The Soccer Blog: Back to business (vs Aston Villa)

Wednesday, 2 February 2011

Back to business (vs Aston Villa)

"> Feb 1st, 2011 @ 11:52 pm › Shaun
↓ Skip to comments

FBL-ENG-PR-MAN-UTD-ASTON-VILLA As the dust settled from a frenetic end to the January transfer window, there was still the matter of actual games to be played. The reality is that the jubilation and adrenaline that results from a new signing fades quickly if the new signing doesn’t produce the kind of results that the fans were hoping for. After we did pretty much nothing worth noting in the window despite the usual speculation (Oxlade Chamberlain, Henderson, Adam, 25 different goalkeepers) we had to get back to business against one of the big spenders of the transfer window, Aston Villa.

Once again, our old guns reigned supreme with Giggs and VDS putting in a shift that made us wish they were on the first year of a 5 year contract. It was a relatively comfortable win for us, which has been the norm recently whenever we’ve played at OT. Villa troubled us way too few times for a side that boasts some of the most outstanding English players in the game today.

Impressions:

1.Not sure which I found more impressive: Rooney’s clinical finishing for his/our first goal or Vidic’s curling effort for our 3rd? I was so pumped after Vidic scored. Never would have ever imagined seeing him score a goal of that quality. His defending together with Rio was solid as always. The bedrock for any serious title challenge. vidic

2.Rooney on the scoresheet (twice) is a good sign. He worked hard to get a hattrick and may have gotten it had Friedel not been in such great form today. If (and that’s a big if) this performance somehow triggers something in his memory about how to find the net on a regular basis, he would be like a new signing for us since his goal contribution prior to today’s game has been awful. Everyone is saying how Chelsea and Liverpool have improved vastly with the newlook strikeforces. However, a partnership of Rooney and Berba firing on all cylinders ain’t half bad either.

3.VDS with yet another assist. His clearances/long punts recently have been a very direct route for us to goal. That’s 3 goals he’s “assisted” on in our last 3 league games (Villa, Blackpool, Birmingham). Wonder if he can keep that streak going this weekend. Also, maybe we should consider him for our creative midfielder void.

4.Giggs continues to be spectacular. We thought he was pretty much a central midfielder heading into the season since we had our coverage on the wings and he had lost much of his electrifying pace. Yet, with Park gone and Valencia out, we had no one capable of stepping into the left sided role. Up he steps without complaining, figures out a way to create space for the cross, gets into the box when needed despite not having blazing pace, and just continues to be absolutely legendary. All in a day’s work for Ryan Giggs. I’m sure people have gotten tired of hearing United blogs all over rave about him game after game, but the man deserves his accolades.

UnitedCelebrate 5. Nani looked threatening again today despite not getting a goal. He had a few shots palmed away by the outstanding Friedel. But his best moment was the exquisite cross that eluded Collins and landed perfectly at the feet of Rooney who simply could not miss from that position.

6.We don’t quite feel the lack of creativity because of Giggs and Nani. It was evident in today’s game because of how much room and time our players were given on the ball. Houllier’s approach was surprising, but elicited no complaints from me. It was an invitation for Giggs and Nani to orchestrate a ton of opportunities with their constant movement and intelligent passing.

Chelsea and Arsenal both won today as well and kept pace at the top. However, Chelsea have signaled their intent to claw back the deficit both in points and goals with the signing of Mr Torres. I’ll admit that the thought of still having to face them twice is a bit daunting. However, on the basis of our recent performances as well as Rooney getting on the scoresheet and the Giggs/Nani tandem more than filling our creative void, there isn’t reason to feel like we’re going to start dropping points all of a sudden and just gift the title away. If we keep putting in performances like today, we’ll stay in front and be in contention come May.

Some Related Man United Posts:Draw # 7 (vs Villa)Stroll in the park (vs Birmingham)Welcome back Nani (vs Stoke)A win on Boxing Day (vs Sunderland)The Berba Show pt 2 (feat Blackburn) Categories: English Premier League, Manchester United, Match Reports, United Legends
Tags: Edwin van der Sar, English Premier League, Manchester United, Match Reports, Nani, Nemanja Vidic, Old Trafford, Ryan Giggs, United Legends, Wayne Rooney