The Carling Cup quarter finals came to an end this week in what was an all Premier League affair and a forgetful outing for London based Clubs.
Matchday 1 saw a very professional performance from United's youngsters against a Tottenham side comprising mostly of first-teamers. United won the game 2 - Zilch a week after the very same team was bashed for not fitting the grade required to be considered among the elite, after their 0 - 1 loss at home to Besiktas. More on this later.
Aston Villa and Pompey both made a few changes to their squads from their weekend PL clashes and Villa deservedly won the tie 2 - 4 at Fratton Park. Avram Grant made it clear that survival was top priority while Martin O'Neil thought this was a good opportunity for new boy Stewart Downing to be given his first outing as a villain. He duly obliged with a goal that sent Villa on their way to the semi-final.
Matchday 2 saw the "Blue Thunder" lose in penalties to Rovers who will hope this win galvanises the unit and helps them elevate themselves above the relegation zone. The win was made largely possible because Chelsea were reduced to 10 men midway through the second half as striker Salomon Kalou limped off after all their substitutes had been used. Blackburn made the numerical advantage show with 2 goals, the first an equaliser within the allotted 90 minutes, the second to take the lead in extra time. However Chelsea's resilience showed when they scored with the last kick off the game only to lose on penalties and set up a Rovers vs Villains Semi-final date.
The Sky "Blues" were in action as well against Arsene Wenger's squad who again fielded a fledgling XI while City played most of their superstars, including former gunners Kolo Toure and the much hated, scratch that, overrated Emmanuel Adebayor. To further this argument, he missed 2 sitters AGAIN last night, against a very, very youthful Arsenal side. The average age of an Arsenal side in any case is in it's early 20s mostly and this squad was made up off largely the reserves. However, Carlitos Tevez, Shaun Wright-Phillips and Vladimir Weiss compounded on Arsenal's misery from last week as they lost to the same scoreline as they did to Chelsea to ensure the cup will remain somewhere in the Midlands or Lancashire.
This sets up a very intriguing two legged battle in Manchester in January. But first.
Manchester United's production line has given the world the Neville brothers, Paul Scholes, David Beckham and Ryan Giggs. All still playing. All still massively important for their respective clubs. At the given time, when Alan Hansen led Liverpool, he made, what is now a legendary comment on United's crop. "You cannot win the title with kids" predicted Hansen. Fergie won the double that year ('twas 1996).
Once again, a reporter raised a finger at his youth team, he reacted with anger, going on to say that the very same players will be sought after by the paparazzi not too long into the future. And with players like the Da Silva twins, Darren Gibson, Kiko Macheda and Danny Welbeck giving performances like they did in midweek, it's hard not to see why Fergie chose to defend them so vehemently. While not all of the players above have been raised since they were kids by the United trainers, the way they arrived at the club, love it or hate it, is probably the future trend.
Arsenal's young sides have been lauded with praise for many years because of the style of football they play. It is a far cry from Wenger's 1-0 army that he built in his early years as gaffer, now, Wenger's footballing philosophy is echoed in the way his team plays. But, if you want to be a superstar, attain glory, then do it the United way. Most of the youngster's Sir Alex has guided have won titles at a world stage. Maybe Wenger getting all the plaudits is slightly harsh on Ferguson as the world seemed to forget the Sir Alex introduced his reserves to the deep end because these very same youngsters were already household names in the Far East even in the 1990s when the Premier League had just begun it's global branding program.
Today with billions watching football competitions from England all over the world, here is an argument FOR the United way. How many people outside of the Arsenal faithful have heard off Craig Eastmond I do not know, but the whole world has seen Frederico Macheda's winner against Aston Villa last year and now Gibson's thunderbolts against Spurs.
Having said that, Sir Alex's true test will come in January, when his squad takes on the riches of City over 2 legs. What if United are hammered in the City of Manchester Stadium in the first leg, will SAF say "It's a learning experience for a youthful squad" and play the same team at Old Trafford, or will he try and put Sparky's XI in their place and field a strong United squad made up off a few of his reserves. Let's just hope come February, the Cup is retained in Manchester. Coloured Red.
Until then, Bring in the Beers.
Showing posts with label Review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Review. Show all posts
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Manchester United 2 - 1 Arsenal : Review
Saturday gave us the first Big 4 encounter as Manchester United welcomed an Arsenal side that is in marauding form. Two of the best sides in England since the Premier League began have always been the recipe of a mouthwatering contest for fans and neutrals alike.
Yet, for the first 40 minutes of the game, it was one midfield playing the other. This apart from Fletcher's effort just under 10 minutes which he blasted wide after being set up by Wayne Rooney, and Arshavin's brilliantly guided ball (on a corner) which missed the post by mere inches.
It was near the 40th minute that the match really took off. Arshavin had the ball in the penalty area and tried to dribble across a diving Darren Fletcher. He got the ball away before Fletcher came crashing into his legs. A blind man would have given this a penalty.
But such is the way football treats you. Luck has rarely shown it's pretty face to Darren Fletcher and he welcomed it with open arms. It was on a similar night last year at the Emirates, that Fletcher had got the ball away from Cesc Fabregas inside the penalty box, but the referee saw otherwise. Cue the yellow card, and Fletcher was out of the CL Final. Clearly a player United sorely missed on that night and the evidence of this argument was provided by Fletcher against Arsenal. He tread on every blade of grass on the Old Trafford pitch, blocked every pass in a radius of 10 meters, strung together great offensive runs and hassled the Arsenal midfield for its possession.
Coming back to the 40th minute of the match. Arsenal were soon in possession and it was the Russian maestro who collected a pass 30 yards out and sent a screamer past Ben Foster to hand Arsenal the lead. Foster should have done better with his save. Stronger hands would have seen the ball sail over the top post, but that strike deserved to rest at the back of the net. The goal sprang United into life and they bombarded the Arsenal goal till Half-Time, but 'that' pass into the final third was missing.
After the restart it was Arsenal who threatened first and Foster made amends of his earlier mistake, saving brilliantly from Van Persie who should have been on the score sheet just on the basis of his display. The two teams exchanged some good moves, but it was at the hour mark that things turned drastically bad for Arsenal. Ryan Giggs put a beautifully weighted through ball in the path of Wayne Rooney who burst through the Arsenal defense and tried to beat the keeper on the dribble but was brought down by Manuel Almunia. The Arsenal stopper could have few complaints about the penalty, clearly tagging Rooney, but maybe should have questioned his decision making. The referee took his own time to allow Rooney to shoot and when he blew his whistle, Rooney sent Almunia the wrong way and leveled the score.
United brought on Ji-Sung Park for the unimpressive Valencia (at 63 minutes) and a minute after the introduction of the Korean, the Red Devils won a free-kick in the middle of the Park. Ryan Giggs stepped up and floated in a beautiful cross in no-man's land only to find an unopposed Abou Diaby in the box who showed some sublime finishing skills to find the back of the net with his header. Too bad it was in his own net. Stretford End had erupted. And with United in the lead, it was going to be very tough for the Gunners to come back on level terms after this fiasco.
The heads had dropped, shoulders clammed up as Arsenal showed the body language of a team that had just conceded their 3rd goal without reply (cue the same CL semi-final from last year). A far cry from their display on the night. Diaby tried to make amends immediately after the restart but his shot just didn't match his run. At the other end United were threatening on the counter attack but showed exactly why they need a better performance from their midfield men. While Fletcher and Carrick control the ball well, they can't even match Giggs for passing. The veteran showing exactly why Sir Alex saves him for the big games.
In the closing stages of the game, both teams spurned brilliant chances - Berbatov, who came on at the 85th minute to replace Giggs, was teed up beautifully by Nani but sent his shot crashing wide, and then Van Persie put the ball in the back of the net only to see the offside flag raised for Gallas.
A very bemused Arsene Wenger was sent off with 30 seconds to go, for kicking a bottle in frustration. And he should have been frustrated. Arsenal got a result they didn't deserve and they only have themselves to blame.
I was talking to my friend, an ardent Gunner, and told him I predicted his team winning 2-1 at Old Trafford. But I also said that if United take the lead, they will not get beaten at home. They rarely do. United showed again that they can do the job on the night without coming within a country mile of their best.
And Arsenal are susceptible to giving it away and their history shows it. They will be brilliant for 85 minutes and then will have a period of 5 crazy minutes where they gift the game to their opponents and teams like United will punish you at such times.
When Arshavin scored, Martin Tyler very eloquently described the goal as "From Russia, with Love". I say the United's victory was "From Arsenal, with Love"
The season is still in its infancy and who knows who will have the last laugh. The Gunners have 30th January marked on the calendar as "Revenge Date".
Until Then, Bring in the Beers.
Yet, for the first 40 minutes of the game, it was one midfield playing the other. This apart from Fletcher's effort just under 10 minutes which he blasted wide after being set up by Wayne Rooney, and Arshavin's brilliantly guided ball (on a corner) which missed the post by mere inches.
It was near the 40th minute that the match really took off. Arshavin had the ball in the penalty area and tried to dribble across a diving Darren Fletcher. He got the ball away before Fletcher came crashing into his legs. A blind man would have given this a penalty.
But such is the way football treats you. Luck has rarely shown it's pretty face to Darren Fletcher and he welcomed it with open arms. It was on a similar night last year at the Emirates, that Fletcher had got the ball away from Cesc Fabregas inside the penalty box, but the referee saw otherwise. Cue the yellow card, and Fletcher was out of the CL Final. Clearly a player United sorely missed on that night and the evidence of this argument was provided by Fletcher against Arsenal. He tread on every blade of grass on the Old Trafford pitch, blocked every pass in a radius of 10 meters, strung together great offensive runs and hassled the Arsenal midfield for its possession.
Coming back to the 40th minute of the match. Arsenal were soon in possession and it was the Russian maestro who collected a pass 30 yards out and sent a screamer past Ben Foster to hand Arsenal the lead. Foster should have done better with his save. Stronger hands would have seen the ball sail over the top post, but that strike deserved to rest at the back of the net. The goal sprang United into life and they bombarded the Arsenal goal till Half-Time, but 'that' pass into the final third was missing.
After the restart it was Arsenal who threatened first and Foster made amends of his earlier mistake, saving brilliantly from Van Persie who should have been on the score sheet just on the basis of his display. The two teams exchanged some good moves, but it was at the hour mark that things turned drastically bad for Arsenal. Ryan Giggs put a beautifully weighted through ball in the path of Wayne Rooney who burst through the Arsenal defense and tried to beat the keeper on the dribble but was brought down by Manuel Almunia. The Arsenal stopper could have few complaints about the penalty, clearly tagging Rooney, but maybe should have questioned his decision making. The referee took his own time to allow Rooney to shoot and when he blew his whistle, Rooney sent Almunia the wrong way and leveled the score.
United brought on Ji-Sung Park for the unimpressive Valencia (at 63 minutes) and a minute after the introduction of the Korean, the Red Devils won a free-kick in the middle of the Park. Ryan Giggs stepped up and floated in a beautiful cross in no-man's land only to find an unopposed Abou Diaby in the box who showed some sublime finishing skills to find the back of the net with his header. Too bad it was in his own net. Stretford End had erupted. And with United in the lead, it was going to be very tough for the Gunners to come back on level terms after this fiasco.
The heads had dropped, shoulders clammed up as Arsenal showed the body language of a team that had just conceded their 3rd goal without reply (cue the same CL semi-final from last year). A far cry from their display on the night. Diaby tried to make amends immediately after the restart but his shot just didn't match his run. At the other end United were threatening on the counter attack but showed exactly why they need a better performance from their midfield men. While Fletcher and Carrick control the ball well, they can't even match Giggs for passing. The veteran showing exactly why Sir Alex saves him for the big games.
In the closing stages of the game, both teams spurned brilliant chances - Berbatov, who came on at the 85th minute to replace Giggs, was teed up beautifully by Nani but sent his shot crashing wide, and then Van Persie put the ball in the back of the net only to see the offside flag raised for Gallas.
A very bemused Arsene Wenger was sent off with 30 seconds to go, for kicking a bottle in frustration. And he should have been frustrated. Arsenal got a result they didn't deserve and they only have themselves to blame.
I was talking to my friend, an ardent Gunner, and told him I predicted his team winning 2-1 at Old Trafford. But I also said that if United take the lead, they will not get beaten at home. They rarely do. United showed again that they can do the job on the night without coming within a country mile of their best.
And Arsenal are susceptible to giving it away and their history shows it. They will be brilliant for 85 minutes and then will have a period of 5 crazy minutes where they gift the game to their opponents and teams like United will punish you at such times.
When Arshavin scored, Martin Tyler very eloquently described the goal as "From Russia, with Love". I say the United's victory was "From Arsenal, with Love"
The season is still in its infancy and who knows who will have the last laugh. The Gunners have 30th January marked on the calendar as "Revenge Date".
Until Then, Bring in the Beers.
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