Manchester United had defied rain to gain an impressive 2-0 victory over Stoke City in their Capital One Cup clash on Wednesday away at the Britannia Stadium.
Although rain hindered the game in the first half, with play temporarily suspended in the 29th minute because of hail, however, United took the lead with an impressive shot from Ashley Young in the 62nd minute followed by Patrice Evra's goal 16 minutes later, which set the visitors up for a Capital One Cup semi-final against Sunderland.
According to the BBC, however, the injured Wayne Rooney was missing from the squad, though his manager said that he hoped the England striker would be available for the busy festive season.
But, the report added that for the majority of the game, those United players charged with replacing the effervescence usually supplied by injured strikers Rooney and Robin van Persie lacked poise and composure, and even after an hour the weather continued to overshadow the football as a talking point.