Premier League stats: How Man Utd’s goals have dried up since Sir Alex Ferguson left

Manchester United were known as the Premier League’s entertainers, sweeping all before them under Sir Alex Ferguson.

Over the 26 years of the Scot’s reign some of the finest attacking talent the country has seen, goalscoring heroes such as the enigmatic Eric Cantona, the prolific Ruud van Nistelrooy and the sublime Cristiano Ronaldo graced Old Trafford.

And there was ‘Fergie time’ – those precious final minutes at the end of the game where it became inevitable the Stretford End would suck in a goal to secure the points for the Red Devils.

Those days seem like a long time ago now, with United proving a fading force in front of goal since Ferguson retired in 2013.

Instead, cries of “attack, attack, attack” are commonplace from the home crowd at Old Trafford as they urge their side to regain some of their offensive magic.

Saturday’s dour goalless draw with Crystal Palace was United’s 65th 0-0 draw in the 26 seasons of the Premier League.

But what is notable about that statistic is that 20 of those draws – 31% – have come in the six seasons since Ferguson left.

That is six more than any of their ‘big six’ rivals over the same period.

United have had three managers in that time – David Moyes, Louis van Gaal and now Jose Mourinho. It won’t be surprising to hear all three have an inferior goals-per-game ratio than Ferguson.

Mourinho’s ratio of 1.6 is an improvement on his predecessor Van Gaal, who averaged 1.46 goals a game during his two-year spell in charge.

One player who has impressed in front of goal for United this season is Anthony Martial, with the Frenchman scoring six so far.

So, despite their struggles, they do have a contender for the Golden Boot – but he faces some stiff competition.

By Thomas Mallows, BBC Sport