MUFC - the Religion

SAF and De Gea at it again

2012-01-28T15:38:00.004+01:00

Liverpool 2 Man Utd 1

SAF and De Gea are becoming a devastating combination...for the opponents, of course. No disrespect for the gaffer - he is the man who made us the most successful club in England - but he has made a lot of mistakes this season. True, injuries have hampered our progress but the exit from the CL and now the FA Cup can be attributed to wrong choices by SAF. Add to that the Blackburn defeat as well, and add a few occasions were we managed to just scrape through.

Today, SAF had few choices for outfield players although he could have played 4-4-2 which arguably and with hindsight, could have better, but made a big decision in terms of keepers. You do not play a dodgy keeper at Anfield - full stop. And if he keeps insisting that De Gea is OK, he should give an explanation why he sent Lindegaard to warm up after De Gea had gifted Liverpool a goal.

Again, after 55 minutes, it was plain clear that we were losing midfield. Giggs and Carrick started giving the ball away and Park and Valencia vanished inexplicably from the match. KK made the changes, 3 of them to try and win it but SAF waited till 75 minutes to make the changes. And Giggs and Carrick who had made a catalogue of errors stayed on, and Scholes, who was giving us some composure when we had the ball, comes off! Baffling...

From than on it was just a matter of us hanging on in my opinion. I would argue that even the second goal was not impossible to save as De Gea went to the ground too early. But then again, Evra lost his man completely and so on and so on.

Only one objective left now till the end of the season, which could work to our advantage if we keep De Gea away from our goal, recover a few injured players, and SAF decides to avoid tinkering too much and making irrational decisions. A tall order indeed, but we have to keep the faith. In the meantime, bragging rights to the scousers, of course....courtesy of De Gea and SAF.

Numquam Moribimur....

1-1 at HT

2012-01-28T14:36:00.003+01:00

It took 20 minutes for De Gea to confirm my fears. He remained firmly planted to the ground and made no attempt to go for a cross that should have been punched away...and Liverpool scored. 3 minutes later he was challenged again and the ref gave a foul in his favour but he again showed how weak is his physical presence in that instant.

Despite a lot of possession, we are not finding any decent opening in the Liverpool defence as Welbeck is isolated and we need a bit more precision up front. Rafael is having a blinder and it was thanks to his cross that we equalised with a good goal from Park. The Valencia - Rafael partnership down the right is working much better than the Evra-Giggs one on the left. SAF should have the courage to throw in a second striker as I think we will win it if Welbeck is supported up front. I would put on Chichi after 60 minutes instead of Giggs.
Fingers crossed...GO ON REDS!!

A trip to scouseland

2012-01-28T13:01:00.002+01:00

This is always a big game with tense atmosphere and it should be even worse today with the Evra - Suarez thingy! No two ways about it, we have to perform or go out. The scouse will be up for it...

De Gea in goal gives me the jitters, so does Evans in the centre of our defence. Two weak points there in my opinion. SAF has opted for a 5 man midfield with Welbeck alone up front. The boy can run but can he keep the ball and wait for the others to arrive? I can't really see many goal scoring opportunities being created with this line up so we'll have to be clinical - something which we have not been at all this past month or so. Not confident with this line up but not too many options for SAT to be honest. I would have started with 2 strikers and have had a right go at their defence but we'll see...Keane and Pogba on the bench!

De Gea
Rafael Smalling Evans Evra
Valencia Giggs Scholes Carrick Park
Welbeck

Lindegaard, Ferdinand, Berbatov, Hernandez, Fabio, M.Keane, Pogba

GO ON REDS!!

Welbeck keeps us in the title race

2012-01-22T18:59:00.003+01:00

Arsenal 1 Man Utd 2

Valencia turned from scorer to assist-man to present Welbeck with a chance he could not miss. I have to be honest and admit that Arsenal deserved a draw for their second half display. But we really should have wrapped it up in the first half when we were dominant.

With Giggs and Carrick evidently out of fuel in midfield after the break, SAF titubated for too long to make the necessary changes and Arsenal got a deserved equaliser. It was left for our best player today, i.e. Valencia, to practically win it for us. Rooney and Nani were poor again - very poor! Welbeck scored but is not a polished player and at times seems to be thinking one thing and his body responds in another way. What on earth was he doing on the 94th minute alone in front of the Arsenal goal and opting to dribble instead of shooting?? He runs for 90 minutes though and just for this fact is an asset at this moment in time.

We remain 3 points behind City but need to improve our performances in the run in as we are struggling in practically all areas of the pitch. With the current injury list, I would go for the transfer market and get a defensive midfielder who can play in defence. Easier said than done, of course....FA Cup next weekend, guess against who???

Valencia with the lead

2012-01-22T17:51:00.002+01:00

A frustrating first half ended with Giggs having to go to roll back the years and deliver a pinpoint cross for Valencia to head in. Nani had been in that position for at least 8 times and made a mess of all of them. It's been frustrating because Arsenal are there for the taking with a dodgy defence but Rooney, Nani, Welbeck have all made the wrong decisions and failed to create scoring opportunities.

We need to get a second as Arsenal can be dangerous going forward and our defence is not exactly the safest in the world at the moment. Pity about Jones being stretchered off - his ankle just gave way! We continue to lose players and that, at the end, could be crucial for any team in the run in.

Full focus is needed for the second half and Rooney must wake up and be sharper. Getting another goal is crucial to avoid any loss of points today. We must keep within touching distance...GO ON REDS!!

A must win game

2012-01-22T16:31:00.002+01:00

It's not going to be easy, but we must win this one to remain in contention given the incredible happenings elsewhere. SAF is going for a 4-4-2 with Giggs and Carrick in the middle. There are of course huge risks in having Jones and Evans at the heart of our defence, with little defensive coverage from midfield. Fingers crossed Valencia maintains his form and Nani improves his drastically, and they can contribute to open up the Arsenal defence. Arsenal will be pout to avenge the 8-2 drubbing in the first round.

Lindegaard;
Smalling Jones Evans Evra;
Valencia Carrick Giggs Nani;
Welbeck Rooney

I have not got a good feeling about this but must keep the faith and BELIEVE. Going 6 or 5 points behind could be a killer blow today...GO ON REDS!

United back to winning ways in the EPL

2012-01-14T22:10:00.005+01:00

Man Utd 3 Bolton 0

This was not of the best nx matches but the 3 points were the important objective. Scholes came up with the opener just before HT, with Welbeck and Carrick ensuring the points were home and dry.
The goal befe HT was important and before Welbeck got the second, I was getting edgy. Carrick's goal was just the icing on the cake.

Nani was useless and Rooney tried hard to emulate him. Rafael, played well and so did Valencia which seems to be getting back to form. The back 4 were not really tested but still had a few hesitant moments.

Scholes to the rescue

2012-01-14T16:46:00.002+01:00

3 great saves by the Bolton keeper, including a penalty save and an industrial amount of errors in the final quarter seemed the story of the first half but on 46 minutes, up pops Paul Scholes with a goal! Some errors I've seen are worrying - a simple pass or control for a professional player should be simple stuff. Nani did very little in the first half, As he has done this last couple of months and Rooney has tried hard but committed more mistakes than you'd expect from him. We'd better get a second quickly as with Rio and Evans, a calamity is always round the corner.
GO ON REDS!

3 points needed

2012-01-14T15:40:00.002+01:00

Bolton should not be an insurmountable opponent at OT but you never know. For the first time in ages we are playing with all players in their position and that is positive. Lindegaard keeps his place (I like), Evans plays at centre half (no like) and incredibly Scholes starts....will he last the 90 minutes?

Lindegaard
Rafael Ferdinand Evans Evra
Valencia Carrick Scholes Nani
Rooney Welbeck

GO ON REDS!

United win 3-2...just!!

2012-01-08T16:01:00.002+01:00

Man. City 2 Man. Utd 3

Manchester is red again....but only just. We raced to a 3-0 lead at HT, great header by Rooney, sublime volley by Welbeck and a rebound pushed in by Roo from a clear penalty on Welbeck. However, we took our foot off the pedal at HT and when City got one goal back through a free-kick, we again opted to keep the ball rather than going for the kill. A clear penalty on Valencia was not given as Foy tried to make amends for sending off Kompany after just 10 minutes, a bit harshly in my opinion. In fact, it was evident that Foy was applying the rule of compensation during the second half. Only poor refs do that, but the EPL is full of them so no surprises there!

Their second goal could be attributed to a Lindegaard mistake, but Smalling was nowhere near Aguero, both in closing him down for the shot, and for the rebound. It all started from a short return ball from Scholes who, in my opinion, came in too early around the hour. He did seem a bit rusty but could perhaps give a helping hand till the end of the season.

Strangely, despite going through to the next round, a feeling of disappointment that we did not kill them off prevails. Coming back to 3-2 from 3-0, with 10 men, could end up giving them a moral boost in the sense that they were not only not humiliated, but could have got a draw at the end.

There is no doubt that SAF has a lot of work to do in the coming weeks to maintain any sort of challenge for the title. Jones has gone off the boil, Nani has been very poor lately, and Rio is getting slower and slower. Evra needed a right telling off from Rio because he cannot defend to save his life. Valencia was OK but needs to be more enterprising going forward.

Bolton at home should provide us with the opportunity to return to winning ways in the EPL but honestly, I do not know what to expect any more as we have been blowing hot and cold in the last month.

3-0 up...with a little help from Chris Foy

2012-01-08T14:49:00.002+01:00

A great goal by Rooney, followed by a harsh red card for Kompany paved the way for another two goals before HT. No doubt it was double footed tackle which is clearly an offence, but I would probably have extracted a yellow. In any case, Welbeck scored a great second and Rooney headed in the rebound from his own penalty. Clear penalty, no doubt. Lindegaard made a great save at 1-0.

Can we score more? Jones is having a nightmare of a match and his own goal against the barcodes seems to be effecting him. He needs a rest. Rafael can come in and Smalling moved to the centre. How about introducing Scholes after 75 minutes??

GO ON REDS!!

We need to bounce back - Scholes on the bench!!

2012-01-08T13:22:00.003+01:00

Let's face it, we are facing an uphill struggle today. With all the injuries, playing away, and the poor form of most players, a third successive defeat is a concrete possibility. I am just hoping that we react the same way we did over the years in the face of adversity and pull off a result. It would do wonders for our morale, no doubt!

Lidegaard keeps his place, Smalling returns and the dodgy Ferdinand - Jones pairing at the centre of defence is given the nod. Valencia return on the wing and Nani is on the other side. Carrick and Giggs in the middle makes me edgy, to say the least. Welbeck and Rooney should trouble the City defence, but only if they are on form. The big news, of course, is Scholes brought out of retirement to help our ailing midfield.

Lindegaard
Smalling Jones Ferdinand Evra
Valencia Carrick Giggs Nani
Welbeck Rooney

Subs: De Gea, Rafael, Evans, Anderson, Park, Chicharito, Scholes.

GO ON REDS!!!

Second successive defeat

2012-01-04T22:57:00.003+01:00

Newcastle 3 Man Utd 0

After 10 years of waiting, Newcastle deserved their win which was obtained through 3 goals, all from set pieces. We however also failed to test Krul throughout the match as our players were harassed all over the pitch and were never really given time to settle down. SAF will perhaps now realise that we need a decent central midfielder during the January transfer window.

Today, we were out-muscled in midfield, and players like Nani, Rooney and Giggs just failed to turn up. Rooney's first touch is at times abysmal - definitely not world class! The injuries are being felt, and how. Cleverley, Fletcher, Young, Vidic, Smalling and so on are not easy to replace but I still expected better.

We have very few options in midfield and apart from having to rely on a 38 years old winger turned midfielder, we had to rush Anderson back. Add to that the poor form of Rooney and Chichi who seems to have lost his touch and there you have it.

We may be down, but I am hoping that we are not yet out. Defeat on Sunday against City in the FA Cup would mean 3 successive defeats and the panic button will probably need to be pushed. Will SAF use the January transfer window to strengthen the squad?

Numquam Moribimur....

1-0 down

2012-01-04T21:50:00.003+01:00

Newcastle took the direct route to goal - keeper's kick was not dealt with in the air by Jones and Ba anticipated Rio to score a great goal. Our midfield and attack have been disappointing. Carrick and Giggs are struggling as Newcastle have based their game on aggression. Park and Nani have not got past their markers and Berba and Rooney have not been able to combine at all. Rooney seems out of sorts and on the 42nd minute he summed up his half when he failed to return a simple pass and after that was dead slow to react and win the ball back.
SAF needs to find a solution to get behind the Newcastle defence. We have 45 minutes to score 2 goals and turn this round and unless the likes of Rooney, Giggs and Nani wake up, it's looking bleak!
We have to keep the faith though...GO ON REDS...BELIEVE!!!!!

3 points needed from tough away match

2012-01-04T20:15:00.002+01:00

SAF has made some sensible changes to the spastic line up he came up with against Blackburn. Lindegaard is rightly preferred, Rio returns at the centre of defence and is partnered with Jones whilst Carrick is back in midfield with Giggs. Park and Nani provide the width and Roo and Berba play up front. Would have preferred Rafael at RB rather than Valencia but this line up makes some sense at least! We need to bounce back from defeat with a win that would see us level again with our neighbours.

Lindegaard
Valencia Ferdinand Jones Evra
Nani Carrick Giggs Park
Rooney Berbatov

SUBS: de Gea, Fabio, Lingard, Anderson, Pogba, Welbeck, Hernandez.

GO ON REDS!!

SAF decisions and De Gea hand Blackburn 3 points

2011-12-31T15:41:00.005+01:00

Man Utd 2 Blackburn 3

First it was SAF, who rather arrogantly left Rooney and Giggs out of the squad, and after that an abysmal and amateurish performance by De Gea handed Blackburn an unexpected win. The tampering with line up and positions finally backfired spectacularly on SAF.

Having said that, a decent keeper could have changed the end result and spared SAF his blushes. The second goal by Yakubu went right through De Gea and after having done all the hard work and crawling back to 2-2, De Gea showed once again that he is not United quality when instead of punching the ball away using the advantage of his hands, he gifted a goal to Blackburn.

SAF must now admit that Lindegaard should be the United keeper for the rest of the season. His insistence with De Gea has cost United a Champions League qualification and now had handed Blackburn a win when it was crucial to get 3 points to keep level with City. Whilst it is somewhat true that we need to play Newcastle in 3 days and therefore players must be somewhat rotated, the keeper position is one that must be decided..NOW! And leaving Rooney and Giggs out of the squad was complete madness.

We also need to strengthen our midfield. A half fit Anderson showed that you need midfielders in midfield as he managed to spark a revival by driving the team forward when he came on. Nani was terribly frustrating today. Just when you need him to perform, he invariably lets his team down despite his talent. Today, he was more concerned with sporting his haircut and trying to do the impossible than with helping his team.

Valencia played well though. Pity that both his assists to Berba did not serve to anything at the end! He should have a quite word with De Gea tonight and suggest that he takes up golf or something else but not goalkeeping!!

2011 ends on a sour note and a clear message. We still need to replace VDS in goal and the answer may already be sitting on the bench. It is time for SAF to swallow his pride and admit that De Gea is not ready yet and hand Lindegaard his chance till the end of the season. We also need a class midfielder to come to OT to fill the gap left by Scholes.

A happy new year (duh!) to all!!

Spark needed from somewhere

2011-12-31T14:36:00.002+01:00

The early goals in the previous matches paved the way for easy wins but we need to do it the hard way today as Blackburn have taken the lead through a penalty committed by Berba and have consequently parked the bus outside their penalty area. And with no proper midfielders, creativity to open up their defence is evidently lacking. Nani is having one of his frustrating matches when he makes even the simplest tasks look difficult. We are having to rely on Rafael in midfield as SAF is evidently afraid to play him at the back and move Carrick into midfield. Chichi continues to disappoint as he is struggling for form and Welbeck needs to play as striker to be effective.

Is it going to be one of those matches where we drop points due to not having any solution to turn the result around? On SAF's 70th birthday, we should find the determination to crawl back and get 3 points but we need to go out for the second half with all guns blazing and get an early goal. If we are still down with 20 minutes to go, I can see us struggling. SAF needs to shuffle thing around and the players need to send quality crosses in - something clearly missing in the first half.

We need to keep the faith...GO ON REDS....BELIEVE!!!

Blackburn visit OT

2011-12-31T13:24:00.002+01:00

Another emergency line up against Blackburn and quite frankly, I have no idea how we will be playing in midfield. Disappointed that Lindegaard does not keep his place but glad to see Rafael back. I hope he can last the 90 minutes as none of the twins seem able to do so unfortunately! Fingers crossed we can get 3 points (1-0 will do) and pile up the pressure on the noisy neighbours!

de Gea
Rafael Carrick Jones Evra
Valencia Park Nani Welbeck
BerbatovHernandez

GO ON REDS!!!

Another 5-0 win

2011-12-26T17:58:00.003+01:00

Man Utd 5 Wigan 0

There is no doubt that the inadequate Phil Dowd gave us a helping hand today. The early lead - thanks to a great Evra move finished by Park, settled the nerves of a weird United line up.

With Wigan leaving the initiative to the United players, the United defence rarely had any work to do. Carrick and Evans were in fact never really tested and Valencia could roam forward undisturbed. Lindegaard kept another clean sheet and did what he had to do (routine stuff) when called upon.

When Dowd made his umpteenth gaffe of his career, sending off a Wigan player when a yellow should have been more than enough, it was downhill all the way.

Berba got a hat-trick and was at times smiling. Park did well following his goal and seems on the mend whilst Gibson failed to convince even in a match like this. Chichi is struggling for form following his injury and needs a goal to get him back on track.

Blackburn come to OT on Saturday...we are still second of course, but only 5 goals away from being first...BELIEVE!!!

2-0 up and Wigan with 10 men

2011-12-26T16:48:00.002+01:00

Phil Dowd showed once again that he is not fit to be in charge of EPL. If that red card had been shown to a United player, SAF would have got the mother of all suspensions for his post-match comments. The goal by Park early on settled us down and Berba added another when Wigan were already in 10. Any loss of points today would be cataclysmic given the way things stand at HT. I hope we can score another couple and keep a clean sheet. GO ON REDS!

SAF makes this interesting.

2011-12-26T15:44:00.002+01:00

Lindegaard

Valencia Carrick Evans Evra

Nani Giggs Gibson Park
Chichi Berba

Any false steps today will open a can of worms. SAF is risking big time.
We'll see. GO ON REDS!

5 away goals

2011-12-21T22:56:00.004+01:00

Fulham 0 Man Utd 5

An early goal by Welbeck set us on track and by the end of the first half, Nani and Giggs added another 2 to ensure the 3 points are home and dry. We switched off the engines in the second half and it was only thanks to an alert Lindegaard that we kept a clean sheet. He proved once again that he transmits more security to the defence. Two great goals by Rooney and Berba put the icing on the Christmas cake.

What is really worrying is the injury list that keeps growing. Today we lost Jones and Young to injury and at this rate, we will be needing the youth players by the end of January!

Wigan will now visit OT on boxing day. A merry Christmas to all.

3 first half goals

2011-12-21T21:58:00.002+01:00

I do not recall the last time we were 3-0 up at HT but our players are returning to form. Jones had to be substituted and that is worrying. Rooney is playing well but still has moments of complete carelessness and Young is one player who seems completely out of form. I am not complaining. Nani is returning to form and so is Valencia!

Fulham away

2011-12-21T20:58:00.002+01:00

Lindegaard
Smalling Jones Evans Evra
Valencia Carick Giggs Nani
Rooney Welbeck

GO ON REDS

More signs of improvement

2011-12-18T14:54:00.003+01:00

QPR 0 Man Utd 2

Rooney's goal in the first minute gave us confidence and at times we could see the United we saw at the beginng of the season. Flashes of the best Valencia are nice to see, Nani did well although he concluded very little. Jones did commit a few mistakes in the middle but his energy is proving valuable and Carrick's return to form is critical for United. His goal was typical of a confident player and he should keep his place if he keep playing so well.

Our main problems lie in defence which today was only tested with some high balls which Rio and Evans dealt with. They normally struggle against teams who keep it low and at one point on 75 minutes, I thought that there was going to be a repeat of the Basel second goal as both Rio and De Gea went to sleep only for DJ Campbell scoop the ball over the bar.

Chichi is back for the important Christmas programme and as SAF says, if we are near the top come January, we will have a chance. Will Arsenal have what it takes this afternoon? The pressure is now beginning to mount...

We now stay in London to face Fulham on Wednesday night.
Roll on Wednesday...

1-0 up but we should have scored more

2011-12-18T13:46:00.002+01:00

A combination of poor finishing and good goalkeeping by the QPR keeper see us hanging on to the first minute goal by Rooney. The fact that Evans and Jones had our best chances to double the score is perhaps the reason why we are still just 1-0 up. And the worrying aspect is that QPR are not just looking. They know our defence is vulnerable and with De Gea firmly rooted between the posts, our defence has to deal with all the crosses with no help from the keeper. Evra has been turned inside out by the QPR winger. If I was SAF with options for the LB position, I would take him off at HT!

We need a second goal. My feeling is that there will be other goals in this match and who gets the second goal is critical. If we get the goal, QPR will probably concede defeat but if they get an equaliser, we can be in trouble despite dominating most of the first half. Welbeck needs to be more alert as he has been rather poor this half despite his admirable work rate.

Let's get a second goal and wrap this up....GO ON REDS!!

First of two away matches in London

2011-12-18T12:31:00.002+01:00

United play their match away to QPR knowing that a win will take them to the top and put pressure on our noisy neighbours who face a tough match against the Gunners, albeit at home. De Gea plays, and so does Evans, so in my book we have two weak points there. Jones in midfield again, alongside Carrick, with Nani and Valencia providing the width. Welbeck starts and that should help out Roo getting more scoring opportunities. I hope we get a good start and score early to settle my nerves down. I am feeling a bit under the cosh and the last thing I need is one of those nervous 90 minutes. Fingers crossed...

De Gea,
Smalling, Evans, Ferdinand, Evra,
Valencia, Jones, Carrick, Nani,
Rooney, Welbeck

GO ON REDS!!

A positive reaction

2011-12-10T18:12:00.002+01:00

Man Utd 4 Wolves 1

A brace each by Nani and Rooney saw Wolves off and eased the pressure off at OT. A positive reaction from most of the players with Nani and Valencia enterprising and Jones and Carrick combining well in midfield. Nice to see Rooney returning to the goals although his game is still below par.

There is still room for improvement. Smalling at RB struggled against the Wolves speedy wingers and De Gea panics whenever a cross comes in, unsettling the entire defence. Up fron, Macheda and Welbeck both lack sharpness but Welbeck contributes to the United and Rooney's game much better.

We now go to QPR for a tough match down in London. Let's hope we see further improvement.

2-0 at HT

2011-12-10T16:48:00.002+01:00

Goals by Nani and Rooney seem to have set us on the right road to collect 3 points today. A positive reaction all round with Welbeck showing that with 2 strikers and Rooney allowed to wander around, we play much better. This confirms that it was a tactical error not to play 4-4-2 against Basel but that is now in the past.

De Gea had little to do but when it comes to crosses he continues to stay in goal and when the crosses come in and when Rio apparently blew his top, he had to come out and punched when he should have collected!

Nani and Valencia more enterprising with Carrick and Jones providing a good combination in midfield.

Hope we can get another goal or two and play some decent football. That would help us to look forward to the forthcoming Christmas programme with some optimism....GO ON REDS!

We need to react

2011-12-10T15:14:00.003+01:00

Following the debacle in the CL, I am expecting a reaction from the players and SAF. Apart from the 3 points, the United supporters expect some positive signs from players who in all honesty, have not earned their wages in the last few weeks. De Gea keeps his place despite costing us a place in the last 16 of the CL. SAF is stubborn enough to persist and his untouchable position at the club allows him to do so. If De Gea eventually makes it, he will prove me wring once again but I can't see the boy suddenly becoming a Man Utd quality keeper. He's had his chance and messed up...big time! Same applies for Evans who in my opinion is nowhere near United quality but keeps piling up appearances when he should in fact be playing for a club fighting for survival. Valencia and Nani have the quality, but have failed to show it in recent weeks. Same applies for Rooney and to a certain extent Evra. We now need to react and focus on the EPL and give the Europa league the kind of attention that we normally give the Carling Cup.

Starting today...GO ON REDS!!!

De Gea
Smalling, Ferdinand, Evans, Evra
Valencia, Carrick, Jones, Nani
Rooney, Welbeck

Bench: Lindegaard, Fryers, Gibson, Giggs, Park, Young, Macheda

United out

2011-12-07T22:38:00.003+01:00

Basel 2 Man Utd 1

SAF must recite a mea culpa for getting it completely wrong in the group matches of this year's CL. We gave away 4 points at home and quite frankly, the message was on the wall. Today he again got it wrong as we should have played with two strikers. This apart from the fact that we had too many players out of form, and out of position! What about Fletcher and/or Carrick in midfield???

Smalling, Park, Rooney, Young - all out of form. Jones played decently but at this level you need quality and not makeshift midfielders! Giggs was our best player despite getting a few wrong passes....and this says it all! De Gea has again proved that he is not ready for United. He gifted Basel the first goal and he and Smalling made a hash of a simple cross for their second. Tim Howard was dropped and made a scapegoat for palming the ball into a Porto's player path a few years ago. Lindegaard has proved reliable and should be given the chance to claim the keeper's place at this stage. If SAF persists with the De Gea, he will continue to jeopardise a season which already seems pretty much compromised in December!

At this stage, I would have preferred to finish last rather than having to play the Europe league. The ever increasing injury list and lack of in depth quality may lead to panic buys in January in an effort to save the season. SAF must solve the keeper issue quickly as VDS is being sorely missed and I do believe that Lindegaard will provide more stability. With Vidic out for a while, we need to reconstruct our defence and a decent midfielder needs to be acquired from somewhere.

Difficult to see the light at the end of the tunnel in moments like these but we have been through this before and need to react as we have always done....

NUMQUAM MORIBIMUR!

45 minutes away from elimination

2011-12-07T21:35:00.003+01:00

It's no use playing well when at their first attempt, you present your opponents with a goal. De Gea was clearly at fault and if we do go out, questions will be asked about why Lindegaard did not play.

We are not having luck at all and that is the main reason why I think we are going out. Apart from the weird decisions by SAF such as playing Rooney up front alone when he is clearly out of form, we are getting one injury after the other. Vidic will probably be out for a few months if the knee ligaments are gone. It was an awkward twist and I hope he has not torn the ACL!

And when Evans comes on instead of Vidic, the signs that we are doomed are not only visible, but being spelt out to us! Fletcher could have come in midfield and Jones moved back, or at RB and Smalling moved to the centre. The Rio - Evans combination, with De Gea behind them has got a Basle second goal spelt all over it.

My only hope if that Nani gets the better of the Basle left back and supplies a quality ball to someone to tap it in but we need a second striker near Rooney to score. SAF should have the courage to bring on Welbeck or Macheda instead of Park or Young and play 4-4-2.

Going out now will be damaging not only to the image of the club but also to the coffers.

I have to keep the faith despite all these adversities...BELIEVE...GO ON REDS!!

Risky business

2011-12-07T19:45:00.002+01:00

We should not have arrived at the last match of the group stage in this position but it is useless complaining now. SAF has not got too much options up front but seriously, we have no proper central midfielders for this crunch match!! I would have thought that Fletch was a must today! The fact that he is on the bench means that he is fit. Quite frankly, I am not too optimistic today but am hoping that SAF proves me wrong for the umpteenth time. The defence looks OK but all the rest is a hotchpotch for me....and will Rooney play the lone striker match?

De Gea,
Smalling, Vidic, Ferdinand, Evra,
Nani, Park, Jones, Giggs, Young
Rooney

Bench: Lindegaard, Evans, Fletcher, Gibson, Valencia, Welbeck, Macheda

BELIEVE!!! GO ON REDS!!

Jones goal enough for United

2011-12-03T20:35:00.002+01:00

Villa 0 Man Utd 1

A Phil Jones goal in the first half was enough for an important away win. The defence was solid and Lindegaard was reassuring as keeper. Our wingers again failed to deliver the goods. Young and Valencia could not get past their marker and failed to deliver quality balls into the box. Rooney continued with his dismal form and we have problems up front now that Chichi will be sidelined with injury. Someone must start scoring otherwise we're going to struggle in every game.

We now to Basle needing a draw to go through to the KO stages of the CL.

Jones with the lead

2011-12-03T19:38:00.002+01:00

A good first half but we need to push for the second. Pity about the injury to Chichi. If he has torn his ankle ligaments we will not see him for a while. Defensively we are doing fine but we need to be more incisive going forward. I would like Rooney get a goal before the match on Wednesday as it will boost his confidence in no small measure. But we need the 3 points today before thinking of Wednesday!!

Fingers crossed...keep the faith...BELIEVE!!

Trip to Villa Park with pressure on us.

2011-12-03T17:54:00.003+01:00

As expected, all the big guns have won their matches so we have to follow them. Our recent form has been poor but I am hoping there are signs of improvement today. Villa has been a happy hunting ground for us but we do need more than the draw we got in our last 2 visits here.

Lindegarrd in goal gets my thumbs up, and defence looks solid as long as Evra keeps his positioning. Not sure about that midfield though...we'll see.

Lindegaard
Smalling Ferdinand Vidic Evra
Nani Carrick Jones Young
Hernandez Rooney

subs: De Gea, Evans, Giggs, Park, Welbeck, Fletcher, Valencia.

GO ON REDS!!

United out of the Carling Cup

2011-11-30T23:19:00.004+01:00

Man Utd 1 Crystal Palace 2

I have to be honest and admit that I did not expect to go out at home to CP, but quite frankly, if this serves not to see the likes of Evans, Diouf and Gibson again, then so be it! Valencia and Park should have provided quality and experience but ended up being mediocrity reinvented.

And for all the hype being made about Pogba, Fryers and Morrison - none of them impressed me. Pogba is slow, Fryers never goes forward, and Morrison is too erratic.

Crystal Palace deserved to go through for a magnificent first goal and for defending well which was not difficult against this United side given that going forward, we were simply pathetic.

SAF needs to at least recover Park and Valencia from this game as instead of serving them well, it has definitely given a blow to their self belief.

Villa away on Saturday...

just one word...yawn!

2011-11-30T21:41:00.000+01:00

Crystal Palace QF of the Carling Cup

2011-11-30T20:26:00.002+01:00

SAF has sent out the second string but I still think we should have enough for CP.
Amos,
Rafael, Evans, Smalling, Fabio,
Valencia, Gibson, Park, Diouf,
Macheda, Berba.

GO ON REDS!

United pegged back

2011-11-26T17:53:00.002+01:00

Man Utd 1 Newcastle 1

It may be early in the season, but quite frankly, the form in recent weeks could eventually result in the relinquishing of the EPL title. Today, apart from a lucky goal, nothing went our way. First, a spastic assistant ref saw a penalty that was non existent (the ABUs will no doubt say that it was a clear penalty!), and after that, a combination of missed chances, superb saves and bad luck was just about enough to see us dropping 2 precious points at home.

We desperately need to find our goals again. Rooney had a clear header wide, same with Macheda, and Chichi got his lucky goal but had another header cleared off the line and a last minute goal disallowed for a dubious offside. Ashley Young was abysmal today. I cannot really fathom how his form has dipped do much. Nani is continuing with his frustrating form and it was left to Fabio to deliver a couple of decent crosses in. I just hate it when the ref is about the blow the whistle and we play the ball around when we should be pumping it in the opponents box. It drives me nuts as players should know that there is no time left for manoeuvring.

Better days will of course come our way, but if we leave it too late to try and turn the tide around, I'm getting the feeling that the top of the table will be too far away to aspire for anything other than a CL spot.

We need to up the tempo

2011-11-26T16:47:00.002+01:00

0-0 at HT. We started well but after 20 minutes the usual errors started creeping into our game. Chichi is trying hard, perhaps too hard, whilst Rooney and Young have been absent. Nani and Young need to take on their markers. Defensively we have been OK apart from the usual Evra who continues to confirm that he cannot defend to save his life. Even the mighty Obertan is having a lot of joy against him.

Macheda may be an option for the last 15 minutes if we are still struggling but I am expecting SAF to use his hair drier at this very moment and United to come out firing on all cylinders to get an early goal. Losing any points today will be as close as you can get to shooting yourself in the foot!

WE have to keep the faith....GO ON REDS...BELIEVE!!

Barcodes at OT

2011-11-26T15:18:00.002+01:00

We should have enough to get 3 points today although Newcastle will try to make it tough for us. De Gea keeps his place, Fabio is in at RB whilst the Rio-Vidic tandem is back. In the middle of the park, Nani and Young provide the width whilst Carrick and Giggs play in the middle. Wazza returns up front with Chichi. I am expecting improved performances from Nani, Chichi, Evra and Young following last Wednesday.

de Gea
Fabio Ferdinand Vidic Evra
Nani Carrick Giggs Young
Rooney Hernandez

SUBS: Lindegaard, Smalling, Evans, Gibson, Valencia, Park, Macheda.

GO ON REDS!!!

Another draw at home

2011-11-22T22:46:00.003+01:00

Man Utd 2 Benfica 2

Despite playing a good second half, we again failed to win at OT. After taking the lead, the defence made a mess of a simple clearance and handed Benfica a simple equaliser. De Gea confirmed once again that he is not the keeper to replace VDS. SAF will keep on trying to justify his choice and this will inevtably cost us dearly. Lindegaard is a better keeper - is it so hard to see???

I got completely p****d off with our inability to put in a decent corner. In all honesty, I believe that I can deliver a better corner even at my age - ACL, cartiladge and all! And Evra being caught out of position is another common occurance that irritates me in no small measure.

We now have to beat Basle away to move to the last 16 (not easy at all) and if we do, coming second in the group, we will probably get a Real Madrid or a Barca. Quite frankly, a side that cannot beat Basle and Benfica at home cannot really aspire to make it to the fourth final in five years.

We'll see...

1-1 - we need a win

2011-11-22T21:33:00.002+01:00

An unlucky own goal after just 3 minutes by Jones made sure that we will need to do it the hard way - as always! Ashley Young in that position is struggling and Nani is having one of his frustrating nights. If Valencia and Nani decide to take their opponents on and do the right thing, we can of course win. Trouble is that going forward, we have lost all sparkle and we are finding it very hard to create chances. We need to up the tempo and pressure Benfica in their own half. GO ON REDS!

A win is needed to make sure of making the last 16

2011-11-22T20:08:00.002+01:00

De Gea, Fabio, Rio, Jones, Evra, Valencia, Carrick, Fletcher, Nani, Young, Berba.

Chichi goal enough...just.

2011-11-19T20:41:00.002+01:00

Swansea 0 Man Utd 1

Chichi's goal early on was enough for another away win in a difficult match. There were some positive signs today. Vidic and Rio were steady. Carrick did well and Giggs was to erratic but still provided the assist for the goal. Chichi did very little apart from the goal and did Nani did even less although he could have scored the second goal at the death and was only denied by an excellent save.

On a positive note, we kept another clean sheet. SAF seems focused on making sure that our defence regains some solidity. We had been shipping in too many goals even before 'that' match. We need to get better going forward though. The fact that we gained our first corner an the 89th minute speaks volume about our wing play and that is what has been particularly lacking in these last few weeks. Add to that Rooney's loss of form and the answer to our struggles is not to difficult to arrive to.

In any case, another 3 points in the bag. We now take on Benfica and need to get a win to win the group and avoid (or try to) the big guns in the first round of the last 16 come next February.

Bring on the guys from Lusitania....

Chichi with the lead

2011-11-19T19:19:00.001+01:00

A decent first half but we need to be more clinical going forward. Swansea do make errors and are vulnerable but can also be dangerous going forward. Carrick and Giggs have been OK but Giggs and Roo have been wasteful. Nani mainly absent and Chichi working hard but both should be working better with Rooney. I'd like to see Jones going forward but he seems very worried about the Swansea winger.
We need a secod goal to make sure of the points. Swansea will keep coming at us and we have to be good enough to exploit the gaps they will leave at the back. About time Rooney got a goal- it's been nearly 2 months!
Keep the faith....Go On Reds!

Wales trip

2011-11-19T17:54:00.001+01:00

United travel to Wales to face Swansea. After the break I am expecting a refreshed united side and better football than our recent form.

De Gea

Jones Rio Vidic Evra

Nani Carrick Giggs Park

Roo Chichi

We should beable to get 3 points but it's not easy. Fingers crossed.

Go On Reds!

United win but the goals have dried up

2011-11-05T18:47:00.003+01:00

Man Utd 1 Sunderland 0

The flow of goals that characterised our start to this season seems a thing of the past. On SAF's 25th anniversary at OT (THANK YOU SIR ALEX!!!!!) I do not think that we produced a display that he would be happy about.

At the end, it was an own goal by Wes Brown which gave us the three points. Although we did better in the second half (it was impossible to do worse than the first half!!), we are struggling tremendously to create chances and when we do, our strikers seem to have lost the midas touch. Chichi is a case in point and Welbeck struggled to find his position, let alone be dangerous. Berba - I'd rather not comment. Evra continues to have the occasional vacuum in his mind and today he nearly cost us a goal when he completely forgot that he is playing at left back and should be marking their right wing (who could cross easily and Sunderland nearly equalised). Evra was 20 metres away!!!!

I have to dig deep to find positives from this but the fact that we kept a clean sheet is one of them. Lindegaard cannot really be judged but I would send him out again in our next match. Vidic seems on the mend and today he was solid. Jones did reasonably well at RB.

At the end of the day, 3 points gained. We normally do have a bad patch this time of the season. Hope we can at least minimise the damage. I live in hope....

Another poor half but we lead 1-0

2011-11-05T17:00:00.001+01:00

Wes Brown came to the rescue of an abysmal Man Utd with an own goal that gave us a barely deserved lead. Exactly what is the purpose of Welbeck on the left is beyond me. Chichi is alone up front and struggling. We need to bring on Carrick in my opinion, and move Rooney up front with either Chichi or Welbeck making space.

Nani has again been pathetic but at least he drove in a decent corner for the own goal. A decent corner at OT is a rarity so this is one to save on DVD and repeat to players over and over again. The game is by no means over. I hope SAF is using his hair drier at this very moment. We need to be more aggressive when in possession and go attack the empty spaces. Some players are in pre-season mood - not good enough by any stretch.

It is not unusual that we struggle for form in this part of the season, but someone must take control and drive the players on. That someone, a leader, is still unfortunately missing from our squad.

GO ON REDS!!!

Sunderland with plenty of ex red devils at OT

2011-11-05T15:44:00.000+01:00

SAF has opted for Lindegaard in goal. I hope he does well. For some reason, I think this guy is a better keeper than De Gea. The Ferdinand-Vidic partnership resumes though I am sure that it will not last long given that Rio will probably miss a few matches after this. I just hope that Smalling comes in instead of Evans.

Rooney seems to be in the middle again with Chichi and Welbeck up front. Nani and Park to provide the width. I hope Nani does well on the right - he has been pretty much crap on the left recently.

Apart from the need for 3 points, we are also in dire need of a good performance.

Lindegaard

Jones Ferdinand Vidic Evra

Nani Fletcher Rooney Park

Hernandez Welbeck

GO ON REDS!!!

Another stuttering display but we are top of the group with Benfica

2011-11-02T22:42:00.000+01:00

MAN UTD 2 OTELUL 0

Not much positives from this one apart from Rooney doing well in midfield and Jones and his usual energy. Negative displays from Nani, Chichi, Berba and Ando.

We need to do better to beat Sunderland on Saturday.

1-0 at HT

2011-11-02T21:44:00.000+01:00

A Valencia goal after just 8 minutes seemed to pave the way for an easy win. But even Otelul are a tough job for this United side who seems lacking inventiveness. Owen went off injured and Chichi seems off form as well. Apart from Rooney, very little quality on show. Evans had a couple of his blonde moments, getting a useless yellow as well!

The poor form is very worrying but we will get better. For thr moment though, let us get another goal or two to avoid any surprises!

GO ON REDS!

Otelul visit OT

2011-11-02T20:40:00.001+01:00

SAF has opted to play Ronney in midfield. A clear sign that our midfield is running short of quality players. 3 points a must tonight.

De Gea

Jones Rio Evans Fabio

Valencia Ando Roo Nani

Owen Berba

Owen and Berba start up front....not sure I like that. Hope Valencia does well - we need him back in form. Ando needs to get back to the form in September.

GO ON REDS!

An away win - we huffed and puffed but we won!

2011-10-29T15:13:00.001+02:00

Everton 0 Man Utd 1

An early goal by Chichi was enough at the end. We never really threatened to get a second and decided to defend the 1-0 advantage by packing our defence. Why exactly Berba was brought on is not clear to me. You need a player who can chase the ball at that stage not one who complains and refuses to chase a keeper's kick upfield!

Nani and Valencia both came on and tried to their job - with limited success, but they tried. Park ran his socks off winning a thousand fouls, half of which committed by Fellaini who only got a yellow on the 90th minute!!

SAF saw it fit to have a go at De Gea for not coming out to collect the ball in his own box. He should be doing that every day until the kid gets some confidence. I'd like to see Jones in central defence instead of Evans (of course) as the Jones - Vidic combination could be interesting. Rio was rightly subbed after the derby and the best defence option could be Smalling Jones Vidic Evra. Rooney worked hard behind the strikers and could probably play a few more games in that role. He needs to get fitter though, as that role requires more miles in a match.

Anyways, 3 points to at least keep within 5 points of the leaders. On Wednesday we host Otelul in the CL and on Saturday, Sunderland visit OT. Two winnable games if we are up for it!!

1-0 up but we need a second

2011-10-29T13:57:00.002+02:00

We started off well and took a deserved lead but on 35 minutes, Everton came back strongly and could have drawn level when Baines' free kick hit the bar. They continued mounting on the pressure and I am glad we kept the 1-0 lead till HT.

We now need to hit them on the break and get a second. One goal is not enough as they will keep coming at us till the end. Happy with the back 4 so far and the protection from the midfielders. Rooney is playing behind Welbeck and Chichi which means we are lacking a bit of width.

We need these 3 points...GO ON REDS!!

Everton away - 3 points needed

2011-10-29T12:36:00.004+02:00

For the morale and everything else. A reaction is needed after last week's result.
De Gea
Jones Evans Vidic Evra
Park Fletcher Cleverley
Welbeck Chichi Rooney
If this is the correct line up, Rooney will play wide left, I guess!
Amazingly Evans keeps his place, probably due to Smalling injury.
In SAF I trust, GO ON REDS!

Into the QF of the Carling Cup

2011-10-25T22:52:00.002+02:00

Aldershot 0 Man Utd 3

It was, as predictable, a relatively easy task. Berba, Owen and Valencia produced the goals. Amos was only tested towards the end with a free kick. Valencia scored a great goal but is still very erratic. Park had a good game but that is pretty much it.
Pogba had 30 minutes but again failed to convince me.
Everton away next...

2-0 up

2011-10-25T21:38:00.001+02:00

As Carlos predicted, we are 2-0 up. Some positive displays and Berba has been probably the liveliest I've seen him for a while.Cleverley so and so and Vidic still very clumsy. We desperatly need him to get back to form.
Diouf anonymous and Valencia was positive when going forward.
Not much to add.

Aldershot to start building again

2011-10-25T20:15:00.002+02:00

After the events of last Sunday, we need to start picking up the pieces and this could be a good match to take note of players that couldcome into the first team if needed. SAF knows that some changes must be done against Everton on Satuday.

Amos

Fabio Jones Vidic Fryers

Valencia Cleverly Park Diouf

Owen Berbav

Post Scriptum

2011-10-24T20:25:00.002+02:00

As usual, many today remembered that I support the most successful club on English soil and enjoyed the moment rubbing it in. Some people seem to prefer the losses of their enemies than their team winning. I am not in that category but can perhaps understand some people who cannot imagine their team winning anything in the near future!

Some went as far as prediciting the end of an era for the mighty Man Utd. I always smile at such comments cause these people have been predicting this for nearly 20 years now, and SAF has come back to haunt them over and over again!!

It is in times like this that the true fans come out - Numquam Moribimur

Ouch..that hurts!

2011-10-23T16:32:00.002+02:00

Man Utd 1 Man City 6

Losing to City always hurts, losing 1-6 hurts terribly especially after being the best side for the first 20 minutes and messing it all up in a dreadful second half.

The fact that Evans is an idiot has been noted in my diary for a few years now. He has shown over and over that he is simply not United quality. But even with 10 men, we should have not have gone down the way we did. Rio and De Gea never really showed the character and determination needed when 10 men need to fight back. Young had the chance to draw us level despite a man less but spurned it - it was game over from that minute onwards and City exploited the spaces.

SAF will need to pick this team up and slowly start getting some people back into form. In my opinion, SAF needs to have the courage to make changes now. Rio and De Gea need to be dropped. Central midfield - Cleverley must come back into it and Valencia and Park must be given their chance.

Bragging rights to City but we will bounce back. The Liverpool defeat (1-4) a couple of years ago hurt, and I can still recall some drubbings from years ago but we have always come back.

Numqam Moribimur!

Another comeback is needed

2011-10-23T15:17:00.003+02:00

Despite playing reasonably well and enjoying quite a lot of possession, we are 1-0 down. After dominating the first 20 minutes, City went ahead with their first real attack when Balotelli placed Milner's cut back where De Gea could not reach it.

On 39 minutes, Rooney did cut back a good ball but to our great misfortune, Evans was at the end of it!! His limitations as a footballer were embarrassingly exposed.

As expected, City closed the door even more once they took the lead, and now we are really going to have to work hard to break them down. It may take one bit of magic or a bit of fortune - whatever, but we need to get back in this soon. Chichi may play a part although Welbeck has played well. Young and Nani have been active but not precise enough. They need to deliver the crosses with the accuracy needed to find a red shirt.

Fletcher has been rather poor and Ando is on a yellow so a change in central midfield is perhaps needed. We need 2 goals....GO ON REDS....BELIEVE!!!

Time to step up a gear

2011-10-23T13:10:00.002+02:00

Our displays have been pretty dull recently so we really need to step up to take 3 points today. Our noisy neighbours are above us in the table, in better form, and a win for them will see them 5 points above us which will be annoying even at this early stage of the season. Mind you, I would be annoyed losing any points to City even if they were 10 points behind us but there is no denying that City will make a strong challenge this year after all the millions they've spent.

SAF has gone for a strong line up with no big surprises this time round. It's the same back four that struggled against the Scouse that scares me most. I would have preferred Smalling central and Jones at RB to be honest but there you go...

de Gea
Smalling Ferdinand Evans Evra
Nani Fletcher Anderson Young
Rooney Welbeck

We have to keep the faith ....GO ON REDS!!

Rooney penalties see us through

2011-10-18T22:44:00.003+02:00

Otelul 0 Man Utd 2

At the end, 2 crystal clear penalties were enough to overcome the obstacle of Otelul that proved more difficult than expected. Vidic was sent off for a senseless foul which could have been penalised with a yellow rather than a straight red but the ref had a good game nonetheless.

Ironically, we did better when playing with 10 against 11 in terms of organisation and not giving the ball away. True, it is always easier when you are 1-0 up.

I like the way Lindegaard is ready to have a go at his defenders when they do not do their job. De Gea seems scared of his own shadow at times! Rooney will feel better after the two penalties but we really need to get some of our players back in form. Young will surely start but it will be interesting to see our defence and midfield line up.

Massive match on Sunday...another 3 points needed.

Another poor half

2011-10-18T21:33:00.002+02:00

It does really seem that most of our players have gone off form. Nani and Valencia have been poor whilst Rooney and Chichi are finding it hard to combine and open the Otelul defence.

Vidic seems a bit rusty at the back but Lindegaard seems confident. We really need to step up, raise the tempo and have a shot rather than trying to pass the ball to goal. Ando and Carrick are doing OK but our wingers have let us down this half. Fingers crossed we can get a goal and play better as there seems to be lack of confidence in the team at the moment.

Keep the faith...GO ON REDS...BELIEVE!!!

A must win game

2011-10-18T20:09:00.002+02:00

SAF has sent out a strong line up (if it is the one below!) which should get us the much needed 3 points tonight. I just wish he had played a more or less similar team last Saturday! I'm just a wee annoyed that players getting 100K a week or more to play football are deemed not fit enough to play 2 matches a week! I used to play 2 matches in a weekend many moons ago - for free!!!

De Gea
Smalling, Jones, Vida, Evra
Valencia, Carrick, Anderson, Nani
Rooney, Chicha

Bench: Lindegaard, Evans, Fletcher, Giggs, Berbatov, Young, Fabio

Carrick and Ando key today. Let's hope Roo has his mind settled down tonight - an early goal for him will do him a world of good.

GO ON REDS!!

Chichi the saviour

2011-10-15T15:48:00.005+02:00

Liverpool 1 Man Utd 1

Chichi came off the bench to save a point for a faltering United side who once again failed to display quality football. Despite playing too defensively, we still conjured to hand Liverpool a goal when Giggsy took leave of his senses and decided that he should not act as a barrier to Gerrard's shot despite forming part of the wall!

SAF tried to make up for the dreadful line up he came up with by sending on Rooney, Nani and Chichi. Inevitably it was Chichi who came up with an important goal and it was left for De Gea to show his good shot stopping capacity (if only he could have an idea on how to handle crosses!!) and make sure that Liverpool never got the late winner.

Out of the back four, only Evra played well, showing a lot of character as well. Rio and Evans give me the jitters, as Rio is now becoming visibly slower in closing down opponents. Smalling was out of touch today. The Fletch - Giggs - Jones combination in midfield was a shambles really. No creativity and even covering was bad at times. Welbeck tried hard with very little joy and Park and Young rarely troubled the Liverpool defence.

City will of course beat Villa but we will have a chance to regain top spot next weekend. There must be a marked improvement though. Some of the players (including Rooney) seem to have gone out of form and the manager's tinkering is not helping at all. Still, May is far far away...

CL matches return during the week....a must win match or we'll struggle to make the KO stages!

0-0 in a drab affair

2011-10-15T14:34:00.003+02:00

Quality is lacking and the drab affair is the result of this. Quite frankly, the role of Jones supporting Welbeck and Giggs further behind is bizarre to say the least. Evans did his very best to set up Suarez but the Uruguayan shot straight at De Gea. Unless we can start making better use of the ball going forward, I can't see us scoring. SAF must change something as this is rather poor from United.

We must keep the faith - GO ON REDS - BELIEVE!!!

2011-10-15T13:33:00.004+02:00

SAF is risking big time with this line up. Go on reds!

United get points but honours to Norwich

2011-10-01T17:51:00.003+02:00

Man Utd 2 Norwich 0

We finally broke down the Norwich resistance but it was not a match to remember by any stretch. Jones and Lindegaard were alert but Evans struggles even against average players and Valencia confirmed once again that he really cannot play in defence.

The central midfield is a worry. Ando was poor but he was lucky enough to be in the right spot to score. Fletcher cannot really be expected to supply creativity but should be offering more protection to the defence.

Rooney was average but worked hard for the team. At the moment we are struggling but 3 points were gained. SAF will know that we will need to up our game against better teams. Norwich and lady luck were on our side today.

Drab first half

2011-10-01T16:48:00.003+02:00

We've been slow and spectacularly inaccurate. SAF will no doubt be using the famous hairdrier tratment at this precise moment and rightly so. Fletch and Ando have been poor and Nani is having one of those days. Some changes may be needed as Norwich are proving to be well organised. Time for the quality players to step up. GO ON REDS!

Norwich visit OT

2011-10-01T13:55:00.004+02:00

De Gea has been dropped (or rotated), Jones and Evans are at the centre of our defence, Valencia is playing at RB again. Ando and Fletcher will play in the middle of the park with Nani and Park providing the width. The Rooney - Hernandez partnership resumes operations - let's hope with a couple of goals between them. Our back 4 is looking weak but hopefully they should do enough to allow us to get 3 points today.

Lindegaard
Valencia Jones Evans Evra
Nani Fletcher Anderson Park
Rooney Hernandez

SUBS: de Gea, Ferdinand, Carrick, Giggs, Owen, Welbeck, Berbatov.

GO ON REDS!!

Abysmal second half hands Basle a draw

2011-09-27T22:37:00.003+02:00

Man Utd 3 Basle 3

And it could have been worse. I have never witnessed such a poor second half by a United team in terms of concentration and tactical awareness. Let's face it, the signs that SAF had got it all wrong were there from the beginning. Despite a two goal lead, the mighty Basle were opening our defence at will. It was evident the United players were complacent and not fully concentrated and the 2-0 lead added to complacency.

When they pulled one back, we still were all over the place and Basle went ahead 3-2 with another 2 goals. The draw was only obtained with the enormous spirit of Manchester United, everything else was in complete chaos.

Only Jones played decently from the back four. It is shameful that Evra concedes 10 metres to a Basle player to pick his mate in the box and Rio was nowhere near his man. This game confirmed that De Gea is really out of his depth at United. He was nearly embarrassed by a clearance from the other half of the pitch and more than that, the boy simply cannot organise the defence in front of him.

Carrick, Giggs and Ando were a right mess in midfield. No one was covering our defence and despite playing with 3 in the middle, Basle were still finding acres of space in midfield.

This was an experiment which went horribly wrong for SAF. It may not compromise our chances of qualifying but even coming second in the group could pose serious risks of getting an unfavourable draw.

This side needs Vidic at the back with some urgency. Ando is slowly fading away after a great start to the season and up front, Rooney is being sorely missed. I am seriously worried about the keeper issue. For me, De Gea is simply not ready for United.

But there is still plenty of time to get get this mishap right. It is incredible how we allowed a side like Basle to nearly get a win today but we must learn from these mistakes. The signs were already there against Chelsea and today we were really exposed. Time for SAF to fix the problem.

Norwich at OT next weekend.

2-0 up but so many errors

2011-09-27T21:40:00.002+02:00

Welbeck scored two goals in quick succession to more or less secure the points but we have made so many mistakes all over the pitch that it is a surprise that we have not conceded at least one goal. Basle have had at least 3 open chances but their attackers seem allergic to goals, and thank God for that! Fabio cannot defend his area and Rio and Jones have been exposed to often for my liking.

Up front, Welbeck has been served well by Giggs in both goals but otherwise, Carrick and Anderson have been erratic and Young and Valencia can do much better. Hope to see us tighter at the back and more clinical up front during the second half...GO ON REDS!

4-5-1 against Basle at home!!!

2011-09-27T20:25:00.003+02:00

De Gea starts again and Jones and Rio are at the centre of our defence. Welbeck plays alone up front with both Berba and Owen on the bench. Surely we can afford to play a typical 4-4-2 at home against Basle. Maybe SAF will have to resort to adding another striker if Basle are hard to crack down. We'll see...

De Gea
Fábio, Ferdinand, Jones, Evra © -
Carrick, Anderson, Giggs -
Valencia, Welbeck, Young.

Bench: Lindegaard, Fletcher, Park, Nani, Berbatov, Owen, Diouf.

GO ON REDS!!!

First 2 points dropped

2011-09-25T10:19:00.004+02:00

Stoke City 1 Man Utd 1

No, I did not go in hiding just because we drew against Stoke. I had to go out just after the match yesterday and did not want to arrive late so I left my post for this Sunday morning.

My comment after the match against Chelsea that we will not have it our way all season was soon proved right. Mr Walton made sure that all the comments by the ABUs that Man Utd are favoured by the referees are put into place. Anyone with an iota of intelligence will concede that over a whole season, decisions will go in favour and also against at some stage. I keep believing that these decisions balance themselves out and eventually the best team wins over a marathon such as the EPL.

Having said that, there is no denying the fact that the level of refereeing in the EPL is pretty much abysmal and while I am all in favour of respect for referees, this has to be earned. Mr Walton. yesterday, denied a clear penalty that would have also meant a straight red. That, after less than 5 minutes play, would have changed the whole game.

After taking the lead, we should have gone on and got a second but Stoke gave their usual 110% and got level through Crouch who could not really miss from close range. In my opinion, De Gea should have gone out for that cross and punched it away. He has to learn this part of the game as this will prove to be an important factor over a whole season. The young keeper made a couple of excellent saves but at United, you have to do well in all aspects of your game, and that is even more important for keepers.

Rio struggled against Crouch's height and was it not for the fact that Crouch is Crouch after all, he should have got a second after Rio completely missed the ball. Jones is impressive going forward but has to learn to pass it on, perhaps keeping on running for the return. He is also playing well defensively and one impressive aspect of his match is that I've rarely seen him commit fouls despite being a defender. Valencia was struggling at times at RB, especially towards the end of the match when fatigue was evident.

Berba and Owen did not cause a lot of damage. Rooney was in fact sorely missed up front but I will not be doing a Mancini and claim that we lost 2 points because we do not have enough players!!! Basically, I think that SAF made a mistake putting Owen on when he had Welbeck on the bench. He is only human after all. Giggsy could have won it at the death but for once, his trusted left foot let him down.

Be that as it may, we are still top of the league at these very early stages. The battle at Stoke should prepare us for many other hard fought matches that await us. CL match on Tuesday when we will welcome FC Basle. The Boss will do some changes, I guess...

Nani with the lead

2011-09-24T19:23:00.003+02:00

A great goal by Nani in a hard fought match has given us a HT lead. How on earth Mr Walton did not see a penalty after 4 minutes when Chichi was clearly pushed when through, is totally beyond any logic. SAF was rightly infuriated and Stoke infuriated him even more with they tried to intimidate our players with some very high tackles.

De Gea made two great saves, confirming that he is a good shot stopper but is struggling with the long throw ins and corners. Rio and Jones are not always coping with the knock down by Crouch and there lies the danger.

We definitely need another goal to kill them off. Otherwise they will keep on coming till the 90th minute and I can't see us holding out with a 1-0 lead. Pity about the Nani miss with an open goal. Owen and Berba should do better than the first half and the last person in the world that should complain about movement is Berba...oh well!! Young should also be told to take players on more often.

Fingers crossed...keep the faith...GO ON REDS!!

Away to Stoke without Rooney

2011-09-24T17:45:00.003+02:00

Rooney is out, apparently out with a hamstring injury. SAF has stuck with De Gea, Rio returns at the back with Evans partnering him, Jones is at RB. Fletcher keeps his place with Ando in the middle of the park with Nani and Young providing the width. Berba gets his chance to prove a point. I hope he proves me wrong but he hardly seemed motivated in the bits he played this season. NO doubt a tough match, we may drop the first points this season if we are not really up for it as Britannia is a tough place to go.

De Gea
Jones Ferdinand Evans Evra
Nani Anderson Fletcher Young
Berbatov Hernandez.

Subs. Lindegaard, Owen, Giggs, Park, Welbeck, Fabio, Valencia

GO ON REDS!!!

Easy win for United

2011-09-20T22:40:00.003+02:00

Leeds Utd 0 Man Utd 3

Despite possibly the weirdest line up in the history of Man Utd, the match was easily won by the real United - Manchester United.

Leeds never recovered after Owen scored the first goal and Amos in the United goal was very rarely in action. Not much to comment really, apart from the fact that all the hype about Pogba seems to be a bit exaggerated in my opinion. Good feet but he seems a bit too lanky for a midfielder in my opinion, and no change of pace whatsoever. Difficult to judge in 45 minutes though.

Glad to see Welbeck back in action - he may need to start on Saturday. The young Cole certainly has some pace. Never seen him play before, but if he has got a footballing mind to match his pace, he may be a star for the future.

Stoke away next on Saturday and SAF may be tempted to play Lindegaard in goal given the aerial threat of Stoke. We'll have to wait and see...in the meantime, another one bites the dust!

Another 3-0 HT lead...the goals keep flowing

2011-09-20T21:36:00.002+02:00

I can hardly remember a start of a season when United goals flowed in so fluently. Even with a makeshift side with 4 strikers, 4 midfielders and 2 defenders, we are dominating a Leeds side who were simply abysmal after we scored the first goal.

Owen got a brace whilst Berba did not even had a sniff at goal. It is amazing how he has gone back to his lethargic worst after a decent season last year. Personally, I do not think he can expect to play much if even in this side he struggles to make an impact.

Giggs scoring a third is simply the cherry on the cake. The question is, can this side score more or will we sit back and invite Leeds to have a go?

We'll see...GO ON REDS!!

A trip to Leeds for the Carling Cup

2011-09-20T20:32:00.002+02:00

Was it not for the fact that we are playing Leeds (= dislike) I would not bother too much about the Carling Cup. Having said that, I must admit that I do not like to see United losing any match so I am keeping fingers crossed that the weirdest line up ever in the history of Manchester United can do well and get a win tonight.

Amos
Valencia Fryers Fábio
Carrick
Park Giggs
Diouf Berbatov Macheda
Owen

Absolutely no idea how they will in fact take their positions on the field of play but there you go!

in SAF we trust...GO ON REDS!!

United top of the league with maximum points

2011-09-18T18:55:00.003+02:00

Man Utd 3 Chelsea 1

Another 3 points thanks mainly to a 3-0 lead at HT. Smalling set us on the way with a header from a great Young free kick and Nani scored an incredible second. Rooney got lucky with the third when Chelsea failed to clear their lines after a great run by Jones.

Torres caught our defence napping after a few seconds of the restart and made it 3-1. In all fairness, our defence was exposed too much for my liking today and we need to get much tighter in defence. Torres missed the chance of the century when once again our defence was split open and had he scored and made it 3-2, I would have been sweating like a pig at the end.

Mind you, we had our chances for the fourth. Rooney hit the post when it was easier to score and did a perfect imitation of Beckham's mishit penalty a few years back when Nani had gained a penalty following another great effort. He also served Berba a goal on a plate but in one instant, Berba showed why he has no place in this side. On for only a few minutes, he was not fast enough to get to Rooney's ball which may have been a bit over hit, but a faster player would have been on it like a flash and thundered it in.

Anyways, another win and as Carlos predicted, we are now sole leaders at the top. Not that it does really count at this stage, but he had predicted United winning and all the others following losing points this weekend. Credit where it is due...keep up the good work Carlos!!

We now go to Leeds in the Carling Cup. Will we see a few more youngsters?

United storm into 3-0 HT lead

2011-09-18T17:48:00.002+02:00

Incredibly, United are 3-0 up at HT in a match that was much more balanced than the scoreline indicates. At times, in fact, we were all over the place and SAF had to come down to the touchline to have a word with Ando. Chichi, Ando and Jones all gave the ball away in dangerous positions and Ramirez missed a sitter really.

This side going forward, however, has goals written all over and when luck smiles on you and you start getting deflections and hairline offside decisions your way, it all seems to be easy. Barring any disastrous second half of catastrophic proportions, we should get all 3 points today but there will be times ahead when we will not have it our way.

GO ON REDS!!!

Chelsea at OT

2011-09-18T16:46:00.003+02:00

This is surely the toughest match so far this season. Chelsea may be labelled an aging side but I believe Villa Boas knows his facts and is slowly rejuvinating his side. A win today will mean a first defeat for Chelsea and see up continuing in our perfect start but it is by no means an easy task.

SAF returns to 4-4-2 with pretty much the same side he has put out in the EPL. Fletcher takes the place of Cleverley and we have to see if Jones or Smalling play at RB. The central defence and keeper will need to be fully focused today. We'll see how they cope but I'm a bit edgy...GO ON REDS!!

De Gea;
Smalling, Jones, Evans, Evra;
Nani, Fletcher, Anderson, Young;
Rooney, Hernandez

Subs; Lindegaard, berbatov, Giggs,Park, Carrick, fabio, Valencia

Lisbon obstacle is out of the way with minimum damage

2011-09-14T22:47:00.003+02:00

Benfica 1 Man Utd 1

Starting with the most difficult match of the group was never going to be easy but I expected better. Carrick, Giggs, Park and even Rooney were too erratic today and although we could have won it, the match had calamity written all over it so I am happy to settle for a draw.

Tactically, we were OK for most of the match but our build up play was too slow and we depended too much on long balls forward when Rooney was all alone up front. By the time SAF sent on Chichi and Nani, lethargy had already settled in our game and we could not produce the final push to win it.

The main positive aspect that emerged today is Lindegaard who was great in my opinion. Dare I say that he is better than De Gea?

Chelsea next on Sunday....another big match. I am trusting that we will play much better. Perhaps today's reality check was not that bad after all. We'll see...

1-1 at HT

2011-09-14T21:34:00.003+02:00

For long stretches of the first half, memories of the abysmal away league form of last season came flooding back. My impression is that SAF sent out a squad that should get him a drab 0-0 but when Benfica took the lead (that is what you get when you leave Evans in a one v one against a half decent striker) we had to react and quite frankly, Carrick Fletcher and Park are not really creating anything for Rooney. A moment of magic from Giggs (who had been rather poor up to that moment) saw him add another Euro goal to his tally. And what a goal it was!!

We will now have to see if SAF wants to win this or if 1-1 is just fine for both teams. I am convinced that with another striker and Rooney dropping in, we can win this but changes are needed.

We'll see.....

keep the faith....BELIEVE!

Difficult away match in Lisbon.

2011-09-14T20:40:00.001+02:00

Lindegaard,
Evra, Evans, Smallng, Fabio,
Giggs, Park, Carrick, Fletcher, Valencia
Rooney

Giggs and Evra should of course be on the left.

GO ON REDS!!

United can't stop scoring

2011-09-10T20:15:00.003+02:00

Bolton Wanderers 0 Man Utd 5

The away blues seems a thing of the past doesn't it!! It's been a while since United produced a scintillating away display but this must go down as one of the best ever. Bolton had no answer to the attacking flair of United with Rooney bagging the second hat trick in succession and Chichi getting a brace.

Pity about the injury to Cleverley. Evans also limped out but if we can Rio or Vidic and Smalling playing consistently in the middle, I do not think anyone will complain. Jones played amazingly well at RB and he must have had a double portion of red bull before the match as he could not stop running. My MOM hands down.

Benfica away next....can we play with the same flair in Lisbon?? We'll see...

3-0 lead at HT

2011-09-10T19:29:00.003+02:00

Chichi took only 4 minutes to answer my call and flashed in his first goal of the season. Rooney added another 2 as we threatened to tear Bolton apart just as we did with Arsenal. We have however slowed down during the last 15 minutes and given Bolton too much space for my liking. Davies has knocked out Cleverley and Nani almost suffered the same fate when Jones head butted him in his enthusiasm to get to the ball.

Let us get a fourth and play this out. We need energy for the Benfica match during the week.

GO ON REDS!

Bolton can cause us problems

2011-09-10T16:55:00.003+02:00

Bolton can be tough, especially back at their own yard and we will have to produce a quality performance to get 3 points today. It is easy to get carried away after the 8-2 win against Arsenal but the EPL can very quickly present you with the harsh reality if you think any match is easy. Rooney has a tremendous record against Bolton but I'd really like to see Chichi get off the mark today.

Ando and Cleverley are in the middle again. Chichi starts up front with Wazza whilst at the back, Ferdinand returns and plays near Evans in the centre of defence as we'll try to fend off the aggressive Bolton high-ball approach. Jones slots in at RB instead of Smalling who is dropped, possibly due to the England matches.

De Gea
Jones Ferdinand Evans Evra,
Nani Anderson Cleverley Young,
Rooney Hernandez

GO ON REDS!!!!

United on the rampage

2011-08-28T18:53:00.003+02:00

Man Utd. 8 Arsenal 2

Incredibly, United hit 8 past a hapless Arsenal in a stunning match. As weird as it may seem, I think that our defence at times was in difficulty and we defended badly. Our attack was on fire though, and the Arsenal defence could not cope with our off-the-ball running. Young scored two stunning goals and Rooney got a hat-trick. Nani was annoying at times, but still managed to get his classy goal which he had been looking for!

At the end I was feeling a bit sorry for Arsenal! This does not happen too often, but Wenger was a distraught man by the end of the match. My friend Carlos did predict a big win, something which I have to admit, I could not see coming at all. So far, he is on fire with his predictions so he deserved his mention here.

The international break should now help us recover a few injuries. We need Vidic or Rio at the back for the Chelsea match. Welbeck will be out for a few weeks as well.

A great start to the season but there is a long and winding road to May 2012. One step at a time...

3-1 lead at HT

2011-08-28T17:50:00.002+02:00

Welbeck scrambled in the first goal and my distrust in Evans was justified when he gave away a penalty, kindly awarded by Webb and saved by De Gea. Then Young and Rooney scored 2 great goals to give us a 3-0 lead. I was thinking (hoping) that De Gea should now be round the corner and full of confidence but he let Walcott's shot go through his legs...back to square one.

Arshavin should be off, and possibly even the guy who brought down Young when through. Webb is a nuisance and has no idea whatsoever!!!

Midfield and attack is fine as Arsenal's defence is all over the place, but our defence is struggling as well! Where was Evra for Walcott's goal? Evans and Jones are a bit shaky in my opinion and panic when under pressure. Let's go get the fourth goal as I can see some tense moments if Arsenal get a second.

GO ON REDS!!

Arsenal visit OT

2011-08-28T16:11:00.002+02:00

Despite what all the pundits are saying, I still rate Arsenal as one of the best teams in the EPL. Fabregas and Nasri will be sorely missed, fine, but if there is one thing you cannot deny Wenger is that he always introduces new talent.

SAF has kept faith in the starting 11 that won against Spurs. The Jones - Evans - De Gea partnership will be given another test today, and young Cleverley starts again with Ando in the middle. Welbeck up front again with Rooney. I've had a bad feeling about this for the last few days but maybe it's just a reflection of my current mood.

De Gea
Smalling Jones Evans Evra
Nani Cleverley Anderson Young
Rooney Welbeck

GO ON REDS!!

United turn on the engines in the second half

2011-08-22T22:59:00.002+02:00

Man Utd 3 Tottenham 0

SAF delivered my message during HT as United went out for the second half much sharper and determined to bag the 3 points. Cleverley served Welbeck for a great header to put us in front and Welbeck's back heel set up Ando for a marvellous second. It was left for Rooney to round up a convincing display with a header after being served by a young lad with the name of Giggsy.

The kids have done well. De Gea kept a clean sheet despite a couple of tense moments towards the end. Smalling and Jones did well as did Evans, despite my distrust in him! My man of the match is Ando tonight. What a match!!! He seems to be enjoying his football again and as long as he can keep this form, he must start. The old Ando is back with a vengeance.

Bring on Arsenal...

0-0 at HT

2011-08-22T21:48:00.002+02:00

Balanced match. We have had slight supremacy but have not managed to be dangerous enough. Welbeck is trying hard but has hardly been able to have a touch. Ando is doing great but Clev needs to get more involved. Nani is having one of those matches when he seems willing but unable to deliver the killer ball. Chichi could replace Welbeck after 60 minutes and we need to get sharper up front.

At the back we have not had many troubles but Evans still managed to get booked which means one more calamity from him and he's off! I'm hoping Rooney will get a bit more enterprising and have a go himself and that Young and Nani provide better service.

All to play for...Keep the faith....GO ON REDS!!

United face in-form Spurs with makeshift defence.

2011-08-22T20:03:00.004+02:00

It's only the second match of the season and we are already having to field a makeshift defence! Spurs will be feeling good after their 5-0 away win in Europe but we have home advantage and I am hoping that we can make that count tonight.

De Gea keeps his place, Smalling at RB is fine but the Jones - Evans partnerhip at the back gives me the shivers!! Evra will have a torrid time with Lennon - hope he is up for it! SAF has kept faith with Clev and Ando and Nani and Young are on the wings as with WBA. Front 2 the same as well. It is that back 4 and the keeper that are worrying!

-------------- De Gea -------------
-- Smalling - Jones - Evans - Evra --
Nani - Cleverley - Anderson - Young
-------- Rooney - Welbeck ---------

Keep the faith. GO ON REDS!!!!

United grind an away win on first day

2011-08-14T18:53:00.003+02:00

WBA 1 Man Utd 2

We started very well and when Rooney scored, we could have scored a second but Nai was not sharp enough. WBA equalised, once again exposing De Gea, who seems to lack the necessary authority to marshall the defence.

The goal knocked the wind out of our play and suddenly West Brom had more say in what was going on. The second half went on with the same rythm but suddenly, Ashley Yound started taking men on instead of just crossing and it was no surprise that the winning goal came off his cross which was deflected twice before it ended up in the net. A slice of luck, no doubt, but I think we deserved to win.

Rio and Vidic both went off injured which is worrying. Cleverley showed some good touches as did Ando but once again the problem was that they were outmuscled too often. Nani blew hot and cold, Rooney scored a good goal and worked tirelessly for the team. Welbeck did not make any impact and neither did Berba. Young played well but he needs to start taking defenders on rather than crossing the ball all the time.

Second game against Spurs tomorrow week and we are already struggling with injuries. The young players will need to come good this season.

Considering that we had to wait till the 23 October for the first away win last season, a hard fought, slightly lucky away win is more than welcome.

Keep the faith....

New season - same old story!

2011-08-14T17:47:00.002+02:00

We started well, took the lead with Rooney and seemed in control with Nani missing a sitter, and another chance. The missed chances to go 2-0 up, inevtiably came back to haunt us as West Brom equalised with a goal that should have been saved by De Gea. I hate to say this, but De Gea is making a horrendous start to his United career. Apart from conceding the goal, he has no authority whatsoever in the box and although we need to give him time, Lindegaard may be getting his chance sooner than he ever expected.

We need to be sharper with the ball in our feet and quick to close the gaps when West Brom get the ball. For some reason, last season's away form does not want to go away. We need to stamp our authority otherwise we risk losing points today.

GO ON REDS!!!

New season - rejuvinated United. Here we go again!!!

2011-08-14T16:43:00.003+02:00

SAF has decided to include young guns Fabio, Smalling, Cleverley and Welbeck in the starting line up against the Baggies in our first match of the season. Let us hope we can get our first 3 points of the season today at a difficult away match. Last season's away form was horrendous at times and yet we won the league! I am hoping for better away form this season.

De Gea
Smalling Vidic Rio Fabio
Nani Clever Ando Young
Roo Welbeck

The long and winding road to May 2012 starts today. GO ON REDS!!!!