Manchester United: 5 Things We Learnt from Champions League Victory over Chelsea
2-1 on the night, 3-1 on aggregate, no matter the finer nuances, the result was the same; United are going through at the expense of the team that play $50 million for a name.
Except for one, brief minute, it was plain sailing for Fergie’s boys, the script has been written, 99 is back on the agenda. In the event it took two goals to vanquish the former captain, after Chelsea’s good striker Didier Drogba had the audacity to try and spoil the party. Cometh the minute, cometh the Korean, however, and barely a minute later the trepidation Drogba’s goal had instilled in the heart of the Stretford End had been replaced by the exultation of certain progression.
With Man City to come in the FA Cup, followed by a visit to Newcastle and a home game to Everton, before the Champions League Semi-final on the 26-27th of April, the coming fortnight will be pivotal in defining United’s season.
Amidst mutterings of its underwhelming playing roster, Sir Alex and his players have set about proving the doubters wrong where they do it best, on the pitch. Stats don’t lie, unbeaten all season at home, two losses in all competitions, still in the hunt of winning the triumvirate come mid April: it’s a good time to be a United fan.
For a moment though time to reminisce. Time to savour the sweet taste of triumph caressing our ever orifice as the whistle blew last night. What did we really learn from the victory. Well here is five things for a start. Enjoy.
When Its Time to Park the Bus, Send for Ji Sung
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The Korean scored the winner on the night, but his contribution across the tie was much more than simply the headline stealer. Much of his work is below board, you might even say his contribution isn’t appreciated, but as a United player I can think of few more important.
One of my friends posed an interesting question last night as we watched the game; “why is it that Park is played in these really crucial games, but doesn’t play as much in the mid-table Premiership matches, against Bolton, or Sunderland etc.”
My response, and the reason I deem Park so important to United’s play, is because of his temperament. He isn’t flash like Nani, or to a lesser extent Giggs and Valencia, but what he lacks in flair he makes up tenfold in his work ethic and dedication. Park plays with a simple understated efficiency that facilitates the prima-donnas in the OT dressing room a stage on which to bring out their repertoire. In a game against a well- marshalled middle table team where flair is off the essence to unlock a tightly packed, defensive minded rear-guard, perhaps Park isn’t the key to the three points’ lock.
In the big games though, it is different, two even teams going at each other in sync, a field in which games swing on minor mistakes; in such a situation I would have the solid, dependable, hard-working harbinger of decisive goals Mr Park Ji Sung on my team any day of the week.
50 Million Pounds Is a Lot of Money to Spend on a Statue
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Fernando Torres’ faux pas in his disastrous start to his life for Chelsea FC, has taught the rest of world football a valuable lesson. Namely that to buy a player on name alone is a recipe for disaster, but then again when an owner has such a hand in the transfer dealings of a club, a Russian oil oligarch at that, is it really a surprise?
Torres was bought for two things. Firstly for the player he once was, not the man he had been for Liverpool in the first part of the season, the shallow ghost of the player he once was, no Torres was bought on the pipe-dream of former glories descending once more. Secondly he was bought as a statement of intent, a remedy to the turmoil going on behind the scenes, to counter the steady mutterings of the demise of their aging squad; a marketing tool if you will to satisfy disillusioned fans.
Now with hindsight the only way out of the trench is for Torres to re-discovery his form, no other eventuality could even begin to justify the exurbanite 40 million pound price-tag. They wouldn’t get 50 million if they sold him on that’s for sure.
As the Spaniard was hauled off at half -time in the second-leg, it was hard not too feel for him, as he has essentially come to embody Chelsea’s downward spiral. The weight of expectation is such that he cannot possibly exceed expectation, only fulfil, or fail to fulfil. I feel for the player Torres once was, one of the best players in the Premiership, on his day quite possibly the best and for that man at least I want him to return; just not yet.
Michael the Friendly Ghost Has Become Michael Carrick the Footballer
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If you read back through my archives I am not Michael Carrick’s greatest fan, so it comes to something that I have to admit, on the evidence of the first leg especially, I was wrong.
At the Bridge Carrick was simply phenomenal. The sort of player that would laugh in the face of the precocious upstart Joey Barton as he spouts ludicrous claims about being England’s best midfielder, deftly flick it round him, beat the keeper and go back and tackle Barton for good measure.
He controlled the midfield zone akin to a tsar purveying his kingdom. It was Carrick’s zone, Carrick wanted the ball, Carrick got the ball, Carrick passed the ball to a man in red and the cycle was repeated. Simple and efficient it was England’s answer to a taller Xavi Hernandez. And to top it all of the sumptuous pass out to Giggs to set up Rooney’s invaluable away goal. Yes Michael Carrick, for that night at least, was quite a player.
In the second leg Carrick was not quite as good, but he was still a step up from the innocuous ‘friendly ghost’ he has appeared in large parts of the current campaign.
Maybe its that he realises that the United crest is not bestowed upon unworthy advocates of the midfield cause, perhaps Sir Alex has told him to up his game, or perhaps this is Carrick’s more competent twin. Whatever the reason, it is irrelevant, I like this Michael Carrick and I’m not in too much hurry for the old one to come swinging by again any time soon.
Other Teams Just Have No Defense Against the Might of Uniteds Back Five
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Every good team is built on a solid base and if these two legs mean anything at all, here at Old Trafford with have quite probably the greatest defence in modern football.
Who would have thought, back in 2006 that the innocuous deal that bought an unknown French left-back and an even more unknown Serbian centre-back to the Theatre of Dreams for around a combined 15 million would turn out to be among the best weeks business in the Sir Alex reign.
For Evra and Vidic are now truly masters of their crafts. The only possible candidates to usurp Evra as the best left-backs in the world are Chelsea’s Cole and Bayern Munich’s Phillip Lahm (in my opinion the hallmark for any prospective wing-back). Vidic, I feel has no equals in modern centre- back craft. Along with Rio Ferdinand and, I assume in the next few years the successor to the former England captain, Chris Smalling, form the core upon which Manchester United will be built upon in the years to come.
One problem, especially the first leg showed was the immediate inadequacies in the right-back birth. After club custodian Gary Neville hung up his esteemed boots this year it reminded us of just what Neville had brought to OT over the years. Dependable, understated, with a mean cross, Gary Neville shored up the right side of United’s defence for over a decade. Now that he has gone the options list, a Northern Irish utility man in John O’Shea and a 20 year old hot headed Brazilian who, will undoubtedly learn to fill the esteemed boots, but barely out of his teens isn’t quite ready yet. In no way am I knocking O’Shea who I feel is important to United, I merely point out the need for a specialist to facilitate Rafael’s maturing process.
One final point on the defence and it goes to the Goalkeeper. Edwin Van Der Sar, at 40 years of age is quite possibly the most solid dependable goalkeeper that I have ever seen. Whenever he goes up to catch a cross, stop a run, save a ball, I watch with the calm sense that it is going to take quite something to beat him: No clangers here it says.
Four million, what a ridiculously cheap signing; we are going to miss you big man.
Attention Mr Rooney Your Flight Back to Manchester Is Ready for Boarding
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I remember a time, a time before Wayne Rooney was injured in the Champions League Quarter Final First leg loss to Bayern Munich, when he was one of the best players in the world. I bring this to note because amidst the subsequent mire of substandard lethargy and extinguished hope it might be easy to forget.
In the preceding period to the First leg we saw the shadows of the former Rooney begin to flutter once more. In the two legs themselves, the colour was spread on the canvas.
In no way can we make the bold claim that Rooney is now ‘back’, but the signs are there. In each of the two matches against Chelsea Rooney was absolutely superb, he played as if he had all the time in the world and the touch that had so deserted him in South Africa, once more revelled in its on simple ease. The range of passing was there too, swinging inch perfect balls left to right with a flick of either boot, he scored too, could you have imagined that happening in the Summer?
What really summed it up for me though, came in the final few minutes of the second leg. Rooney, spotting Petr Cech off his line attempted a lob from the half way line which had the Chelsea keeper back-pedalling all the way back to his line to tip it by. Un-Confident out off form players don’t attempt such shots and if they do they don’t nearly come off. Wayne Rooney is almost back in the building and when he is the rest of the Premiership should look at. Shrek and the Little Pea are coming to get you……you have been warned.
