VIEW: United vs Rangers (a). 1-0

Good.

General thoughts… Thought we played a lot better than we did on the weekend against a similarly tepid side (no offence to either Wigan or Rangers – as I’m not entirely sure which team this would offend – but I reckon they’re fairly evenly matched opponents). The movement on and off the ball at times was pretty good, and although we provided very little in the form of finishing product, our 63% possession against a side reasonably strong in all areas of the field was impressive. Easy progression into the next phase as well, without ever really being tested, has been good. But in general, its worth remembering that we’re still finding our feat and easing crucial back to form and fitness So any victory, as unglamorous as the performance might be, is just splendid.

Old look United. It was great to see Rooney and Berbatov together again, as well as Giggs and Scholes starting in the midfield. There was something a spot nostalgic and very reassuring about seeing all four of them in the same side for the first time in ages...anyone else think? Carrick as well, who is also I suppose part of the 'old' United set-up (this his fifth season) played really well, showing increasing levels of confidence and assurance; something he hasn't possessed in his game for a season or two.

Van der Sar. He’s played better in a United shirt, but the two crucial saves he made yesterday – one against Kenny Miller in the first-half then Naismith in the second – really reminded us of his importance. Unfortunately, because of the consistent form of the men directly in front of him, his role is often ignored and instead the credit is entirely dished out to the defenders. But every now and again he comes up with the goods and reminds us all of his class. What a ledge.

Clean-sheet in the Champion League this season. To complement our unbeaten run – which now stretches 28 games in all competitions – we’re yet concede a goal in Europe. A great credit to our consistent goalkeeper and solid, reliable defence – as well as Sir Alex to bravely paired up Chris Smalling and Jonny Evans in a tricky European fixture (21 and 22 years old respectively) – who have in recent weeks diverted any pressure away from the mediocrity of our performances by performing with assurance and strength.

Bad.

But only six goals scored! Half of which were away to Bursaspor. Perhaps at this stage of the competition, and considering we’ve made it through to the knock-out stages, we shouldn’t really bother looking into our reserved nature in front of goal in too much detail. But when you consider who we've played in our group, as well as having a quick look at our challengers for the Cup – Real on 11 goals, Barcelona on 12, Chelsea on 14 and Arsenal (and Tottenham!) on 15 – it looks a spot more bleak. Hopefully by the time the tournament restarts in Feb we’ll be firing.

Player Ratings.

Van der Sar 7; O’Shea 7, Evans 7, Smalling 7, Fabio 7; Nani 7, Carrick 7, Scholes 6, Giggs 6; Rooney 6, Berbatov 7.