United take one more step on ladder to invincibility
After Tottenham and Manchester United played to a scoreless draw, Harry Redknapp, the head of the Spurs, commented the he did not think it was possible for Manchester to achieve an undefeated season. Will his words prove to be true?
Halfway into the season and Sir Alex Ferguson's men sit top of the Premier League table having won twelve and drawn nine of their 21 games and are the only side in the football league to remain unbeaten. In fact, United have only suffered one defeat in any of the four competitions they have played in, their only loss coming against strugglers West Ham in the Carling Cup.
There were occasions during the match yesterday when it seemed as though Tottenham might be the first to grab up all 3 points off the side from the North West. Rafeal Van Der Vaart and Gareth Bale were both on their games. But as it turned out, the result was a line score of 0-0 even with the final 15 minutes being played with 10 men by the visitors. Rafael, the young full-back from Brazil, was given another bookable offence after it appeared he accidentally tripped Benoit Assou-Ekotto. This brings United to the top spot in the Premiere League. Tottenham's position remains 5th, just one point behind Chelsea.
Both sides created quality chances in an attempt to break the deadlock, with Peter Crouch's first half miss from a perfect Alan Hutton cross perhaps the best of the game. The away side also had a presentable opportunity in the first period of play, but Wayne Rooney, back in the starting line-up after injury fired his low angled drive narrowly wide of the far post. Tottenham found themselves in the ascendency for much of the second half and Van Der Vaart wasted his best goal scoring chance of the game when he headed wide from a Bale cross.
As the whistle blew for full time, Sir Alex Ferguson undoubtedly would have been the happier of the two managers knowing his team had survived one of the strongest tests of their title winning capabilities, despite yet again producing a fairly uninspiring performance.
Arsenal's remarkable season of 2003/2004, when they went the entire season unbeaten, has been a benchmark for other teams to match. With United having passed Christmas without a loss, talk now has people wondering if they can equal Arsenal's record. The prospect of Manchester matching Arsene Wenger's 'Invincibles' so soon after 2004 is an astonishing prospect. This is especially true considering that before Arsenal, no team has reached unbeaten status since Preston End's season of 1888/1889.
Although Man United continue to avoid defeat, there are very few people who believe that they can sustain the record during their remaining 17 matches. They may sit top of the table with two games in hand, but United have been anything but impressive in a number of league games, particularly away from Old Trafford.
On their travels they have often struggled to create clear cut chances in front of goal and their midfield has been fragile to intelligent movement from the opposition. The most notable examples of this came away to Aston Villa and West Brom, against whom they looked especially vulnerable to defeat.
At Villa Park, United found themselves down 2-0, only to be saved from defeat by late goals by Nemanja Vidic and Federico Macheda. Similarly in a match with West Brom, United were troubled consistently by the interchanging front four: Thomas, Blunt, Odemwingie and Morrison. The foursome was constantly on the move, giving Untied a very difficult 90 minutes with the center backs being forced out of position by Peter Odemwingie. The Nigerian had a chance to put his team ahead from the penalty spot in the second half. But, he missed the goal and United were able to eke out a win with a goal by Javier Hernandez.
The common factor in the games against Aston Villa and West Brom and several other fixtures where United have not played well is that despite their performance, the Red Devils have still managed to gain at least a point. Like many great Man United sides of the past, this set of players appears to have the never say die mentality that means they will never give up on a match until the final whistle has been blown. Every game in which the players are able to produce goals and keep clean sheets when not playing well increases the belief amongst the players and will surely create an aura of invincibility around the team that could intimidate opponents.
Although the level of play is not what United fans might be hopeful of, it is clear that as each game passes without a defeat opponents can not help but become just a little psychologically weaker.
After Tottenham and Manchester United played to a scoreless draw, Harry Redknapp, the head of the Spurs, commented the he did not think it was possible for Manchester to achieve an undefeated season. Will his words prove to be true?
Halfway into the season and Sir Alex Ferguson's men sit top of the Premier League table having won twelve and drawn nine of their 21 games and are the only side in the football league to remain unbeaten. In fact, United have only suffered one defeat in any of the four competitions they have played in, their only loss coming against strugglers West Ham in the Carling Cup.
There were occasions during the match yesterday when it seemed as though Tottenham might be the first to grab up all 3 points off the side from the North West. Rafeal Van Der Vaart and Gareth Bale were both on their games. But as it turned out, the result was a line score of 0-0 even with the final 15 minutes being played with 10 men by the visitors. Rafael, the young full-back from Brazil, was given another bookable offence after it appeared he accidentally tripped Benoit Assou-Ekotto. This brings United to the top spot in the Premiere League. Tottenham's position remains 5th, just one point behind Chelsea.
Both sides created quality chances in an attempt to break the deadlock, with Peter Crouch's first half miss from a perfect Alan Hutton cross perhaps the best of the game. The away side also had a presentable opportunity in the first period of play, but Wayne Rooney, back in the starting line-up after injury fired his low angled drive narrowly wide of the far post. Tottenham found themselves in the ascendency for much of the second half and Van Der Vaart wasted his best goal scoring chance of the game when he headed wide from a Bale cross.
As the whistle blew for full time, Sir Alex Ferguson undoubtedly would have been the happier of the two managers knowing his team had survived one of the strongest tests of their title winning capabilities, despite yet again producing a fairly uninspiring performance.
Arsenal's remarkable season of 2003/2004, when they went the entire season unbeaten, has been a benchmark for other teams to match. With United having passed Christmas without a loss, talk now has people wondering if they can equal Arsenal's record. The prospect of Manchester matching Arsene Wenger's 'Invincibles' so soon after 2004 is an astonishing prospect. This is especially true considering that before Arsenal, no team has reached unbeaten status since Preston End's season of 1888/1889.
Although Man United continue to avoid defeat, there are very few people who believe that they can sustain the record during their remaining 17 matches. They may sit top of the table with two games in hand, but United have been anything but impressive in a number of league games, particularly away from Old Trafford.
On their travels they have often struggled to create clear cut chances in front of goal and their midfield has been fragile to intelligent movement from the opposition. The most notable examples of this came away to Aston Villa and West Brom, against whom they looked especially vulnerable to defeat.
At Villa Park, United found themselves down 2-0, only to be saved from defeat by late goals by Nemanja Vidic and Federico Macheda. Similarly in a match with West Brom, United were troubled consistently by the interchanging front four: Thomas, Blunt, Odemwingie and Morrison. The foursome was constantly on the move, giving Untied a very difficult 90 minutes with the center backs being forced out of position by Peter Odemwingie. The Nigerian had a chance to put his team ahead from the penalty spot in the second half. But, he missed the goal and United were able to eke out a win with a goal by Javier Hernandez.
The common factor in the games against Aston Villa and West Brom and several other fixtures where United have not played well is that despite their performance, the Red Devils have still managed to gain at least a point. Like many great Man United sides of the past, this set of players appears to have the never say die mentality that means they will never give up on a match until the final whistle has been blown. Every game in which the players are able to produce goals and keep clean sheets when not playing well increases the belief amongst the players and will surely create an aura of invincibility around the team that could intimidate opponents.
Although the level of play is not what United fans might be hopeful of, it is clear that as each game passes without a defeat opponents can not help but become just a little psychologically weaker.
About the Author:
Manchester United take one more step on the ladder to invincibility. Get the exclusive inside scoop on this great team now in our guide to everything you need to know about football.. Also published at Manchester United Closer To Invincibility.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Check this link for other related articles:
My Random Articles
Yey Health