devils go down 3-1 to defending champions Bayern Munich in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final at the Allianz Arena.
► April 20: Moyes’ return to Goodison Park is turned into a nightmare as Leighton Baines’ penalty and a goal from Kevin Mirallas give Everton a 2-0 win, a result which confirms United cannot qualify for the Champions League.
