Five Reasons Why

Five reasons why…Manchester United should be Pep Guardiola’s next club – November 25th 2012

– Manchester United is an institution, and probably the nearest club England has to Barcelona. This is not a job which is surface deep, there are no unrealistic owners, and failure to win the Premier League after a single season is not going to lead to Guardiola receiving his P45 in the post. Whereas being manager of Manchester City or Chelsea is really just about the first-team, Manchester United is a far deeper occupation and one which, increasingly, is going to rely on production from within rather than just aggressive transfer policy. Guardiola made his coaching name with Barcelona B, and has first-hand experience of how to successfully breed talent from inside a club.

– Regardless of the influx of oil money into English football, there remains a gravitas and authenticity to United that the newly-wealthy clubs haven’t been able to buy. For someone of Guardiola’s age, there’s a magic and an allure to Old Trafford that can only be produced by sustained success. City and Chelsea can have the sparkly new training centres and the new stadiums, but it’s impossible to replicate the cache of having ‘Manchester United’ on a manager’s CV.

– Guardiola knows that if he succeeds Sir Alex Ferguson, then he’ll be given time to implement his own system. That will be crucial for him, because his success at Barcelona was built on more than just an exceptionally talented squad; it was the way Messi, Iniesta and Xavi blended together into a team that marked them out above their peers, and not just the sum total of their collective abilities. Guardiola will likely never match that side, they were a once in a generation team, but to have the chance of building that kind of chemistry he will need time, and United are the only English club who would afford him that patience.

– The developing talent at United will be a big draw. Not to labour the comparison, but Manchester City and Chelsea are both built for here and now – their transfer policy is focused on delivering immediate success. At United, money has been spent on bringing young, talented players to the club who can be moulded into specific types of performers. Nick Powell, Angelo Henriquez, Tom Cleverley…those are the types of players which Guardiola would want to work with, rather than ready-made egos on enormous contracts. Couple that with what already exists in the first-team – Wayne Rooney approaching his prime, David de Gea, Rafael, and Robin Van Persie, and United would be a very attractive proposition for any top-level manager.

– He would be able to attract the very best players. United’s pockets may not be as deep as Sheik Mansour’s or Roman Abramovich’s, but they still – much as with the attraction to managers – have a pull on players in this generation. At City or Chelsea, a player is part of a ‘project’, but at United they have an opportunity to take their place alongside some real legends of the game. There’s a permanence to United as a football club, and don’t underestimate how useful a tool that is for recruiting top-level ability.

Five reasons why…Manchester United will win the title – August 18th 2012

The forward line

The best in the league? Maybe, and it’s at least the equal of anything that Manchester City can boast. It’s not just a question of adding together Wayne Rooney’s and Robin Van Persie’s goals from last year, because we still have to see whether they can actually operate together – but why shouldn’t they be able to. If anything, the playing conditions for Van Persie are now at their optimum – he has an actual partner in Rooney, he has far superior width and service than he ever had at Arsenal, and he carries less responsibility than he did each and every week at the Emirates.

Factor in Danny Welbeck and Javier Hernandez in the attacking depth chart, and this a very strong and offensively diverse Manchester United. If you’re a United fan, great, but if you’re not, be afraid, because this team now carries a terrifying high goal-scoring threat and an awesome level of dexterity around your penalty box.

Shinji Kagawa

A little genius, and someone worthy of a place in everybody’s fantasy team. Assists and goals, that’s what you want from an attacking midfielder – and that’s what United have. Don’t compare him to prime era Paul Scholes, because they’re not that similar as players; Kagawa is more subtle. We’ve written copious amounts on the Japanese international already across this Summer, so no need to overstate the case – he’s going to be worth his weight in gold.

David De Gea’s progression

One year older, one year better.

De Gea was still very inexperienced when he lined-up against West Brom this time last year, and there was always going to be a learning curve prefixed to his Manchester United career. He’s been exposed to the English game for a full-season now, and that will allow him to grow exponentially in stature. Anybody who doubts the Spaniard’s ability is setting themselves up to look extremely foolish; he’s more than just talented, he’s plain gifted. The physique is there, his distribution is improving, and we should fully expect him to be named in the team of the division next May.

One other aspect to appreciate: look how many defensive combinations he had to play behind last season. A goalkeeper, especially a young one, thrives on continuity, and that was something never afforded to the Spaniard in 11/12. Hopefully not this season…

Nemanja Vidic’s return to fitness

The Serbian’s injury may not have impacted United’s good form at the turn of the year, but his absence was very much felt in the run-in. If Vidic had been in the side for the last couple of months of the season, he would have been lifting the Premier League trophy at the end of it. With him, United don’t lose at Wigan away, and they probably achieve the draw Sir Alex Ferguson set them out to obtain at the Etihad. Rio Ferdinand is creaking, quite obviously, but in a side where Jonny Evans is the principle back-up, having Vidic available is of paramount importance.

He’s a captain and a leader, and most importantly, a difference-maker.

A stronger midfield

Lots is written about United’s midfield, and the vast majority of it is negative. Maybe that’s justified, after all, a midfield stacked with quality wouldn’t have needed the 37 year-old Paul Scholes to be reintroduced into it half-way through the year.

But look at the names in that part of the team: Carrick, Scholes, Giggs, Cleverley, Kagawa, Anderson, Powell, and now, Fletcher. That’s actually quite strong, and it’s deep. Giggs and Scholes may be in their twilight years, but so what – there isn’t a Premier League team out there who wouldn’t want to have them as squad options, both for their playing attributes and the intangible benefits that they bring to a club.

Michael Carrick is much-maligned, and unfairly so. Because of the way Carrick plays, he can only ever be as good as he’s allowed to be by the players around him. With an advanced option in Kagawa, and two forwards ahead of him – both who can drop deep into the play – the passing channels will be more open for him than at any other stage of his time at Old Trafford. He’ll thrive, and this will be the year when people finally start to appreciate why Ferguson spent so much money on bringing him to the club.

Five reasons why Manchester City deserved their win last night – May 1st 2012

Roberto Mancini’s team selection

Picking Carlos Tevez and Sergio Aguero in the same starting eleven was a statement of intent. Even though City needed to win last night, Mancini could have bowed to his defensive instincts and approached the fixture with a safety-first philosophy. That he didn’t showed his increasing understanding for what constitutes a successful formula in English football – attack your opponent, and let them worry about the threat you posses rather than vice versa.

Yaya Toure’s performance

If you could pick one player in the Premier League to base an entire team around, a fair proportion of managers would take the monolithic Ivorian midfielder. On arriving in England, most of us assumed that he’d be designated a destroyer’s role in front of the defence – few people can claim to have had an appreciation for how complete a player he really was. Is there anything he didn’t do well last night? His tackling, his distribution, and his energy levels and commitment were all without compare – and he was involved in everything that City did well on both sides of the ball.

The nullification of Wayne Rooney

Rarely will you see the England forward reduced to such a peripheral figure in a game. As a rule, the deeper you see Rooney play, the better the defense he’s facing is performing. And how frequently did he drop back last night?

Vincent Kompany and Joleon Lescott clearly deserve the majority of the praise for wrapping Rooney up, but the entire City side showed an understanding of how to negate his attacking threat – which is a real compliment when you consider quite how multi-dimensional the United forward can be. No joy centrally, no influence in wide postions, and starved of possession when he came to try and collect it.

A masterclass in how to remove his influence.

The selection of Pablo Zabaleta

Is there a more undervalued player in the league than Pablo Zabaleta?

Micah Richards may be the more watchable right-back, but Zabaleta is the more reliable – and probably better – one. Gary Neville did a good job analysing this before kick-off; through his tendency to go forward, Richards leaves gaps in behind him – which is perilous given the lack of midfield-defensive support offered by City’s system.

Zabaleta’s selection blocked up an area of the pitch where United usually enjoy success, while also providing offensive support when his side went forward. If English full-backs could understand the importance of that balance – or even come close to achieving it – we’d all be looking forward to Euro 2012 a little bit more.

Their treatment of Manchester United

City see Manchester United as what they are: an average side propped-up by their reputation. It’s amazing how many teams facing United are still essentially beaten in the tunnel, but not City. Mancini’s players went after the neighbours last night, and showed them the required lack of respect that’s needed to conquer them. There really is nothing to fear from this version of Manchester United, yet City are the only team in the league that seem to believe that.

Five reasons why Manchester City deserve to win the title – April 30th 2012

They have played the best football.

On several occasions this season, and notably against some of the league’s leading teams, Manchester City have been magnificent. They eviscerated Spurs 5-1 at White Hart Lane, and utterly humiliated Manchester United 6-1 at Old Trafford. Swansea and Norwich have also been similarly dispatched in the course of this season. When Manchester City are at their most effervescent, there are few teams in Europe that can live with them.

Mancini has shown excellent man-management.

Roberto Mancini is used to dealing with big egos in football – indeed, as a player, he was hardly less than forthcoming – but even he cannot have imagined the difficulties that he has faced this year. Mario Balotelli’s fine contribution with crucial goals was always going to be offset by his erratic decision-making both on and off the pitch, but there’s a strong argument that Mancini has got as much out of the mercurial Italian as anyone could be expected to. And let’s not forget the supreme pragmatism that Mancini has shown in welcoming Carlos Tevez back into the fold, after an autumn during which he could scarcely have shown more contempt for his employers.

Mancini has handled the media superbly.

Mancini knows that the media battle is an essential one in the Premier League war. On many occasions, he has fought it masterfully: most notably when his side lost 1-0 to Everton at Goodison, a result that many in the press began to interpret as Manchester City’s faltering nerve. But Mancini smartly changed the media narrative, by blaming himself for failing to take Everton seriously; it was he, and not his players, who was at fault. With this red herring – or blue herring? – he drew attention away from his anxious squad, allowing them to regroup and ultimately to regain their confidence.

They have mounted a title challenge not like newcomers, but like old hands.

Very few of the players in the Manchester City squad have won a league title before. And they are going up against Manchester United, two of whose players (Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes) have won the Premier League twenty-two times between them. Despite that deficit in experience, they – quite remarkably – have kept the contest close until now. It is that perseverance which should see them rightly rewarded with the league trophy come May.

They have given Sergio Aguero the platform to fulfil his potential.

By the start of this season, every football fan in the country knew of the genius of David Silva. Sergio Aguero, although he had a £38million price tag, arrived in England as seemingly something of a gamble. After all, a sceptical public had seen big-money foreign strikers flop before, Andrey Shevchenko being the most obvious example. Those in the know, or simply those with any sympathies at all to Manchester United, shuddered at the thought. By the age of 22 Aguero had scored over a hundred goals for Atletico Madrid in five seasons, during which time he had thoroughly and memorably outplayed Leo Messi in a 4-2 win over Barcelona. It can be argued that his arrival at Manchester City was the final catalyst for their success: more than being merely spectacular, he has scored – often prodigiously – and has fitted perfectly into the team from the beginning. The Premier League is lucky to have him, and Manchester City deserve the highest honours going to allow his talent truly to flourish.

Five reason why Manchester United deserve to win the title – April 30th 2012

Because of their resiliency

How many sides other than United could’ve recovered from the 6-1 humbling they received at Old Trafford. So acute was the humiliation suffered, that Sir Alex Ferguson’s players would’ve been forgiven for spending the rest of the season in a daze, and letting their neighbours run away with the title.

It takes a special kind of manager, and a very trusting squad to accept their frailties and leave them behind – because that’s exactly what United had to do. Losses like the one suffered in October can permanently undermine confidence in players, and that it didn’t is of huge credit to United.

Their will to retain the title

Given the deficit they’ve faced at various points of the season, and given the strength in depth of the squad whom they were chasing, keeping the desire strong in his players has been a miraculous accomplishment from Ferguson. Even throughout the points of the season when City were knocking opponents over for fun, there was no drop-off in United’s application.

Given the barrels of petrodollars that have been pumped into this City squad, there would never have been any disgrace in United falling short this year – the playing field simply hasn’t been equal.

Wayne Rooney’s contribution

In a season where every pundit in the game has held a love-in for Robin Van Persie’s contribution to Arsenal, Wayne Rooney’s worth to United has been largely over-looked. While the Dutchman has returned an impressive 28 goals from 36 appearances, Rooney’s output at 26 in 31 is statistically more impressive – and more pertinent, given United’s relevance to the title race and Arsenal’s no-show.

Given the superlatives – and awards – thrown at Van Persie, how can anybody reason that Rooney doesn’t deserve a Championship medal at the end of the season.

The Paul Scholes factor

Not, strictly, a reason why United ‘deserve’ the title, but a good enough incentive for neutrals to root for them. This is a Hollywood script; the club legend brought out of retirement to stabilise a midfield and bring back the quality missing from that part of the team. If you have any shred of romanticism in you, how could you begrudge Scholes a winner’s medal?

Aside from the obvious technical ability, what Scholes brought to that United was a winner’s mentality – a symbol of Manchester United’s domestic dominance. Where before there was only Michael Carrick and Anderson, Scholes’ return meant other members of that squad were able to see a club icon on the teamsheet.

An inspiration.

Because it would be a victory for the ‘old way’ of doing things

Obviously we’ve all had to accept money in the game, but there’s still a nagging resentment over the ease of City’s meteoric rise. Rival fans may sneer at United’s affluence also, but this is a club that has acquired their wealth through success and tradition – and the advantages they have are as a result are easier to live with.

While we may all be a little bored of United’s success, a title for them is still more palatable, and a victory for organic growth over the cynicism of large cash injections.