'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
“Your job now, is to stand by our new manager.”
When Sir Alex said this in his farewell speech, the 75,000 odd people inside Old Trafford were roaring in agreement. Not that anyone was looking forward to his retirement, but the fans had decided they would do everything it takes to support their new manager, David Moyes. Manchester United were going to have a new man at the helm after almost 27 years.
Trending
The transition, however, was never going to be easy. Having not bought a central midfielder since the summer of 2007; and with Michael Carrick not getting any younger after a spectacular 2012/13 season, Tom Cleverley looking ordinary after an ankle ligament injury following an outstanding start to the 2011/12 season, Darren Fletcher not recovering fully from ulcerative colitis, and Anderson’s fitness levels reaching new lows, United lacked quality in that department. They just had to bring in reinforcements in that position.
Even after having won the title by a 11-point margin last season, United were not the favourites this season after seeing their rivals strengthen in the summer. Going for the likes of Thiago Alcantara, Cesc Fabregas, and Ander Herrera is something a club like United should do. But having not landed any of them and ending up overpaying for Marouane Fellaini, United needed a piece of genius by Moyes to turn the season around. However, what followed in the following months was a fiasco of the highest order; something that no United fan in his early 20s or 30s would ever have even dreamt of.
In spite of the farce that the summer turned out to be, Moyes did a commendable job of keeping hold of Rooney, who was constantly being wanted by Mourinho. Rooney seemed clearly unhappy after being dropped from the squad and constantly being played out of position by Sir Alex. His departure seemed imminent in the summer. But with Moyes around, Rooney has been the one who has been dependable in every match he’s played in, and Moyes deserves some credit for getting Rooney to sign a new deal that will keep him at Old Trafford until 2019. With 28 games gone, he is third in the table for goals and assists this season (21), only next to Luis Suarez (34) and Daniel Sturridge (23).
The man: Rooney’s deal will run out in 2019, but he will become a club ambassador when he retires
Moyes has always been an admirer of wing play. Crossing has always been his forte. In his Everton team, he had brilliant headers of the ball like Fellaini and Cahill. He brought the same philosophy to this United team. At United, he had a title winning squad to manage, with the addition of Fellaini.
Things, however, started falling apart as this continued. The nadir was the home game against Fulham when United put an unprecedented 81 crosses, not one leading to a goal. The crossing had never been poorer. Although United lead 2-1 with a minute of the stoppage time left to play, United conceded on 94’ and lost 2 precious points. Players were blamed for complacency, and the fans cut a frustrating figure.
Everyone thought Moyes would learn from his mistake against Fulham and abandon his age old crossing philosophy. But it was not meant to happen. United faced a shambolic 2-0 defeat at the hands of Olympiacos, the weakest team in the Champions League, who sold their star striker, Kostas Mitroglou, to Fulham in January.
After the defeat against Olympiacos left many fans calling for Moyes’ head, he approached a tactic of playing more through the middle than out wide against West Brom last weekend. Although two of the goals came from inch perfect crosses by RvP and Rafael, the passing was predominantly through the centre of the park.
In the same match, van Persie, having already been booked for a tackle, dived in to make another reckless challenge. He was successful with just one of his five tackle attempts, giving away four free kicks. Other than the free kick assist that he provided to Jones for his goal, RvP barely stood out in the match. With the fear of a red card and a subsequent suspension for the big game against Liverpool on Sunday, Moyes sensed this, and rightly subbed him off for Welbeck, who brought more mobility and pace to the team. Welbeck also repaid the faith by scoring a goal, curling the ball around Ben Foster for a cool finish.
It takes a lot of guts to replace a player of RvP’s calibre, especially when the entire squad is underperforming. But because of his poor form and the danger of a suspension, Moyes made the right decision to take off a lackadaisical RvP, much to his shame as he shook his head in disappointment while going off the pitch. United fans would want to see more of this; they want the manager to have complete authority over the squad, and not give in to the players’ demands, as it’s seemed throughout the season.
Considering Chelsea, Arsenal, and City occupy the first three places in any order, with 10 games left to play and 11 points separating United and Liverpool, it’s hard even for the most optimistic of United fans to believe that Liverpool will slip up at this stage of the season, and moreover, that United won’t lose any of their remaining matches. A 10-game unbeaten run has never been accomplished this season, and with the pressure on Moyes high as ever, it seems formidable, if anything. But with the pride to play for, United should go all guns blazing against Liverpool and Manchester City, two of the difficult fixtures that they have in the next 10 days.
Moyes made an audacious decision to take off RvP and bring on Welbeck against West Brom, that paid off. But with 6 goals in his last 7 Premier League starts against Liverpool, RvP is likely to start against them on Sunday. He got his tactics absolutely spot on last weekend against West Brom by playing Fellaini, who had his best game in a United shirt, with Carrick in the middle of the pitch. Maybe, Moyes is learning from his previous mistakes. A sign of good things to come? A United fan can only hope.
