Manchester United: Breaking Down United's First 4 Months of 2011-12

With just over a quarter of the Premier League season over and a handy international break approaching, now is the perfect opportunity to look back at United's campaign so far.  

Are Wayne Rooney and Co. looking at Premier League regime change at the top or have reports of their demise have been greatly exaggerated?

From Hollywood Football...

United began their season in ruthless form, but the style in which they went about their butchering was far from brutish. With intricate, intelligent passing and fluid movement, the Reds were able to cut through their foes with fleet and finesse rather than physical power plays and sharpened elbows.

The fundamentals of their early artistry were rigorously functional. United have long been the masters of the heart stopping counter attack, ripping teams to shreds with pace, precision and a punishing, predatory instinct. Dropping this engine of hungry, opportunist football into a newly proactive, possession-based chassis was akin to turbo charging pass and move up to a tempo to salivate the taste buds of Premier League enthusiasts.

Vincente Del Bosque famously described Sir Alex Ferguson as "a tactical anarchist," and in some ways, his early approach was rather fitting to such a description. In attack, Sir Alex's players seemed self-sufficient, sharing the responsibility for decision making rather than relying on a centralised hub playmaker. This made their football raw and impulsive and spontaneous compared to the more composed approach of many modern possession sides. Tippy-tappy rather than tikka-takka.

...to a Grind for Results

Beautifully chaotic play requires a high level of confidence, commitment, focus and form from its creators to work. When these qualities falter and fade, so does the football. With United's momentum knocked off course by injuries, distractions and possible complacency, the advantages of such a free, improvised style quickly turn into a rudderless, impotent mess.

Although the warning signs were there before their derby day defeat, the 6-1 forced Fergie to reinstate structure and defensive solidity. The license for unlimited artistic expression was revoked in favour of a return to stodgy, hard graft.

Before facing City, there seemed to be a belief that United could simply outscore the opposition. After the open-ended victory against Chelsea, the Reds topped the table for the number of shots conceded on goal, a statistical summit usually topped by leaky mid-table teams and relegation strugglers.

Now, retreating to that well-worn cliche of grinding out results whilst playing poorly, United must work hard to re-discover their fortitude and focus. They'll need to to relive such early season heights and head off their noisy, lottery lout neighbours after Christmas. 

For now, though, second place is hardly a crisis, even if the team are reduced to eking out unconvincing 1-0 wins against Everton and Sunderland.

After all, Manchester United are the Premier League's perennial slow starters, and perhaps their opening displays should be viewed as previews of what's to come. Fergie will surely salvage the experiences of these first few months as a beta test for his exciting young side. Be sure that once the defensive bugs and glitches have been ironed out on the training pitch, United will be unleashed once more for their annual charge through spring and into the "business end" of 2011-12.

Wayne Rooney: Overrated or Overworked?

Wayne Rooney, the English "lionheart" talisman, is a key player for club and country with a public image to match. His all-action, combative work-ethic makes him a workaholic on the football pitch and an industrious fan favourite off it, but he is far from a plucky grafter come good.

The "White Pele" can produce the breath-taking and the magical. From that showpiece bicycle kick and driving, net ripping volleys, to his silky passing game and creative imagination for the unexpected, Rooney is a force of nature when on form. At the start of the season, he was the explosive heart of United's free and fluid attacking surges, shapeshifting in out of position with Nani and Ashley Young like some unstoppable, sweet footed swarm.

As the team's form dipped, however, so did Rooney. In the Chelsea match, he seemed almost over-confident and complacent, yet by the time of the confrontation with City, he looked more like a workhorse frothing over with determination but lacking ideas and guile. The churlish voices of vindictive message boards and rival fans on radio phone-ins have taken the opportunity to slander United's No. 10 as overrated, but the true cause of his down-turn could be his own overinflated workload.

Rooney needs to learn to delegate, whilst his teammates must step up to the plate. Thankfully, Nani has become something of a secondary magician for United in recent seasons, regardless of his English colleague's form and the arrival of Tom Cleverley in midfield has made the team less reliant on his deep dropping support. Rooney plays his best football "in the hole" between the opposition's lines. With a tight and secure midfield behind him, he can not only play at full capacity but pace himself to avoid overworked meltdown.

Brittle Brilliance in Midfield

Tom Cleverley has been the biggest positive of United's season so far. When in the team, his tenacious energy and slick fluency on the ball augments the abilities of those around him. Anderson especially looks like the player he's always threatened to become when paired with the young English dynamo, building up United's tempo with one-two passing and surging runs from the heart of the midfield.

With his appetite to compete, close down and tackle, the team looks tidy and secure. For a player once seen as a prospect on the wings, Cleverley is becoming something of an asset in breaking up dangerous plays and sweeping away oncoming threats when not pushing forward. He looks almost like the box-to-box operator United have been craving for some time.

The problem comes, of course, when the young midfielder is unavailable, whether through injury or otherwise. Without him, United seem rather pedestrian when battling for the center ground and absent minded in closing off the inroads into their own half. He was sorely missed against Manchester City.

Whilst the transfer window addicts search for expensive replacements and unlikely back-ups, the solution may lie closer to home. Paul Pogba and Ravel Morrison are exciting prospects, whilst Michael Carrick continues to improve and grew in influence.

The defensive playmaker needs a runner, though, and with Darren Fletcher still looking sickly after a long layoff, a ball winner may be needed more than a creative player. With the January transfer window looming, however, Fergie may be faced with a choice between the exciting potential of youth or the costly, tried and tested experience of a veteran.

Inconsistencies at the Back Undermine Individual Promise

Out of all the playing departments of a football team, it is the defense that requires the most familiarity and understanding from its personnel. With the first choice central pairing of Rio and Vidic lacking fitness and form during the opening months of the season, United have had to rely on a backline lacking a consistant, settled line-up.

Much has been made of Ferdinand's age and his disappointing return from injury. Whilst his pace has faded, he is the sort of the defender who should be able to adapt his game. There will undoubtedly be a transition period for the former England captain, offering a first choice berth to a squad member hungry enough to compete for it, but with his ability to read the game and anticipate the play, Rio will be back.

Perhaps it is time, though, to take notice of the late-career decisions of Giggs and Scholes and retire from international duty, if only to allow his increasingly injury-prone body the mid-season downtime it needs. 

As his sidekick's acceleration falters, the defensive juggernaut that is Nemanja Vidic will need to become even more ever-present for his team at the back. After all, it is no coincidence that his return to action has seen United's defense become far more solid and miserly in recent games. 

United's captain has the physical attributes to cover for his long standing partner, but the Serbian may well find himself paired up with the club's youthful upstarts more and more. His repositioning to the right of the defense against Sunderland would suggest as much.

Expect Rio Ferdinand to be spared for the matches that suit him and rested for those that don't.

Inconsistance at the Back Undermines Youthful Promise

In the absence of his two senior defenders, Sir Alex has relied upon his youthful back-ups, led by the much-maligned Jonny Evans. Whilst the likes of Phil Jones and Chris Smalling have turned heads with their recent performances, Evans has become something of a scapegoat of late.

Such criticisms have been harshly over-played upon the Northern Irishman. With his impressive range of passing and eye for the diagonal ball out to the flanks, Evans has becoming a quietly effective ball-playing centreback. Check out his raking delivery out wide to Nani that set him on his path to score against Chelsea. 

Whilst his last-man hiccup in the derby was a costly error, his ability to win the ball without diving in, is often overlooked, as is his awareness. Compared to the headline-grabbing antics of Phil Jones, Evans has shown a positional sense that will see him become a highly polished operator within a more coherent and stable defensive unit. Without experience and a marshalled structure around him, his performances have been at times dawdling and prone to poor decision making under pressure.

Patrice Evra should have been the old head to steady the ship, but all too often, he has put his young teammates under unnecessary danger. With an increasing reluctancy to track back and do the dirty work of defending, the Frenchman seems to have regressed from a world leading left-back to an unpredictable loose cannon who fans are increasingly finding it hard to depend on.

All too often, the sight of Evra giving away possession outside the opposition's box is met with a sharp intake of breath and mild panic from the stands and Sky viewers alike. 

Big Dave and Linder: A Working Relationship

Even without the context of United's rearguard instabilities, David De Gea's displays in the club's venerated No. 1 shirt have been extremely impressive after a nervous first couple of weeks. Not satisfied by overcoming his early shot stopping errors to become a solid goal tender, the young Spaniard has also illustrated a keen ability to initiate play and deliver balls with exacting passing and long kick accuracy.

Although he has made a successful start to his career at Old Trafford, "Big Dave" has suffered without a consistant and experienced centreback pairing to form an understanding with. With De Gea now fully blooded in a United shirt, his confidence and stature ever-growing, a newly fit and available Nemanja Vidic will be ready and willing to match his skills against the young keeper.

With the Spaniard's attributes and approach directly comparable to the now retired Edwin Van Der Sar, United's captain may find developing a bond of trust with the man behind him easier than expected.

If De Gea is the second coming of the flying Dutchman, then Andreas Lindegaard could be Peter Schmeichel reborn. With an imposing presence and loud-mouth assertiveness, the new Dane has the potential be a great No. 2 with the happy arrogance to properly compete for the No. 1 jersey.

In comparison to De Gea's silky footwork, Lindegaard packs an impressive throwing arm whilst also being no slouch with the ball at his feet. Should the young Spaniard suffer for fitness or form, lurking in the shadows is a rock-hard and hungry back-up more than willing to snatch up the chances that fall to him. They're not quite the odd couple, but in fostering friendly competition, Fergie has founded a working relationship that should see stability assured at the last line of United's defense.

Berbatov and Chicharito: Sub Bench Henchmen

If a rivalry exists at the rear of the team, then with the embaressments of riches currently stockpiled in the striker department, competition is fierce at the front at Manchester United.

With the emergence of Danny Welbeck, on-form and firing free, Hernandez and Berbatov have been relegated to the subs bench, becoming distinct tactical weapons at their manager's disposal. With the Mexican's ability to improvise a chance and a finish even in the most unlikely circumstances, he is the ultimate super sub.

Berbatov, on the other hand, is a much more elaborate and considered player, and far from lethal coming off the bench. Rather acting as a late-game goal threat, Berbatov is something of a stabilizer, sent on to retain possession and hold up the ball when panic and weary headed decision making sneak in.

The Bulgarian is undoubtedly a more effective forward when given a starting position at the focal point of his team's attack. His creative abilities, masterful technique and overlooked physicality make him the perfect back-up for Rooney. His performances when picking up the slack last season, shooting his way to the league's golden boot, are evidence of his potency when given the opportunity and games to get stuck in.

6-1? Sir Alex Knows the Score

After 25 years at Old Trafford, Sir Alex Ferguson will not just sit back and watch as his handcrafted legacy is chewed up and thrown into a footnote for the present of the future as he slips quietly into retirement.

Beyond his obvious staying power, the great man's continued successes have been built upon an ability to respond and see off any challenge thrown at him. With domineering rivals on both fronts, in the Premier League and Europe in Man City and Barcelona respectively, Fergie will not rest until he has overcome his latest antagonists.

Be it Wenger's technocratic reforms at Arsenal or Roman's Russian revolution at Chelsea, Sir Alex rode forth to meet the trials of the past by raising his own standards and that of his team. His methods, approaches and ideals have forever been up for personal review, allowing him to usher in progress and new ideas as required.

A serial team builder and player developer, there is not doubt that Fergie will wish to leave his successor in the strongest position possible in terms of playing personnel and the club's competitive position.

Sir Alex lives off the adrenaline and fire of adversity. The 6-1 will be the fuel to fire the Scotsman into overdrive as he sets himself the mission of denying Manchester City and their owners the prizes of domination that they seek. After knocking Liverpool off their perch, he will not rest until United's hold on the top spot is secure.