How can Manchester United improve?
There is no doubt that this season Manchester United have not yet played to the heights that have become expected of them. They haven’t scored as many goals and don’t look as fluent. Sometimes I think they miss Tevez, but then I see him play for Manchester City. He fitted perfectly with Rooney and his work rate made him a fan’s favourite. I agree that he wasn’t worth twenty-five million, but if something from your team in lost, surely he should have been kept.
I suppose after three consecutive titles, and a Champions league, Alex Ferguson has every right to believe in his team. The only problem is that they have lost to Liverpool and Chelsea. They relied on a dive by Rooney and an own goal to beat Arsenal, and only a goal late into stoppage time gave them victory over Manchester City.
You wouldn’t know much about football if you completely ruled out Manchester United in the title race, five points not being a mountain too high to climb. However it’s early in the season and still lots of football to be played. They just don’t seem like they could score on the counter attack. That’s probably because the loss of Cristiano Ronaldo. His pace and passing made it easier for United to destroy teams when under pressure. He started to perform against the so called ‘big teams’ and was integral to United success.
I believe that Ferguson has to buy in January. He needs a creative midfielder, like a Cesc Fabregas or Aquilani because although Anderson can run around a lot, United can’t rely on him to score as he’s only scored one goal in his three seasons in Manchester.
They also need a striker. One player could be Gignac, who is a life-long Manchester United fan and is the French version of Rooney. They may have missed out on him in the summer, but Benzema could also be available from Real Madrid. Owen is alright coming off the bench, but if there is an injury to Rooney, there’s not much quality to replace him.
However, Ferguson won’t buy in January – he’s not the sort to be rushed into buying players. They are under-strength in those positions and I’m sure if they win the league this year, it would be Ferguson’s best one. Sometimes if you win with an under-strength team, the belief is that you can win without the previous stars that were in the team. They need players like Nani and Anderson to improve and Valencia and Berbatov to show more of their potential.
They’ve got the experience, but they must improve their performances if they are to win the title this year.
Topics: Alex Ferguson, English Premier League, Football Transfers, Manchester United
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I agree fergie isn’t rushed into decisions, however if he feels he needs to buy in Jan he will, think of the last two players he purhased in the winter window, Evra and Vidic. Silva from valencia would be a great addition and might add the attacking flair you were talking about.
November 20th, 2009 @ 12:58Gurjeevan, you really must do your research before jumping in! After 12 games last season Utd had scored 23 goals.
After 12 games this season they have scored…..23 goals!
Owen has scored as many goals this season as Tevez had at the same point last season. Miss him?….not remotely.
Despite all the defensive problems surrounding VDS, Rio and Vidic Utd have conceded 2 more goals at this stage than last season. (that’s 2 less than the ‘now secure’ Arsenal defence by the way.)
After 12 games last season they had dropped 12 points…this season 11.
Here’s the issue, which you might see if you bothered to watch them regularly….midfield.
Ferguson (I hope) has been experimenting in the post Ronaldo period. Analyse Utd’s team selections and their results and you will see that Carrick, Fletcher and Anderson (as a threesome, but certainly 2 of the 3 everytime) represent Utd’s best midfield selection.
The fact that Utd have been patchy is down to this and this alone.
Sunderland: Scholes, Fletcher, Welbeck, Nani. A combative Sunderland midfield had no problem in the 1st half winning the MF battle. Scholes can’t take the pace anymore and with 2 wingers it was a poor selection from Fergie. Anderson replaces Scholes at half-time and Utd are far better in the 2nd half and (deservedly) save the game.
Fast forward to Anfield. I nearly wept when I saw a midfield selection of Giggs, Scholes, Carrick and Valentia. In what was guaranteed to be a high tempo battle, Scholes and Giggs should never have been on the pitch together.
And then onto Chelsea with Carrick, Fletcher, Anderson and Valentia. Utd outplayed what’s supposedly the best midfield in the country that day and were VERY unlucky to lose it to a controversial goal….without Rio, Vidic and Berba I might add.
So Utd have “not played to the heights” you say. You obviously didn’t watch Wigan A, Stoke A, Spurs A, City H and Chelsea A not to mention cruising through their CL and CC games to date! 13 wins in 18 games that is (but then you won’t have checked the stats).
You, like so many, are blinkered by the late controversy against City. After an even 1st half in which City finished the stronger Utd blew them away in the 2nd half. It was possibly Utd’s most convincing half of football this season. Despite the fact we handed City 2 goals on a plate they were totally outplayed in the 2nd half and the points were well deserved.
As for the Arsenal game, it and your game at City tell you everything you need to know about Arsenal. Nice football and plenty of possession but at OT 4 shots on target and 4 off…to Utd’s 4 and 5. You take the lead and then commit defensive Hari Kari. Remind you of anything in the past 2 seasons? Even worse against City….”We were the better team!”…Yes, but you leaked 4 goals!?
If Fergie finally settles on his best ‘middle’ 4 Utd can undoubtedly win 4 in a row. If not he puts everything at risk because of his (seeming) obsession with rotation.
As for Arsenal, we’re all waiting for the final 3 months of the season….just to see if they’ll crash and burn again because of defensive frailty.
Stop getting ahead of yourself my friend. Have you learnt nothing from recent seasons?
November 20th, 2009 @ 13:56Stats can be informative, but can also be “deceiving”. Stats do not tell you everything. They are at best an “indication” only. You have to “feel a football match”, not just look at the stats.
You can go out and play crap with only 50% possession and WIN! You can play brilliantly with 90% possession and LOSE!
Anyone with a brain can “see” United are not playing well this season (for whatever reason). One could say they only only “looked convincing” in 2 of their matches so far (Spurs and Chelsea). The rest of their games have been “spluttering performances” with some desperation at times.
I agree wholeheartedly that their main problem is in “midfield”. Against Chelsea they played 5 in the middle, and this combination would win the midfield battle with lots of teams…. but they had one lone striker (Rooney), and very few chances (same as Chelsea).
This is not the United style of play. Ronaldo last year gave them pace (and some flair) especially with “break-away goals”. This is not happening any more. What will happen if Rooney ever gets injured and is out for even 4 weeks ??? End result is they DO NOT WIN THE EPL. This is too much reliance on one guy.
With that in mind they have to change the way they play (now without Ronaldo) and the present formation and attacking style is not looking too good.
I think a DAVID SILVA in the middle would certainly add to their attacking “flair” and create more chances for the likes of Rooney, Owen, Berbatov and Velencia (forget Nani, he is on his own planet).
At the end of the day (or season) time will tell if Fergie should have done this, or that etc…. but it is then too late. A club that has over 80 million in the bank, and has some definite “cracks” in its formation should stop being miserly and go buy some players to fix these cracks. They owe it to their fans.
November 20th, 2009 @ 14:42We need an Aquilani?
Is this a joke? An injury prone chunk of 20 mil? He hasn’t played 10 mins yet, so how the hell do you know what he can do in the Prem?
November 20th, 2009 @ 16:34Totally agree with BD Condell
November 20th, 2009 @ 16:44United usually click late. United will perform admirably well from now on to the end of the season (I think). But contrary to the facts, united do look poor this season. I always admired watching united’s play. They play fascinating football with high tempo and attacking flair. In the premier league(except this season) Arsenal and United are the two teams that you would always enjoy (no matter who you support). Being an Arsenal fan, I don’t think we will win the league this season. there are obviously some weak points on the team that needs to be mended.but I hope I can be proved wrong and this team wins atleast one trophy for the fans, for wenger, and for themselves.
November 20th, 2009 @ 19:11Hahaha… we need an Aquilani?? Is this guy on cr*ck?! I don’t usually criticise articles on the net or their authors for that matter, but this was terrible.
I didn’t know stating the obvious was what passed for good writing nowadays:
“They’ve got the experience, but they must improve their performances if they are to win the title this year.” – No Shit, Sherlock!!
November 20th, 2009 @ 19:43Just wondering what people think of the Henri handball (France v Ireland)? I found it fascinating that in his after-match interview he said he did not intend to do it. That’s a load of balls for sure. You are aware when you put out your hand, and he did. If the ball had come to him in that same position in his OWN penalty area, his hand would have gone AWAY from the ball. Does this make him a “cheat” ? – the answer is YES!
November 20th, 2009 @ 19:57I agree that United need a creative midfielder. The fact that their midfield got completely outplayed by the likes of Lucas Leiva completely underlines this fact. For me, Andersen and Fletcher are FAR too similar and shouldn’t be on the pitch together.
Also agreed about Gignac. I watched him in the first leg against Ireland and he is a fantastic talent, would be nice if Liverpool could get him
don’t believe that Benzema is all that he’s made out to be either and Real should consider themselves extremely lucky that they didn’t sell Higuain to make space for Benzema.
November 20th, 2009 @ 21:27@RoyB: “One could say they only only “looked convincing” in 2 of their matches so far (Spurs and Chelsea).”
Firstly, let’s remind ourselves that there’s only 12 games gone and no team has been outstanding in all their games. But regarding your comment I quote above: you don’t think Utd were convincing against Stoke and Wigan? Totally dominated both games.
Also, despite the errors and the controversy, possibly Utd’s most dominant half of football this season was the 2nd half against City.
In what we would all agree were their ‘poor’ performances, it generally goes back to midfield selection for me.
I say again, if Fergie picks his best midfield (Carrick/Fletcher/Anderson) consistently and stops the endless rotation of the ‘middle 4′ which affects not just the quality but the continuity and team understanding, then Utd will be both better and more consistent.
It’s been a transition period, post Ronaldo, and defensive injuries have also had an impact. Way too soon to be calling for all sorts of new players. Ferguson has more than enough quality at his disposal….now it’s just a case of using them properly!
November 21st, 2009 @ 04:48Re BD Condell (above). Time will tell at the end of this season. If United finished 2nd, 3rd or 4th then the proof is in the pudding, but people will then make other excuses (saying it was this or that). However, I HOPE I am wrong.
Your midfield of Carrick/Fletcher/Anderson was not the full story at Chelsea – it was a 5 man midfield (really stacked). And if you want to make it even stronger, let’s tell Rooney to make it 6 in the middle (forget the forwards).
Would you back United to beat Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool or City if Rooney was out injured??? I don’t think so… which means they are too reliant on one player – hence they should look to a different approach, a more varied attacking line-up.
Someone like David Silva in the middle would create chances for ALL the forwards (Owen, Berbatov, Valencia and even Fletcher).
I feel it is unwise for ANY team to rely too much on one goalscoring forward (no matter who they are). It is better to have a bunch of potential goalscorers, but this only happens when multiple chances are being created from midfield.
November 21st, 2009 @ 06:30@RoyB: “Would you back United to beat Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool or City if Rooney was out injured??? I don’t think so… which means they are too reliant on one player”
Well yes I would actually. With the right midfield I would be totally confident in Berbatov/Owen or even Macheda to get the goals. My point is about winning the midfield battle, after that chances will come and any of the strikers can get the job done.
November 21st, 2009 @ 12:45MANU need a striker who can score goal….probably villa, torres or dzeko……then in important games Rooney can play as a winger……in chelsea game…we should had a quicker option in place og giggs…Also if money is ther…go for Silva, Xavi, Lahm/Maicon,Rodwell, Neuer……..get rid of Nani,Oshea, Park,Carrick,kuzzack,Owen(Micheal),Gibson,possebon…..Loan Macheda,wellbeck,tosic,
November 21st, 2009 @ 18:26wow Dais, ur right we shud DEFINETLY get rid of Nani, O’Shea, Park, Carrick, Kuzack, Owen, Gibson, Possebon. Hey while ur at it, why not also get rid of Ferdinand, Vidic, that other owen, neville, and that god awful liability called rooney.
Wat kind of an idiotic suggestion is this??! the solution, my frend, is not replacing well set united players like carrick and park with your galictos…thats just stupid. i do agree that picking up silva and villa from valencia is a good idea, and we shud do it now before that russian fool wastes them at stamford bridge, but u need to relax and stop changing half the starting line up and subs bench! r-tard!
December 8th, 2009 @ 22:51