Its the Manchester derby this weekend, and the unlikely scenario of Manchester City ahead of Manchester United has some people panicked.
The seasoned fans have analyzed the points difference logically, and not just in terms of Sunday's derby. At this time last year, Manchester United - who went on to win their 9th title last season - were close to where they stand today: 3 points. Man U's draw with Reading and Portsmouth have garnered them 2 points and Manchester City's victories over West Ham and Derby have them top of the league at 6 points with Everton and Chelsea.
Maybe its not the point difference or the goal difference that have some fans panicked but the state of Man U right now: Rooney's injury is problematic. That fracture has the morale of the fans down but also has put a hole in where many of Man U's goals came from last season, and it tears apart the successful pairing of Rooney-Ronaldo, a force, last season, that proved to be the source of many game wins. Rooney will likely get better but its the EPL, and every game counts - every loss, every draw, every win, contributes and already, Man U is behind.
Ronaldo's hot headed attitude, regardless of the responsibility of the ref's, is doing no one any good and has put him out for three games which leaves yet another gaping hole where Man U's goals used to be found. The Rooney-Ronaldo team is now completely absent...and Ronaldo just looked foolish.
What is left? Strikers are like endangered species right now, and it would take just one bad foul against newby Tevez to put Man U in real trouble. What happens this weekend won't mean as much as many people think in terms of who ends up on top and who ends up on bottom at the end of the season, but it doesn't mean that a loss to cross town rivals City won't feel like a devastating blow to every Man U fan across the globe. The stars of the team have been ticked off quite handily, and the new signings have more pressure than is usually expected. Frankly, its hard to be a positive Red Devil at this point.
Finally, it can't be good that SAF has come out and demanded a level of protection for his precious Ronaldo - certainly the conduct during the Portsmouth draw was below a certain level of decorum, but if it was illegal is another question. Maybe Man U is suffering from a prima donna sort of syndrome (where they are generally the prettiest girl at the party, and dare anyone conduct themselves to the contrary, be damned), but SAF must surely realize in hindsight that he is fundamentally asking the opposition to just give Man U what they want - lots of place to trick and outpace. Parking the bus like Reading did may be cause for disdain, but it is not entirely illegal. Playing more physical can put strain on Man U's more stylized form of play, but its up to the refs - and its Man U's job to leave it at that - to make the calls. Coming out to whine about games gone past is not only petty but beneath the history and the glory that Man U has invested and to pander to the public with reasons why the loss or the red card wasn't their fault is a disservice to the fans and the team alike.
To help both themselves and the fans, Man U needs to put up and shut up and play like the warriors they were last season - barking about controversial calls will not garner them any more points - please, simply focus on the next game, as opposed to whining about the last one.
No comments:
Post a Comment