Rooney Regrets Collapse At Leicester

Wayne Rooney rued a second-half collapse after Manchester United threw away a two-goal lead to lose 5-3 at Leicester City.

The Reds looked to be cruising when Ander Herrera's back-heel made it 3-1 with just over half an hour left to play at the King Power Stadium, having earlier gone 2-0 up within 16 minutes of the kick-off. But David Nugent’s penalty sparked a remarkable revival for the hosts with Esteban Cambiasso then pouncing on a loose ball to equalise, and United losing possession upfield for Leicester’s fourth and fifth goals.

The recently-appointed skipper Rooney admitted his side only had themselves to blame.

“We're all really disappointed, especially after going 3-1 up,” he told MUTV. “We should have seen the game off, and we should have kept the ball better. We didn't do that, we made a few mistakes and it has cost us.

“Leicester played a lot of long balls and we struggled a little bit with those. Overall, it wasn't good enough as a team. We played some good stuff at times and scored some great goals, but we made too many mistakes as a team and have to do better.”

United had taken an early lead through Robin van Persie, then Angel Di Maria doubled it with a sublime chip over Leicester goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel. However Leonardo Ulloa’s headed goal for the hosts just a minute after that was a warning that Rooney felt his side did not heed.

“We gave away a sloppy goal straight after we got our second," rued Rooney. "That lifted the crowd, but we have to do better. It's bitterly disappointing that we didn't.”