Nemanja Vidic: 5 Reasons Manchester United Needs Him Back Before Liverpool Match

Nemanja Vidic in all essence is the heartbeat of Manchester United’s defense, and given that Man U will be playing archrivals Liverpool F.C. in less than a fortnight’s time, his presence could make the difference between winning and losing.

Vidic has been sidelined with a calf injury since United’s opening game against West Bromwich Albion where he only managed to complete 45 minutes of play.

It was thought at first that Vidic’s injury was a minor one, but after further diagnosis it was found out to be quite serious.

Vidic has now been out of action for five weeks—missing games against the likes of Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal, Bolton Wanderers, Chelsea, Stoke City and Norwich.

In Vidic’s absence, United have convincingly won all their opening Premier leagues games this season, save for the 1-1 draw against Stoke City.

However, Vidic’s presence for their away fixture with Liverpool is always one the United faithful will relish.

Here are the reasons that United need Vidic back in the fold.

5. Leadership

Vidic was appointed permanent captain for United in the 2010-11 season.

The captain’s arm-band doesn’t make a whole lot of difference to Vidic, as he has been a staunch leader without it. It does symbolise, though, the faith that manager Alex Ferguson has in him.

If Vidic is fit to play against Liverpool, he might find himself on the subs bench and for several reasons.

The first being the fact that United have played exceptionally well this season, and the manager might not want to disrupt their winning flow.

Secondly, Ferguson might not want to risk him just in case he has a re-occurrence of said injury. However, because of his leadership qualities, Ferguson might just throw him in at the deep end. And if that is the case then United will be the stronger for it.

Vidic is very influential on the pitch, and if push comes to shove, Vidic’s teammates know that they can count on him—especially the younger defenders such as Chris Smalling, Phil Jones, Jonny Evans and twin brothers Raphael and Fabio da Silva.

4. Defensive Skills

Vidic is known for his defensive qualities as well as his aggressive style of football—he’s firm but fair, but he doesn’t take any prisoners either.

This type of mentality is paramount, especially when it’s against United’s fiercest rivals, Liverpool, who I’m sure will be going for broke.

Vidic was named Barclay’s Premier League’s Player and Defender of the 2010-11 season.

3. Goal Scorer

Even though the likes of Wayne Rooney, Nani and Danny Welbeck have been shining in front of goal of late, against Liverpool it might be a lot harder to find the net.

Step in Vidic, who has scored 18 goals in all competitions for United. Some might scoff at his tally, but the fact remains that a lot of defenders don’t get to score a single goal in their entire professional careers, let alone score 18.

Vidic is at his most dangerous in the air and at set-pieces; Liverpool know this and will be doing their best to man-mark him in the 18-yard box.

2. Big Match Player

This match has all the hallmarks of being a classic in every sense of the word. This is the kind of game where a manager expects his players to stand up and be counted.

If there was anyone whomsoever fit that bill, then it would be Vidic; his presence in their last two meetings is evidence of that.

1. Liverpool F.C.

There is never a dull moment when Vidic and Liverpool go head-to-head. He has been red-carded in three successive matches against Liverpool. And every time he has been dismissed, Liverpool has gone on to win.

However, in the last two out of three meetings, Vidic has managed to complete the full 90 minutes, and if that wasn’t enough United went on to win both times.

Vidic just might be United’s lucky talisman with regards to Liverpool, but more importantly, Vidic just needs to be in the mix when these two giants of football clash at Anfield on October 15.