Manchester United: What the Red Devil Supporters Want for Christmas

Christmas is coming, and all over the land, Red Devil supporters are writing their letters to Santa, or Father Christmas, or Papa Noël—or whichever magical holiday being brings toys and cheer to all the good little children. 

Not too long ago, we gave you our list of 10 Things World Football Wants for Christmas. Now, we at BR are expanding upon Will Tidey's theme and give you the wishes that will lead Manchester United supporters to leave milk and cookies out, in the hopes of getting these items on their Christmas lists. If you're a supporter wishing to add to the list, as always, have at it in the comments. 

A Defensive Midfielder

Dear Santa,

The defense is looking better with the return of Nemanja Vidic and optimism that Phil Jones and Chris Smalling can play more starting roles. We'll get to the matters of goal-scoring later, so in terms of the transfer window, the biggest Christmas wish of Manchester United and the fans will probably still be a defensive midfielder.

Phil Jones can play the role, of course, but he's needed more on the back four right now, and ever since Owen Hargreaves rode off into the sunset, no one's really been able to fill the void in the holding position. 

Javi Martinez would be a great option, but he's quite expensive. Sami Khedira has been mentioned, but with Real Madrid at the top of La Liga and advancing in the Champions League, it remains uncertain as to whether or not he'll want to leave. Whoever United decides to bring in though, Santa, will you please make sure it's someone good?

Some Creativity and Firepower in the Transfer Window

Dear Santa,

With Vidic back and Jones and Smalling starting to step up, adding more personnel to the defense could be helpful, but it seems that the biggest issue United has to work on now is scoring. A creative playmaker or another striker—particularly one who could fill in for missing personnel or be a successor to Dimitar Berbatov should he leave soon or go out on loan, as new rumors are suggesting, could help solve the matter.

Danish playmaker Christian Eriksen has been linked to a bid from United before, but Eriksen has mentioned he would prefer to play in Spain, indicating that a move to the Premiership would be unlikely. 

One option that has been mentioned recently is 20-year-old Real Betis striker Alejandro Pozuelo, who scored the second glorious golazo in the video above. The Barcelona and Sevilla target has been impressing in La Liga and is rumored to be available for about £4.5 million.

Although his goal-scoring is what commands attention, Pozuelo can also serve as a playmaker, which could provide some necessary vitality in the midfield and supplement Tom Cleverley on his return.

We promise we've been good this year. 

Keeping an Unbeaten Record in Away Matches

Dear Santa,

Things looked a bit gloomy at times with the loss to Manchester City, League Cup elimination and a couple of tough draws, but overall, things aren't so bad. We haven't lost a league match since the Manchester derby and have gone the entire season without a loss on the road, earning 17 points out of a possible 21.

Over the weekend at Aston Villa, United netted a key victory against Alex McLeish's side, earning a clean sheet for backup goalkeeper Anders Lindegaard and celebrating the return of Nemanja Vidic in centre-back.

In the past six league matches—although it's easy to focus on the lack of goals and the dull one-nil results—it's also important to remember that United have conceded just one goal. If the defense keeps this up, maintaining that unbeaten record should be no problem.

Now, about the matter of goal-scoring...

The Healthy Returns of Tom Cleverley, Chicha and the Rest of the DL

Dear Santa,

We've had a bit of trouble getting the goals going lately. But that's not the biggest problem: The biggest problem is our ever-growing number of crucial players who are on the bench with injuries. Nobody likes that.

Tom Cleverley, the youngster who showed a lot of creativity and drew a few comparisons to a young Paul Scholes early on in the season, has been out for most of the first half but is expected to return by the New Year. We can't wait to have him back.

Unfortunately, there have been some hits to the attack as well, right as United needed to build up their ranks. An ankle injury has sidelined Dimitar Berbatov, who may not be the Red Devils' most consistent striker but has still stepped up at times when he's needed (serving excellently in a libero-esque role in Carling Cup competition, scoring a great goal in the last Champions League draw against Benfica, etc.).

More importantly, the loss of Chicharito will severely hamper striking options. Obviously, player health comes first, so as much as a speedy return is nice, a safe one would be better, so that's what makes this Christmas list.

Ezekiel Fryers and More Good News in the Reserves

Dear Santa, 

We're so excited for all the totally awesome things happening in the reserves. Tough-tackling young defender Ezekiel Fryers has impressed in the lower levels with his strength, physical play, athleticism and speed. As we continue to look for more options to add to the full-back rotation, Fryers could do great things with some appearances for the senior squad if given more time to develop. Fans loved seeing him come on the pitch against Otelul Galati, so maybe it's time to give him some more minutes on the pitch in the Premier League.

Paul Pogba, too, has impressed in the reserves, a prolific goal-scorer with loads of creativity and a keen eye for the game, capabilities beyond his years. Other clubs will try to snatch him up, so now could be a crucial time to give him those first tests.

There's so much talent in the reserves, and these are just a couple of the examples. We'd love to see more great up-and-comers in action, after Christmas and beyond.

FIIIIIIIIIIVE CANTOOOOOOONAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAS

Four Cantonas, three Cantonas, two Cantonas and an Eric Can-to-naaaa! Everybody! 

The Last Little Bit of Zest To Overtake City in the Premier League Table

Dear Santa,

We know it's wrong to wish misfortune on our rivals; that's the sort of thing that could lead to coal in your stockings or the Krampus at your door. And we don't want anything bad to happen to City, of course—no injuries or own goals or Carlos Tévez temper tantrums.

It's just hard watching our Noisy Neighbours outplay us so far this season and still be so close to them—just two wins' worth of points would put us ahead in the table. So close! 

We have the personnel. We have the capability. We have the manager. We know we can overtake them if we could just put a little more force behind the goal—if our strikers could stay fit and do their best work, like they were earlier on in the season.

Manchester United is capable, but a little Christmas magic certainly wouldn't hurt. 

A Berth in the Champions League Knockout Stage

Dear Santa, 

We don't ask for much in the Champions League. We're not asking for an automatic berth in the finals or a Barcelona '99 situation or George Best to magically appear from beyond the grave and create miraculous plays, Angels in the Outfield-style.

All we're asking is just to make it to the knockout stage so we have time to prove that we are still capable. So far, we've beaten one team in this competition, and that is Otelul Galati. And they played well. We need this win against Basel, Santa. And with Chicha, Berbatov and Cleverley among those on the bench, attacking options are looking far more limited.

Maybe a little boost to the midfield would be nice. A good match from Rooney, good form for Michael Carrick like we saw against Benfica in the last round, some solid efforts from Phil Jones and the rest of the new kids. Just this one thing, Santa. 

Even if you choose not to read this, dear Santa, we'll just watch the highlights from Barcelona '99, which is pretty much the United equivalent of watching It's A Wonderful Life in terms of the tear-jerking, feel-good factor. 

A Trophy at the End of the Year for Sir Alex Ferguson

Dear Santa, 

This next item on our list is for us, but even more, it's for our manager. In case you don't watch football, Santa (do they get Sky Sports at the North Pole?), Sir Alex Ferguson recently celebrated his 25th year at the club.

He's done so much for Manchester United—he helped us become the most successful English football club in Premier League history last season, and to think, when he started at Old Trafford in the '80s, we were so far from that.

We'd like to do something nice for Fergie, Santa, and the club is showing improvement every day. So if you could help him earn title number 20, we'll gladly be good all year round.

More Big Wins Like This One

Dear Santa, 

At the beginning of the season, it was a great time to be around Old Trafford. The Red Devils’ routing of Arsenal started things off on a very high note. Even though it perhaps wasn’t the most exciting win, it had everything: a Wayne Rooney hat trick, contributions from a great veteran impact sub (Park Ji-Sung), Ashley Young was in great form and the newcomers made contributions—most notably Danny Welbeck. For a fan at the match, it was like getting a new Lego set and an X-box! 

After Manchester City’s resonant win over Tottenham Hotspur earlier that day, fans around Old Trafford were able to proudly say, “Anything you can do, we can do better.” We know one-upsmanship is wrong, but that feeling would be nice to have again this Christmas season.

You understand, don't you, Santa?