With Manchester United still entrenched in sixth place despite a run of 13 games without defeat, Jose Mourinho argued he would prefer to lose rather than draw matches his teams dominate.

The Manchester United manager argued that a defeat would force him to think about making radical adjustments to the team. However, he felt unable to make changes to a side that could have won all 13 of its league games since being thrashed by Chelsea in October. Instead, United have drawn six of those matches, dropping 12 points in the process.

“It is easy to make changes when you see players not playing well and when you see a team not playing well,” he said after the 1-1 draw at Stoke in which United had been rescued by Wayne Rooney’s 94th-minute free-kick.

“Sometimes, I prefer to go home after a defeat when we give a bad performance and we got what we deserve. It is more difficult when you feel that things are all right and that the results are not related to the performance.”

What frustrates Mourinho has been Manchester United’s finishing in front of goal. At Stoke, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Juan Mata both squandered straightforward chances before Rooney’s salvage act. Manchester United aimed 25 shots at Lee Grant’s goal – four times as many as Stoke – and were fortunate to escape with a point.

In the six games they have drawn on that run, there has only been one match, the 1-1 draw with Liverpool, which Manchester United have not dominated. In those six games United have aimed 114 shots on goal and scored five times.

“A top team has to be much more clinical,” said Mourinho. “You have to get the first chance of a match and ‘bang’ it’s 1-0. When you are winning by a goal then get the next chance and kill the opponent.

Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Show all 22 1 /22 Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Lee Grant – 7 out of 10 Made a couple of smart stops but never did anything more than expected of him. Getty Images Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Glen Johnson – 6 out of 10 Was allowed to take advantage of United’s narrow midfield but kept busy defensively. Getty Images Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Ryan Shawcross – 7 out of 10 Did well to combat the combined muscle of Ibrahimovic and Fellaini in the aerial battles. Getty Images Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Bruno Martins Indi – 6 out of 10 Was strong defensively, even if he was caught out of position at times. Man Utd via Getty Images Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Erik Pieters – 7 out of 10 Marauded forward well and got his reward when his cross was turned in by Mata. Getty Images Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Charlie Adam – 6 out of 10 Made his presence in the centre of midfield felt as he harried United’s stars. Getty Images Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Glenn Whelan – 6 out of 10 Watched Pogba well throughout and made sure his impact on the game was limited to the deeper positions. Man Utd via Getty Images Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Marko Arnautovic – 6 out of 10 Cynical yellow card for pulling down Herrera on the break and was not too influential in an attacking sense. Man Utd via Getty Images Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Xherdan Shaqiri – 5 out of 10 Had a decent effort from a cut inside shot, but should have fed Crouch better when Stoke had a two on two in the first half. Getty Images Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Joe Allen – 6 out of 10 Neat touches and effortless passing as his glided around the field but nothing much more meaningful than that. Getty Images Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Peter Crouch – 5 out of 10 Was a nuisance for Jones and Smalling and always a danger in the air. Man Utd via Getty Images Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings David De Gea – 6 out of 10 Nothing he could do about the goal and had little to do other than that. Getty Images Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Antonio Valencia – 6 out of 10 Was called the best right-back in the world by his manager but other than his usual overlaps, did little to reinforce that view. Getty Images Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Phil Jones – 6 out of 10 Looking more and more like the player Sir Alex Ferguson once predicted he would be and won some crucial tackles and interceptions. Getty Images Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Chris Smalling – 6 out of 10 Preferred to Rojo in defence and took the armband but had his work cut out with Crouch. Man Utd via Getty Images Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Daley Blind – 5 out of 10 Had plenty of space to get forward but lacked the pace to turn it into any sort of danger for United. Getty Images Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Ander Herrera – 7 out of 10 His usual high-octane performance and fast becoming one of the first names on the teamsheet. Getty Images Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Paul Pogba – 5 out of 10 Saw his effectiveness reduced as his was played in a deeper role and saw his snap-volley punched away well by Grant. Getty Images Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Marouane Fellaini – 6 out of 10 Had plenty of chances in the air and brought a couple of decent saves from Grant. Man Utd via Getty Images Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Juan Mata – 6 out of 10 Mata did his usual stuff but got the unfortunate final touch to divert the ball past De Gea and then missed a golden opportunity to equalise at the other end, skying his shot over from two yards. Man Utd via Getty Images Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Henrikh Mkhitaryan – 6 out of 10 Missed a golden chance to equalise when he launched his shot into row Z in the first half, but created a great effort for Ibrahimovic before that. Getty Images Stoke vs Manchester United player ratings Zlatan Ibrahimovic – 5 out of 10 Had a number of chances to score but twice tried to pass when a shot looked the better option. Man Utd via Getty Images