It has long been de rigueur in football for managers to write off a succession of chances being missed by arguing that the time to worry is when opportunities are not created.
Sir Alex Ferguson's lexicon of achievements may make him first among equals of Barclays Premier League managers, but even his elevated status does not make him immune from having to lean on this particular crutch when the occasion demands it.
"It's not a concern at this stage when you see the chances we've had," the Manchester United manager said after Wednesday evening's surprise reversal at the hands of newly promoted Burnley. "Two or three players had chances," he said.
"[Michael] Owen missed one in the first half, [Ryan] Giggs in the second. Michael Carrick had the best chance, the ball was squared to him and he lost the opportunity. Hopefully, we'll get as many chances on Saturday."
Despite Ferguson's gloss, however, it is clear that every time his forwards fail to fire, fresh questions will be raised over his decision-making in the aftermath of Cristiano Ronaldo's sale to Real Madrid. To complement Wayne Rooney and Dimitar Berbatov, Ferguson brought in only Antonio Valencia from Wigan Athletic and Owen from Newcastle United.
There has been no "marquee" signing and, although the season is only two games old, the jury remains out on whether Ferguson has the right combination to fill the void left by the Portugal forward, who scored 68 goals in his final two seasons at Old Trafford.
The chances that fell Owen's way in the narrow defeat against Burnley and the equally slender opening-day victory over Birmingham City prove two things: first, that creativity is not a big problem for the champions even if their output of one goal in two games against two promoted teams suggests otherwise; second, that Owen is finding his way through opposition defences without looking sharp enough yet to punish them.
Reasons to be cheerful? Undoubtedly, in the view of Graeme Souness, who brought Owen back to English football when he signed him for Newcastle United from Real Madrid four summers ago. "If Michael can keep fit, he will score goals for United," Souness said. "I might upset a few people by saying this, but Michael Owen has never played in such a good team with such good players as he will do this year."