Tony Cascarino [Times]
You’d have to be delusional to believe that Manchester United will not win the Barclays Premier League. They’ve got the best team, the deepest squad and to fail they would have to slip up a couple more times while Liverpool and Chelsea would have to be perfect from now until the season’s end to win the title. Not likely. Sir Alex Ferguson will demand a response from his team after Saturday’s embarrassment, and he will get it. They won’t slip up and the challengers will not get maximum points.
With the lead they have, you could not say United are under genuine pressure — apart from the pressure Ferguson will place on them to do better. He’s not the kind of manager who can shrug off a result such as Saturday’s, even when it was caused by individual mistakes from players who are usually so reliable.
Remember, this is a squad with everything: depth, youth and experience. If Ferguson wants to shake things up for the next game, away against Fulham on Saturday, he can bring in wise heads — Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs — or any number of lively youngsters. How many other clubs would be able to cope with the loss of three right backs to injury over the season (Wes Brown, Gary Neville and Rafael Da Silva)?
But even allowing that the 4-1 defeat at the weekend was a blip, have United really got enough to win the quintuple? Ferguson’s side will feel they can beat Barcelona if they meet in the Champions League. The Catalan team are many people’s favourites to win it, but they haven’t come up against opponents as tough as United because La Liga is weaker than the Premier League. But could United be confident if they face Liverpool?
As for the FA Cup, anything can happen on the day, as last weekend proved. All 11 United starters were well below par. That was an extreme that surely won’t be repeated this season. But it was a reminder that while we should acknowledge United’s strengths and not get carried away by one shock result into thinking that United are going to collapse, they are certainly not perfect. They look a far lesser threat without Dimitar Berbatov and there are weaknesses to exploit. Here are five:
The goalkeeper is vulnerable
Yes, there was that amazing run of clean sheets, but I’m not convinced. The ball is bouncing off Edwin van der Sar more now than it was a few weeks ago. He’s still strong on crosses but it’s worth peppering him with shots, even from distance, and trying to pounce on the rebounds. Ben Foster could be United’s No 1 as early as next season. I’m not a fan of Van Der Sar’s kicking, either — distribution is important for goalkeepers these days and he’s not accurate enough.
You can get at Patrice Evra
The left back is brilliant going forward, but defensively he’s much weaker when opponents make him back-pedal and impose themselves physically. Evra might be more uncomfortable playing against Dirk Kuyt than against Lionel Messi. The Barcelona winger is small and quick, like the United left back, but the Liverpool forward poses different problems: he is stronger and better in the air. When opponents whip in the ball from the left wing to the far post and it goes over the centre backs, Evra struggles to clear it.
Nemanja Vidic can be turned
The central defender tries to move in front of opponents to intercept the ball. He can be left for dead if a forward gets between him and the ball and rolls round him as he makes the challenge. Didier Drogba has done this to him a few times when Chelsea have played United. Like many teams, United are also vulnerable at the heart of their defence if a pacy striker can nip in between the centre backs.
No top defensive midfield player
Without the injured Owen Hargreaves, United lack an energetic tackler in the centre of the park, so an athlete with decent speed, such as Steven Gerrard, can break through the midfield, as he did at Old Trafford. Ferguson should have picked Darren Fletcher — the next best thing in the squad to Hargreaves — against Liverpool.
The central pairing of Michael Carrick and Anderson didn’t strike the right balance because, against a good team, United need someone with stamina and strength to mop up loose balls, track midfield runners and shield the back four.
Their rhythm can be disrupted
United are so hard to stop when attacks are in full flight because their movement is superb. So opponents should play high up the pitch and aim to rob their forwards early to halt United’s momentum and avoid being pushed back. And press the United defence: Liverpool did, forcing Vidic and Rio Ferdinand to rush their passes. The result was that United played more long balls than normal, bypassing midfield. Wayne Rooney and Carlos Tévez were never likely to win many aerial battles given their lack of height, so Liverpool’s back line could head the ball to safety with ease.
You’d have to be delusional to believe that Manchester United will not win the Barclays Premier League. They’ve got the best team, the deepest squad and to fail they would have to slip up a couple more times while Liverpool and Chelsea would have to be perfect from now until the season’s end to win the title. Not likely. Sir Alex Ferguson will demand a response from his team after Saturday’s embarrassment, and he will get it. They won’t slip up and the challengers will not get maximum points.
With the lead they have, you could not say United are under genuine pressure — apart from the pressure Ferguson will place on them to do better. He’s not the kind of manager who can shrug off a result such as Saturday’s, even when it was caused by individual mistakes from players who are usually so reliable.
Remember, this is a squad with everything: depth, youth and experience. If Ferguson wants to shake things up for the next game, away against Fulham on Saturday, he can bring in wise heads — Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs — or any number of lively youngsters. How many other clubs would be able to cope with the loss of three right backs to injury over the season (Wes Brown, Gary Neville and Rafael Da Silva)?
But even allowing that the 4-1 defeat at the weekend was a blip, have United really got enough to win the quintuple? Ferguson’s side will feel they can beat Barcelona if they meet in the Champions League. The Catalan team are many people’s favourites to win it, but they haven’t come up against opponents as tough as United because La Liga is weaker than the Premier League. But could United be confident if they face Liverpool?
As for the FA Cup, anything can happen on the day, as last weekend proved. All 11 United starters were well below par. That was an extreme that surely won’t be repeated this season. But it was a reminder that while we should acknowledge United’s strengths and not get carried away by one shock result into thinking that United are going to collapse, they are certainly not perfect. They look a far lesser threat without Dimitar Berbatov and there are weaknesses to exploit. Here are five:
The goalkeeper is vulnerable
Yes, there was that amazing run of clean sheets, but I’m not convinced. The ball is bouncing off Edwin van der Sar more now than it was a few weeks ago. He’s still strong on crosses but it’s worth peppering him with shots, even from distance, and trying to pounce on the rebounds. Ben Foster could be United’s No 1 as early as next season. I’m not a fan of Van Der Sar’s kicking, either — distribution is important for goalkeepers these days and he’s not accurate enough.
You can get at Patrice Evra
The left back is brilliant going forward, but defensively he’s much weaker when opponents make him back-pedal and impose themselves physically. Evra might be more uncomfortable playing against Dirk Kuyt than against Lionel Messi. The Barcelona winger is small and quick, like the United left back, but the Liverpool forward poses different problems: he is stronger and better in the air. When opponents whip in the ball from the left wing to the far post and it goes over the centre backs, Evra struggles to clear it.
Nemanja Vidic can be turned
The central defender tries to move in front of opponents to intercept the ball. He can be left for dead if a forward gets between him and the ball and rolls round him as he makes the challenge. Didier Drogba has done this to him a few times when Chelsea have played United. Like many teams, United are also vulnerable at the heart of their defence if a pacy striker can nip in between the centre backs.
No top defensive midfield player
Without the injured Owen Hargreaves, United lack an energetic tackler in the centre of the park, so an athlete with decent speed, such as Steven Gerrard, can break through the midfield, as he did at Old Trafford. Ferguson should have picked Darren Fletcher — the next best thing in the squad to Hargreaves — against Liverpool.
The central pairing of Michael Carrick and Anderson didn’t strike the right balance because, against a good team, United need someone with stamina and strength to mop up loose balls, track midfield runners and shield the back four.
Their rhythm can be disrupted
United are so hard to stop when attacks are in full flight because their movement is superb. So opponents should play high up the pitch and aim to rob their forwards early to halt United’s momentum and avoid being pushed back. And press the United defence: Liverpool did, forcing Vidic and Rio Ferdinand to rush their passes. The result was that United played more long balls than normal, bypassing midfield. Wayne Rooney and Carlos Tévez were never likely to win many aerial battles given their lack of height, so Liverpool’s back line could head the ball to safety with ease.
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