It could be portrayed as the resistable object against the immovable force. When Crystal Palace kick off at Old Trafford on Saturday, it will be 139 days since they have scored a league goal. It will be 153 since Manchester United have conceded one at home. It is a far more spurious statistic, but it will be 1,966 since Roy Hodgson saw his side score in the league.
It may seem the safest bet in football that United will keep a clean sheet, and not just because Palace will be without both their best striker, Christian Benteke, and the finest winger, Wilfried Zaha.