Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal said he needed to find a swift solution to his side's alarming end of season slump in results after they failed to score for a third successive game in a 1-0 defeat against West Bromwich Albion at Old Trafford.
Liverpool are now just four points behind United in the race for a top four finish in the Premier League, with Van Gaal's hopes of challenging for second spot in the table taking a big dent after United failed to find a way through Tony Pulis' relegation battlers.
A shot deflected into the United goal by the heel of Baggies defender Jonas Olsson proved decisive in a game that was dominated by Van Gaal's side, yet they could not to make the most of their 80 percent possession and 26 attempts on goal.
"You have to finish," Van Gaal told Sky Sports. "This is the third match in a row, so we have to take care of that. It is very difficult because you are attacking all the match and when you are not scoring, it is very disappointing.
"They defended well and had a fantastic goalkeeper, but our finish was not good enough. You can say a lot of things, but I have seen a team that fights to the end and that attacks for 90 minutes. One free kick is enough to beat us."
Van Gaal's decision to bring a fit-again Robin van Persie back into the United team and move skipper Wayne Rooney into a deeper role failed to reap rewards, as he offered few excuses for a defeat that moved West Brom a giant step closer to Premier League survival.
"We knew in advance that they would park the bus and we had to deal with that," Van Gaal added. "I think in the first half we didn't create enough chances to score and in the second half we had enough chance to score.
"You can also say we were a little bit unlucky, but that is not enough. You have to score from your opportunities and the chances were great enough in this game. We can play football and we showed that in this match, but we were unlucky.
"Only by communicating can we start winning again. Now they are very disappointed and their manager is also disappointed, but we have to evaluate what we are doing good and what we are doing bad."