VIEW: United vs Villa (a). 2-2

I seemed to already analyse the Villa game in my previous
post...well, I say analyse, more acknowledged the fat that we drew against
Aston Villa at Villa
Park last
Saturday.

But after much deliberation over a game that showed the best and
worst of United – and with another weekend and another tricky encounter against one of the token bogey teams of
the league (its Wigan tomorrow for those who didn’t realise) – what better way
to look ahead than to reflect?

So here are the top 10 things the Villa game highlighted
(and why we need to address them before Wigan’s visit):

1. Poor
   show on the left. There was a lot of talk about the weakness of our
   attackers, but how often were either Park or his full-back Evra caught
   out? Young is a decent winger, but our cover on the left was awful. In
   summary: we miss Giggs and Valencia.


2. Why
   am I nitpicking? The whole midfield was poor. Again the injuries on the
   wing don’t help, but we need to learn to control the game in the centre
   and hopefully then we’ll start to see the goals roll in.


3. Away
   form. Hmm. Seven games, six draws? Not ideal. We’re not losing, but we’re dropping
   more points than we’re winning, with our performances on the road
   affecting us the most. After the games at Craven Cottage and Goodison
   Park, you reflect in agony on
   the lack of concentration to go from a winning position only to draw in
   the final minutes. But after the Villa game, a game we deserved nothing
   from, you reflect in bemusement at how we can play so bad for 90 minutes.
   Dropping careless goals is one thing, however as those things sort themselves
   out as confidence and coherence develops through the course of the season,
   it’s the dreadful performances that worry you more.


4. We
   have not felt the full wrath of the lost points because of the failure to
   capitalise by the teams around us. After a weekend where we dropped point,
   while Chelsea got battered by Sunderland
   and Citeh drew 0-0 AGAIN, suppose that point speaks for itself.


5. Berbatov.
   He scored seven goals in the first seven games of the season. He’s notched
   up a mighty zero in the nine he’s been involved since the Liverpool
   game. Sort it out, son!


6. Rooney's back. I can't wait till tomorrow, purely to assess the mood at Old Trafford. Never has a players return from injury been so eagerly anticipated...but for mixed reasons. If he's on form - something I doubt baring in mind his form prior to the injury, as well as the fact that he hasn't kicked a ball since October 16th - his return will obviously be a bonus, and in terms of support, something Berbs will no doubt appreciate. But how well will United fans react to him? The player who ridiculed his team and their prospects to succeed in the future? Or has it all been forgotten and simply blamed entirely on his agent, Paul Stretford? Suppose we'll just have to wait to see how the call of 'Number 10: Wayne Rooney!' goes down amongst the faithful.


7. Nani
   can turn it on…when he wants to. He didn’t have the greatest game against
   Villa, however rather than getting himself sent off like he did last year,
   he did wake up at the end to provide his 9th assist of the
   season. He has become by far our most pivotal player this season. If only
   he can maintain the high level of class he possesses throughout the 90
   minutes.


8. Is
   the great Ferdinand – Vidic reign over? In another poor defencive display,
   where the sprightly duo of Young and Agbonlahor, not forgetting Albrighton who scored their second, turned
   our defence over, it really does get you thinking how much life there is
   in the partnership. Suppose it goes without saying that I’m targeting this
   point more towards the ailing Rio than Vidic, one of our season’s most consistent
   performers.


9. But, when alls said and done…we never die! Macheda
   must have come off the bench about 25 times since that fateful day in 2009
   when he turned our season around, in hope that he will always make a
   similarly pivitol impact. and other than the game at home to Chelsea last season (which I think may have even gone down
   as an own-goal in some peoples opinion), he has failed to make any
   significant impact. That was until Saturday. What a goal by the Italian. But
   more so, what an impact the prospect of losing so comfortably had. The substitutions
   were hardly inspired (Macheda was partially at fault for their second!) but
   we DID create double the amount of chances in the final 10 minutes than in
   the 80 before.


10. To put it another way: we reacted to going 2-0 down
    to draw 2-2. Chelsea reacted to going 2-0 down by losing 3-0.