United Corner- Month Review, Champions League Group Stage, Transfer Window (September 10th)

   United Corner- First month of the Premier League Season, Champions League Group Stage Draw, Transfer Window Closing (September 10)





So we have come through the first month of the Premier League season and are just about to get through a two week international period which makes for a good time to review the August period for Manchester United. Let's face facts, this always expected to be a tough start to the League campaign after the fixture list didn't fall kindly back in June and my personal expectation was that we may only end up coming out of the first three games with just three points on the board.

I thought we would likely draw all three games at Swansea, at home against Chelsea and at Anfield so techinically the side have surpassed the expectations that I had by picking up four points from those games.

The performances have been steady, if not spectacular so far, but there seems to have been a hugely negative reaction to the defeat at Anfield- I am certainly never happy lose to the lot from down the M62, but this has proved to be a difficult fixture for United in recent seasons so I was a little surprised that David Moyes seemed to get as much criticism for the result as he did.

United have lost 4 of their last 6 previous visits to Anfield before this season and we all know that they are going to raise their game when United do turn up for their game there. The bigger issue may have been the lack of chances United created in their last two League games and even the 1-4 result at Swansea was highly flattering thanks to some superb finishing from both Robin Van Persie and Danny Welbeck.

It has to also be put into context that United earned four points from these same three games last season so it hasn't been a bad start, if not the firing on all cylinders that some would have wanted to see. Outside of the visit to the Etihad Stadium, next month United have a much more negotiable Premier League schedule and I would expect another six further points on the board at the end of the next three games, while David Moyes will have had more time to put his stamp on the team.


One thing that has been learnt from the opening three games of the League season is the much fawning over the likes of Michael Carrick and Tom Cleverley are seriously misplaced.

I haven't been a fan of Michael Carrick for a few seasons now and will never hide that opinion- there are a lot of fans out there that love to throw statistics around when it comes to Carrick as if that validates their opinion on what a good player he is for United... The common one is his pass completion rate or number of passes he makes in a game, but how many of those are the probing passes that United desperately need from the centre of the park?

Every time I watch United, Carrick makes a lot of his passes sideways or backwards, while he hasn't put his stamp on any game in a way we have become accustomed from our centre midfielders through the years. Maybe I am wrong, but I would love to know which games Carrick has turned when United are losing or chasing an equaliser, while I am not still sure what exactly he does for the team.

He doesn't create enough chances, is regularly not in a great position in defensive areas and I cannot fathom why he is rated so highly. Can't believe it's not Scholes? Bloody hell, I can!!

One thing I will give Carrick is maybe he would be a much more functioning player if he had someone decent to sit alongside him in the middle of the park and that is when I turn to Tom Cleverley- I read some remarkable comments about how he dominated the game against Chelsea at Old Trafford, but maybe I missed something while watching a game where Chelsea sat back and allowed United to have the ball... It must have been all the fantastic chances he created in that match that had people falling over themselves to say how good he was, but I didn't see it.

Cleveley's positioning is absolutely shocking and that is a huge crime for a centre midfield player- he never demands the ball when United are losing a game, rarely picks up and drives the ball forward and doesn't score enough goals. Whereas I could argue that Carrick would get into a couple of the midfields of sides that finished in the four positions below United last season, Cleverley would not as far as I am concerned.

He could be a useful squad player that can come in when we have home games against the lesser teams in the Premier League/Europe to give our starters some time to rest, but there is no way Cleverley should be first choice in that centre midfield.

As much as Anderson has his critics, he at least offers some drive in the middle of the park when he hasn't gorged himself on cheeseburgers, and it is a big problem in the middle of our team. In the last couple of League games, neither Carrick nor Cleverley got into a position on the field to support the front two players and neither is comfortable moving forward with the ball.

This is an area of the pitch that United fans have been desperate to see some improvements over the last few seasons and that is because none of the midfielders really inspire with their play and we do need new faces in those areas to really kick on as a team while the rest of our rivals have strengthened this summer.


Over the last few seasons, Manchester United have avoided the really awkward Group Stage in the Champions League, even if we did somehow manage to mess up a Group containing Basel, Otelul Galati and Benfica a couple of seasons ago, but it looks a much more difficult Group to come through this time around.

I have been surprised that so many people have labelled this section as an 'easy' one for United to come through and its seems I have a lot more respect for Shakhtar Donetsk, Real Sociedad and Bayer Leverkusen than many others do.

I am heartened by the fact that Shakhtar no longer have a couple of key performers from the team that knocked out Chelsea at this stage last season, but technically they looked a strong side and they will pose problems, particularly in the Ukraine. I don't know a lot about Bayer Leverkusen, but any team that finishes in the top three in Germany has to be afforded some respect, while Real Sociedad have a young team that won't be afraid of playing anywhere.

You can't under-estimate Sociedad after seeing another young Basque side outplay United over two legs a couple of seasons ago in the Europa League- Athletic Bilbao were technically brilliant in both of those games a couple of years ago and I can definitely see Real Sociedad causing plenty of problems for United in both games.

However, in saying all that, I do expect United to win all three home games against these sides, with Sociedad being the most difficult of those games. That should leave the team needing just a point from one of their three away games and it would be a surprise if they couldn't get that, but I certainly think the Group won't be the cakewalk that some seemed to think after it was made.


It has been a really disappointing summer when it comes to the transfer activity at Old Trafford, but I think it has been made worse by the disastrous policy taken on by Ed Woodward and the club with high-profile rejections and what can only be described as a 'scattergun' approach to purchasing new players.

I was very happy that David Moyes had identified the centre of midfield as a weak spot in the squad as most fans have been calling for reinforcements there over the last few years. However, it seemed that United were stuck in not being entirely sure how they were going to resolve that problem.

The signing of Maruoane Fellaini is not one that I am against like some people seemed to be, although I would have liked someone more creative to also have been brought into the squad so I was a little surprised that United didn't make a move for Mezit Ozul. What made the move for Fellaini altogether stranger was the ridiculously small bid that was initially made for the Belgian and Leighton Baines (only half a million less than United ended up paying for Fellaini), while David Moyes would have been aware of the 23 million pound release clause in the Fellaini contract that could have been activated before August.

What made things look a little more strange were the bids for Ander Herrera and even more bizarrely for Samir Khedira, the latter coming with just hours of the transfer window closing remaining.There just doesn't seem to have a been a real plan of identifying targets and making sure the club went out to get them as they spent far too much time chasing Cesc Fabregas.

Ed Woodward's reputation has been tarnished in his first foray into the transfer market, but I would be hopeful that he has learnt something and we will see more productive attempts to strengthen the squad coming in January and next summer.


I've read a few times over the last two weeks that David Moyes has not won a game as manager at Old Trafford, Anfield, Stamford Bridge or the Emirates Stadium, but expect those people that love talking about that to be silenced in the next game against Crystal Palace on Saturday after the international break.

However, I think there is some real importance that needs to be placed on the home game against Liverpool in the Capital One Cup as I think it will relieve a lot of pressure on Moyes if he can lead the side to a win in one of the big games to begin this season.

Don't misunderstand me- I would love that win to come at the Etihad Stadium where United will be visiting three days before we play Liverpool, but it  is a big ask to win there for a second year in a row and I would settle for a draw from that game.

The Liverpool Cup game would be at the end of a run where United have played Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City in the Premier League and there is every chance that United won't have a win in those games so the League Cup is going to have extra-importance for Moyes.

United have a real chance to go on a run in the League with games against Palace, West Brom, Southampton and Stoke at Old Trafford and trips to Manchester City, Sunderland and Fulham and I would be very happy if United pick up more than 18 points from those games, but I think a win over Liverpool in the League Cup will at least take away the pressure that will continue to build on Moyes as we reach the next 'big' game against Arsenal on November 10.

Some 'fans' are already on the manager's back for a loss at Anfield, but a win in over our old rivals will at least keep them quiet as they continue sharpening their knives in the corner... However, a loss to City and then in the League Cup will have these same 'fans' very much in the light with radios and the media all joining the outcry and that is the last thing Moyes needs just 4 months into the job at Old Trafford.

United Corner (August 26 2012)

And just like that, we have got through the first week of the new football season and you can hear those fans that are disappointed, those that are satisfied and those that have been given new hope as to how this year will develop for their club.

In my first 'United Corner' last week, I wrote that I was looking forward to the new season after the signing of Robin Van Persie, but I still have some concerns about the engine room of the side and whether we have enough in the midfield area to really make progress.

However, I was also of the belief that the options we have in that area were going to be good enough for the Premier League, but perhaps see us come short in Europe. I also thought a 4 point return from the first two games of the season would have been a good start to build upon.


The game at Everton on Monday night was largely disappointing for United in that we never seemed to get into the game and really sit out to control the tempo. We had a couple of half chances here and there, but there was always the fear that Everton were going to be the ones to get the breakthrough and they did look the better team on the night.

Injuries obviously played a big part in the team selection, but it looked a side that was going to need a bit of luck to get away with a win although I still believed it was going to be strong enough to avoid defeat.

To be honest, that may have been the 'opening game' positives spreading through the heart which eventually blocked any thoughts in the mind that Everton were a good enough side to take advantage and go on and win the game.

At the end of the day, losing a game at Goodison Park which is due to start in the evening can happen (read Citeh losing there last season on a Wednesday night), but the manner of the loss is what will determine the mood and feelings I take from it.

On this occasion, I was vastly disappointed with the performance and felt there were too many lacklustre performers in the team that needed to question themselves and truly ask if they had given enough.

One of those was Nani, a player that seems to divide the United faithful into two camps that think he is good enough and those that think he isn't... I can't really fit into either category with any conviction, although I will fully admit to tearing my hair out when watching him play. Nani continues to be frustratingly inconsistent, and he doesn't seem to have any middle ground in his performances- he will either give you an 8.5/10 or a 1.5 but never a game where he is between those numbers.

Unfortunately for us, we saw one of his 1.5 games on Monday night when he can't cross the ball (how many times did he hit the first defender in open play and from set pieces?!), makes the wrong decision when he is in a promising position and generally looks like someone who wouldn't be out of place in a Non-League side.

Some of this could be down to him really wanting to prove himself in the light that he hasn't been offered a contract extension despite seemingly want to commit his future to the club, but it's not the first time he has been a let-down for United and his inconsistencies mean it surely won't be the last (unless sold in the transfer window as some suggest).

Another who didn't impress on Monday night was Wayne Rooney, so often a match winner for United but a player who continued in the fashion that I have become accustomed to in the last twelve months. There hasn't been much competition for Rooney in the starting line up in that time and while the goals have kept coming, there has been a lack of energy (for want of a better word) in his play and almost a lethargic attitude.

It's almost like Rooney had fallen into a comfort zone knowing he would be playing in all the important matches and perhaps he even began thinking that he was 'too good' to be dropped with the lack of competition for him (these are just theories on my part and I have no concrete evidence to suggest they are true). With the introductions of Robin Van Persie and Shinji Kagawa, there is now some real options to bring into the side and, as it turned out, Rooney can now be given a 'rest' when the performances are not quite up to scratch.

It wasn't all doom and gloom at Goodison though, with Kagawa looking like a neat and tidy player that will be a positive to what we already had in the squad. With Fergie so often playing a 4-3-3 in the big games, Kagawa will be an upgrade to the position that Ji Sung Park so often took up for United and he looks a player much more comfortable on the ball and a little cleverer with the passes he plays.


Despite all the disappointment of the defeat at Goodison Park, I was still pretty positive about United's chances this season (how many other teams are going to win at Everton after all was the thinking) and the only surprise from the United team sheet on Saturday was the fact that I had predicted all but one of the players- try playing that game every week and guess the team Fergie will start and see how many times you get it right this season(!)

It was great to see Van Persie and Kagawa both get off the mark in their Old Trafford careers, especially the former as you just know the media were itching to get on a 'witch hunt' like the one they enjoyed when Torres couldn't hit a cow's backside with a banjo in his early Chelsea career.

However, I am a glass half empty kind of guy and the sloppiness of the two goals we conceded against Fulham were disappointing, while we were kind of hanging on at the end for the three points. The injury to Rooney will be a big miss, especially if he is missing for the game at Anfield on September 23, while I still have big reservations about a midfield that can't get a grip on a match.

I know a lot of United fans are high on Tom Cleverley and what he can do for our team, but I just can't see it... He played pretty well when we got in front and he was happy to have the ball at 3-1, but before that (OK fine it was only ten minutes) and after Fulham made it 3-2, he no longer demanded the ball, he was careless in possession and he refused to get forward with the ball.

He gained a lot of respect for his early season form last year, but I don't think he is the solution to the problems we have had for over four years now. As I say, he does do the little things well, but he doesn't do enough for me when we need a midfielder to take the ball on.

I barely noticed him at Goodison Park and I really wasn't that impressed with him yesterday- it's far too easy to want a ball when you're leading by a couple of goals, but it's a different story when you need someone to take the ball and get some composure in the side by leading possession.

In the second half, Cleverley and Anderson (I can't be the only one that thinks he has put on the pounds since he was last in action for us) both allowed too much space for the Fulham midfield to exploit and that leads me to the impressive Moussa Dembele.

Dembele has been linked with United in the transfer window and he looked like a player that would really bring some much needed dynamism into our midfield- he was comfortable bringing the ball forward through the midfield and linking up with the forward men, while he could also beat players with his quick feet. There were at least three occasions he beat a couple of men in the middle of the park and had United on the back foot and would give Fergie a different look in that area of the pitch.

We just don't have a player that is comfortable driving with the ball and forcing defenders to make decisions whether to go to the man or track the run of the forward players and we have even fewer players that can actually beat a man- even the likes of Ashley Young have been almost scared to try and take their man on in a dribble and these are all elements that could improve our side in my opinion, elements that Dembele would bring.

Do I think we will get him? Probably not at this late stage, but you can't blame me for believing that someone will see that we need to bring in someone into the midfield.


Finally, the strangest thing I have head all week about United is that Fergie has been banning hacks for getting a news story RIGHT- huh? Three journalists have been banned from future press conferences because they had written Rio Ferdinand would be missing at Everton and it just continues to see the press conferences becoming a bunch of 'Fergie cronies' that won't dare to ask anything of interest in fear of not being invited back.

Personally I don't see how this to the interest of the fans who are keen to hear about some of the bigger issues at Old Trafford (not related to Glazers who are clearly off the agenda), but I am guessing the 'real fans' are the only ones invited.

Things Learned from the Weekend Football

This is a bit of a rip-off of what the Racing Post do, but I do like the idea of jotting down a few thoughts from the weekend to maybe keep in mind for the future. I will try and do this every week during the football season, but it won't always be possible.

So what did I learn from the weekend football:

1) Manchester United remain the team to beat in the Premier League; Even without a marquee midfield signing over the Summer, United completely dominated Manchester City, the team that many think will be the closest challengers for the title this season. United out passed City and, barring a 10 minute period before half time, United clearly dominated the game.


Keep things in perspective though, there were still a couple of issues for United to resolve in the middle of the park, especially when they are defending, while City did miss the firepower of Sergio Aguero and Carlos Tevez.


2) Tom Cleverley could be the real deal; Tom Cleverley showed a lot of promise for United in the second half yesterday, with quick movement of the ball and decent passing. He looks a tough light at the moment, a bit like Darren Fletcher did when he first broke into the side, but I think Cleverley could do well in a system where he has the likes of Anderson and Ji Sung Park doing a lot of the leg work.


That could allow Cleverley to flourish at the top of a 3 man midfield, allowing him to dictate the play and get passes out to the speedy wingers and forwards United have.


3) It is not the time to panic for West Ham United supporters; It wasn't the start the fans attending Upton Park would have expected as their side failed to turn their dominance into goals, but they must not get on the players backs just yet. I remember a few seasons ago when Reading were beaten at home by Plymouth in a surprise opening day loss, but they went on to win the League with a bit to spare.


The Championship is definitely a marathon and not a sprint, and I think West Ham will still be there or thereabouts come the end of the season.


It was only a year ago that Carlton Cole was receiving a lot of praise in the media, and I am sure he will get the goals if he remains at the club at the end of the transfer window, while players like Kevin Nolan and Frederic Piquionne should also chip in with a fair share.