United is the team that gives fans who take great pleasure in their losses a joke. These days, they occur so frequently that rival fans’ schadenfreude may be more of an afterthought than an intense emotion.

In the directors’ box, sitting next to Sir Dave Brailsford and wearing a Paul Smith club tie, was Sir Alex Ferguson, the last manager of United to leave the Trent without a point in 1992. This was the field that saved Ferguson’s bacon in the FA Cup in 1990. It is nearly damnation for Erik ten Hag.

With two victories from eight games, five losses, and complete elimination from European tournaments, United’s December came to an end. United’s current season total of 14 losses is two fewer than what it was during the David Moyes era ten years prior.

The fact that Ten Hag has been abandoned for nearly the whole campaign by United’s in-game administration is just as concerning as the team’s amount of losses. He made a grave error by substituting Scott McTominay for Kobbie Mainoo at halftime, and both of Forest’s goals were scored in the space created by United’s invisible midfield.

United is conceding to free shots from a cut-back if they are not giving up fast after scoring or after giving up in quick succession. The exact strikes of Nicolas Dominguez and Morgan Gibbs-White caused it to happen again, denying Andre Onana a shield.

Bruno Fernandes chastised everyone and Alejandro Garnacho fell to his knees as Gibbs-White led a joyous charge for the corner flag. Sergio Reguilon, a fellow full-back, took Aaron Wan-Bissaka’s place as Ten Hag’s final attacking substitution.

With a 1-0 deficit, United had gone 340 minutes without scoring an away goal. Meanwhile, Donny van de Beek, who has played just 19 minutes this season and is traveling next month, was warming up.

It is puzzling that Van de Beek continues to be involved on matchdays even though he is destined for Eintracht Frankfurt. Due to Rasmus Hojlund’s illness, United’s matchday roster was devoid of an effective striker. However, rookie Joe Hugill, who saw action on the bench at Goodison Park last month, was deserving of a spot.

From one misfit Ajax to the next. There was never going to be a recurrence at the stadium where Ten Hag compared Antony to Arjen Robben and where he scored his last goal. Ajax had conned United.

Following his tap-in at the City Ground in April, the €100 million winger has now missed 29 games without scoring. The only alteration from the Boxing Day comeback against Aston Villa was Antony’s recall at Hojlund’s expense, and United’s offensive clearly regressed.

As it happened, Antony’s forced exit occurred while he was clutching his hamstring on the sidelines. It was challenging to determine. Antony represents just another costly write-off.