With a 1-0 over Birmingham and a 1-0 defeat to Burnley our fate was clear. We certainly were not going to win the Premiership for the fourth year running. It’s not as if we haven’t had worse starts to the season than this and gone on to win the title regardless, but this year was different. This year we have sold Cristiano Ronaldo.
Whatever we do or don’t achieve this season, it will all revolve around Ronaldo, sadly. “United win the FA Cup. Ronaldo who?” or “United knocked out of the League Cup. Would this have happened if Ronaldo was still there?” When you sell the best player in the world then it is of course going to draw plenty of attention, so we just have to get on with it. After Burnley, we were apparently feeling the effects of missing Ronaldo. To a certain degree, this is true. Ronnie was a master at finishing off the bottom half of the table teams when our other players couldn’t find a way through.
Still, you would think that we never lost to inferior opposition when Ronaldo was about. It’s odd this rose-tinted view this country now has of Ronaldo, the “winker”, now that he’s gone. I swear if we lose again we’ll be told that if Ronaldo was about we’d have been victorious and the winger would have been turning water in to wine after the match for the fans to celebrate in style.
It was so important that we bounced back when we played Wigan to take the pressure off our players. With 45 minutes played and plenty of good chances created, you had to wonder whether it was going to be another one of ‘those’ days.
Rooney played a good ball to Berbatov who, with a clever flick, passed it on to Nani, who cut inside and put it on a plate for Darren Fletcher inside the box. Fletcher struck with his left foot though, meaning he couldn’t get enough power or lift behind it, meaning Titus Bramble, who seemingly is a good defender these days, helped Kirkland to keep it out.
Moments later, Berbabtov rolled the ball back to Paul Scholes just outside the box, but he didn’t keep his composure and fired high and wide of the mark. It becomes a worry when he can’t finish chances that were simply made for him. It had ‘Scholesy’ written all over it and his reaction to missing summed up just how disappointing his effort was.
Nani, who played well with Evra down the left flank, put in a good ball to Berbatov but after outjumping his opponent could only head down at the keeper. Valencia had a decent game down the other wing, although fairly predictable with his sprints and crosses, and created a couple of chances for Rooney which again only found Kirkland.
Ben Foster was called in to action midway through the first half to save a long-range Jason Koumas effort. The jitters of games gone by seemed well and truly behind him on Saturday, with the flaps a thing of the past and a more commanding display there for all to see. Could this be thanks to the sturdy presence of Nemanja Vidic? Not long after the Koumas save, Vidic stood up to N’Zogbia just inside the area as Wigan started to look dangerous.
All in all, it was a frustrating first half, although we certainly showed more signs of scoring than we had against Burnley. We had to wait until ten minutes in to the second half before our nerves could be eased though.
Rooney played the ball out wide to Valencia, who was being booed by the fans of his former club. The Ecuadorian had been guilty of faking an injury (something the manager was only complaining about last week!) in the first half and the home fans were just generally not too pleased to see him wearing our shirt. He played an inch-perfect ball to Rooney though, which he leapt up to meet and then headed past Kirkland. Wayne Rooney was now in Manchester United’s 100 club.
Wigan would have equalised within moments if not for the athleticism of Foster which meant he was able to push away Rodallega’s goal-bound header. He rose quickly and released the ball which set the wheels in motion for our second. Berbatov passed the ball to Rooney just outside the area, who nudged it on to Scholes, all while our Bulgarian was making his move in to the box which enabled him to be on the end of Scholesy’s little chip in to the area. With his first touch he lifted it over the keeper, which his second he found the back of the net between the two Wigan defenders. Brilliant.
Less than ten minutes after opening the scoring, Rooney played a perfect cross-field ball from our half of the pitch to an attacking Valencia. By the time he got to the box Berbatov was ready to set him up. Clearly not afraid to use his shooting boots, Rooney had a go and a deflection took it past the keeper. Three goals in three games for our new central striker.
With twenty minutes to play, Michael Owen was brought on for Rooney, Darron Gibson came on for Scholes, whilst O’Shea replaced a limping Jonny Evans. Gibson looked bright and got a couple of chances away from range. I expect we will be seeing plenty of him this season with the manager keen to chop and change the midfield as much as possible it seems.
Time was running out for United to get their usual 4-0 scoreline over Wigan, something I hoped for in the pre-match discussion, but our boys did no disappoint. Berbatov found Nani with the outside of his boot, who played in a lovely ball for Owen. With easier chances going begging against Birmingham and Burnley, I would have been happy with Owen forcing a save from the keeper at this angle. Owen got his left boot around the ball though and fired across the face of the goal, finding the post then the back of the net. It was a great finish and his celebration matched, running to our away support with a beaming grin and arms outstretched.
As injury time approached, Berbatov ran towards the box with the ball but was dragged back and eventually to the ground. A freekick from 30 yards out seemed to have Gibson’s name on it but Nani, who does not want to be compared to Ronaldo, stepped up. He got just enough height on it to lift the ball over the wall but then just the right pace to allow it to come back down to earth and in to the back of the net. He deserved a goal for his impressive performance and answered the final Ronaldo related question over who would now be taking our free-kicks.
Anything less than en emphatic victory woudn’t have meant we needed Ronaldo to be successful and equally, just because we beat Wigan 5-0 it doesn’t mean the title is in the bag. I think this result will be great for the confidence of our players and allow us to stay composed at 0-0, knowing the goals will come, but our first real test will come against Arsenal at the weekend. Thankfully, they are flying high at the moment so will come to Old Trafford thinking they’re Billy Big Balls and will therefore be easier to expose. They have a score or two to settle though, after we embarrassed them in the European Cup and won the league after playing them last season (“we won the league at Old Trafford, we won the league in Manchester!”). Vidic, Evans and Foster were all impressive defensively on Saturday and our strikers can go in to the next game with all the belief they need.
Everton were awfully kind to lose to Burnley to show every one our defeat there wasn’t as embarrassing as it felt. Still, memories of that game should be let go now as we look to get ourselves back on top. Let’s hope this is the start of something good and that we can carry this kind of performance on to the Arsenal, with Carrick likely replacing Scholes and Wes Brown hopefully coming in for Gary Neville.
Well said mate!!! brilliant conclusion!! Bring on the Gooners!!!
Fantastic article Scott. Maybe that second half will be that goalscoring outburst that usually gets us going in a season. And when you look at it, Ronaldo might have left, but we have 2 new wingers at the club: Valencia and Nani. ANd the good thing is that they offer different things to the team. I was also happy to see Berbatov involved in most of our goals.
One small note though. Brown for Nev? It will probably be O’Shea for him. Brown needs games, but i don’t think that’s the best occasion for him.
Good thing to see that Nani is stepping out of the shadow..and quickly..
a little more consistency and he could be right up there!! love the way he celebrates his goal though!!
Billy Big Balls
just fantastic, with alliteration too
lets fuckin’ murder ‘em!
I see Vida is up for Serbian war crimes charges after having “stroked” their man across the cheek on Saturday. Having almost elbowed the ref in the face in his attempt to escalate a minor and petty incident the FA should direct their hate campaign elsewhere. We can only hope that nothing comes of this as Vida was awesome on Saturday and will be key to our strategy against the Gooners.
The spotlight will be on him and I would not be surprised if the gooners are awarded a penalty for something just because Vida is close to the incident.
The FSW will no doubt be adding it to his “FACT” sheet for soem future press conference meltdown.
Good article. I think the match against Arsenal will be very open and pacey.
But I’m waiting on Scott’s take on the Vidic incident in the Wigan match. I fear he’ll get a 3 match ban simply because he doesn’t wear a Chelsea shirt. Can I see a video of the incident somewhere?
Fergie screwed me over – had a £5 25/1 bet on Rooney getting a hat trick and he takes him off 5 mins after scoring his second with 20 minutes to spare. Still, the performance was enough to cheer me up. Fletcher and Nani should start every game for us.
I’m glad Nani scored.
He has had his critics but given a sustained run in the team he will come good. Ronaldo had a sustained run in the team and look what he achieved. Although the left wing is his non preferred position I’m sure he can make it his own.
We will always miss Ronaldo. You can not not miss him.
But we have a few players who can do his job.
@maci
You sure????
@Dakota: I saw it. Fuck him. In a month we will deal with the bitch. For now it’s the Gunners. A team that has actually won something in the last 4 decades.
@Costas
LOL mate!!
Good article Scott, nice to see a balanced approach to the seasons’ start. We can’t read too much into our loss to Burnley or our win against Wigan.
There were plenty of positives from the game, notably our three strikers hitting the back of the net. Nani played pretty well, we can’t expect miracles because he’s played more than one game in a month. Slowly & surely he will find his feet & gain confidence. Valencia looked decent but not outstanding, I think there’s more to come from him, he seems a quiet lad & will probably take a little while to settle and start to reach top form.
Was nice to see Fletch back in the middle, he needs to play every week alongside one from Scholes/Carrick/Ando/Giggs/Gibson. As I’ve been bleating on for a long-time; I see out future central midfield combo made up from Fletch/Anderson/Gibson, as much as I like Carrick I’ve noted ad nauseum that he has difficulty in a two-man central midfield.
In combination of the last two points, it was lovely to see Utd playing with two orthodox wingers in a traditional 442. Although the system suits strikers with attributes like Torres, Drogba, Benzema I think our boys do pretty well for their size/positioning.
Finally, I’d like to give Foster the credit he deserves for a good performance, I’ve said since the start of the season that I need convincing and the game on Saturday was a step in the right direction. Hopefully he got some confidence from the performance because my biggest criticism has been his nervousness, if he can overcome it and exert himself in the penalty box he’s got a very good chance of filling the void.
Overall, great result & the confidence booster some of the players thoroughly needed. Can’t wait to see the Arsenal game, I’m predicting a classic with shades of past battles between us – 5 goals minimum.
Loved berba’s reaction wen he scored show that more often. In terms of the game i always thought if we kept making the chances the goals wud come, still 1 or 2 fans saying there not convinced wiv valencia he will need time to settle i think he’ll turn out to be a great player for us.
ps wazza 100 up this is his season
Given the performance of Wes Brown against Burnley I’m not too sure that i fancy him going up against the Gooners come sunday. He’s quality, but would prefer too see him get some games against weaker sider first.
Powdi saturday mate, id agree wiv that, o’shea i wud start wiv against the gooners dont think wes is match fit.
jig !@ 11:41 – I agree with what you wrote, especially concerning the “new” midfield. I also want to see a two-man midfield with Fletcherinho and Anderson – have these two ever played together in that formation ?
Nani and Valencia are beginning to get in the groove – the left-sided combination is going to be deadly. And, the strikers ARE BETTER when they play both centrally AND forward, eh ?
Best start since 1995!!!
Can’t wait the Arsenal game.
I was really pleased with Fosters, Nani’s and Berbatov’s performance. Now they have to step it up against the Arsenal. the main thing is that we need to up a level of performance. It’s reassuring to have Fletcher in the middle and it seems that Carrick has tempoarily fallen out of favour with SAF. if he wants to play in the first team his performances really need to improve. people often have a go at Nani, because they see he has so much ability and potential to be a great player. but not much is said about Carrick. i think Carrick needs a rocket up his backside! he can boss the midfield and start to dominate it like we have seen glimpses of.
but the main thing is that SAF still needs to decide who will play along side Fletcher (who needs to sharpen up on his shooting) because if he plays Scholes against arsenal then our midfield will be overrun and the ginger ninja will probably get sent off for either two bookable offences or a straight red for a wild mistimed tackle – again!
sorri 4 out of topic
will this guy CARLOS TEVEZ ever gonna shut up..furgusion is scared of city/ hughes more close to players than fergie/he was unfairly treated/man city better than utd etc etc etc
am just too fedup wiv this bloke…
nice scott.
i agree with every word. as usual lol
Great choice of picture. Loved Berba’s reaction.
Not only Arsenal, but Tottenham and City afterwards. 9 points? Hmmmm…
Man Utd can win the title but they need to work quickly in the transfer market. Fergie needs to pull his head out of his arse and re-sign van Nistelrooy to replace Owen. Owen is a jog away from a 9 month lay off so extra back-up in the form of Michael Chopra would be an unexpected stroke of genius. If Fergie can’t provide that genius why not give him an ambasador’s role and bring in the dream-ticket pairing Vinny Samways (young skywalker) & Barry Fry (Yoda). The entire country needs to accept that Owen Hargreaves is closer to death than a return to first team action. It might be too late for a big money replacement but the ruthless German efficiency of Dietmar Hamman snapping into the tackle is tempting & free. Rio’s a born gangsta rapper & his dubious drug testing past mean that the rehabilitated Titus Bramble should step back into the Prem, 10-15 mill should be enough. Gerry Francis is a rare talent that Utd need on the wagebill & there has got to be a place for Dean Windass.
Injuries will play a key part,
If we can get rio and vidic playing as a pair on a regular basis and keep rooney fletcher and evra fit we are in business.
Personally I’m still not convinced by nani and feel we need a left winger and a centre midfielder.
Chelsea look v strong and seem to have some real power in the middle of the park, plus droghba is actually trying this year.
On the plus side him essien and mikel will be away in the african cup of nations in the new year.
The lge will be betweeun us and the rent boys with arsenal 3rd and the dippers slugging it out with spurs for 5th
lol bob too many doobies for you son!
Thanks elblanco….when i’ve posted a few lighthearted ramblings elsewhere I usually find myself being abused by humourless LFC fans.