Lingard Blames United’s Struggles Against Mid-Table Teams On Complacency

United have been efficient against the top sides in the league but have surprisingly dropped valuable points against the lower ranked ones.

After taking maximum points against Tottenham Hotspurs and champions Manchester City recently, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men drew with lowly Everton at home before falling to a shock 2-0 defeat to bottom-placed Watford last Sunday.

The Red Devils are the only side to have denied leaders Liverpool all three points in the league this season and they also boast victories over Chelsea and Leicester City.

But the likes of West Ham United, Newcastle, Bournemouth and Crystal Palace have all beaten the Old Trafford outfit, who are eighth on the league log.

United have the chance to avenge the 1-0 defeat to Newcastle United earlier in the season on Boxing day, and Lingard has implored his colleagues to guard against complacency, which has been their Achilles’ heel when coming up against less glamorous sides this season.

"It's strange," Lingard told the Daily Mail.

"Maybe it's a mindset thing. Maybe it's our mentality going into the match thinking we've already won the game.

"If we keep the consistency and mentality we had against City and Tottenham, I don't see why we can't win every game.

"It seems like our mentality changes. To keep that consistency throughout the rest of the season when we come against the mid-table teams, we need to have the same mentality that we did going into the City and Tottenham game.

"When we start with energy and on the front foot, we'll cause team problems all day long."