Manchester United Can Be Cautiously Optimistic After West Brom Draw

After last night's 2-2 draw at West Brom, Manchester United have now taken a disappointing 12 points from their first eight games of the season.

If they repeat this form throughout the rest of the campaign, United will finish with a meagre 57 points, seven less than they accumulated during last season.

This would comfortably bar United from finishing in the top four, and on the basis of last season’s table, would see them finish as low as eighth.

This is clearly not good enough, but United should not panic, because there were also plenty of reasons to be cautiously optimistic on display at the Hawthorns.

In his post-match interview on Sky Sports, the United manager Louis van Gaal even hailed it as “our best match of the season.”

The Dutchman is known for his blunt honesty rather than empty platitudes, and in this instance he was absolutely right.

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According to the BBC, the basic statistics from last night show United had 63 percent possession, 22 shots on goal to West Brom’s eight, and 11 corners as opposed to the hosts who didn't have any.

It was West Brom who were hanging on at the end desperate to hear the final whistle, while United kept pushing for a winner.

United played with attacking endeavour and real spirit for large parts of the game, which helped them rescue a point when Daley Blind scored with only three minutes of normal time remaining.

It was Blind’s first goal for United, expertly taken with a low-placed finish in to the bottom corner of the net, and further evidence the Dutch international is making a quietly impressive start to his Old Trafford career.

The identity of United’s other scorer last night, also with his first goal for the club, was most welcome: Marouane Fellaini.

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Though it was David Moyes who brought the Belgian midfielder to United from his former club Everton last summer, he never seemed to know how to get the best out of him.

Towards the end of Moyes’ reign, Fellaini had almost been abandoned as an embarrassing mistake. He had become a symbol of his manager’s ineptitude.

But Van Gaal is not constrained by these hang-ups, and he has quickly lured out Fellaini’s best qualities, utilising his strength and ability to cause havoc in the opposition penalty area.

This new confidence allowed the Belgian to score United’s first equaliser when he held off Joleon Lescott before striking a wonderful shot past Boaz Myhill.

If Van Gaal can revive United’s most disappointing player from last season, he is doing something right. 

It is obvious the defence is a major problem, and leaks too many goals, but beyond that there are clear signs United have more character than last season.

Trailing 2-1 with three minutes of the game left, United would have slumped to yet another defeat under Moyes last season, but this is a different United side, who summoned up the spirit to earn a late point.