United 2 : 0 Bolton

United
(Ronaldo (pen) 60, Rooney 77)


The United bandwagon finally seems to be up and running. The first convincing victory of the season that, in the end, left fans like me asking for more.

I think, with the presence of 3 world class strikers in Rooney, Tevez and Berbatov and the possibility of just 2 of them getting to start, it's always a guessing game as to who'll start and who'll be benched! This time it was Berbatov and Tevez who got to start. Berbatov being a target man is bound to get more starts than Tevez and Rooney. With the difficult away fixtures over(which had caused United to be at 15 in the table before the start), United were expected to get back to winning ways. I'm sure that had put enough pressure on the United players. And teams like Bolton, who come to Old Trafford hoping to get a point at best, relish such situations and start with tight defensive formations. Ironically, it was Bolton who started the game brightly and kept good possession for the initial 10 minutes until United started to exert their influence on the game. To start with, some of the passing was a little rusty. And you could say the it was a team settling down, in terms of players getting to be comfortable with each other which meant we weren't as convincing inspite of the huge amount of possession. Our attacks, though bright, seemed to be lacking the tooth. Bolton on the other hand settled down to playing a defensive game and happy to break on the counter attack. Ronaldo, Anderson and Berbatov came close to scoring in the first half. But it was Bolton who could have had the lead, when Muamba found himself clear in front of the goal, with only Van der Saar to beat, but couldn't quite capitalize on that easy chance.

Come second half, United looked to be inching closer and closer to the goal. Ronaldo increasingly looked menacing. Berbatov also seemed to be coming into his own. But just as United were finding it frustrating to not find the net inspite of the chances created, the referee almost sympathized with us and awarded a penalty against Muamba, a decision which was described as "the most shocking in Premier League" by the commentator. Replays showed the defender to have won the ball! Ronaldo stepped in and coolly put it past Jaaskaleinen. With a goal in the kitty, the United players seemed to shed the nerves that seemed to be growing before the goal and settled down to entertain the crowd. At the hour mark, it was Scholes' and Rooney's turn to come in. And what a difference that made. United looked like scoring every time they attacked. The play looked trademark Old Trafford style. That phase saw Rooney score his first goal for United this season. A nice back-heel from Ronaldo helped Rooney cut in from right and put it into the corner with some ease! Though United couldn't really add more to the 2 goal lead, there was enough entertainment for the spectators to be go home happy. United's season was finally up and running.

Of the players, Evra was great all through the match, making menacing runs through Bolton on the left. Anderson was another player who looked superb - the Brazilian's passing sometimes was just beautiful. Ronaldo seems to be back into his form now. He was undboubtedly my man of the match. Another good thing was the sign that Berbatov is settling down. Though he didn't score any, he did come close. His combination with Rooney looked marvelous to say the least. Paul Scholes and Wayne Rooney were just brilliant when they came on. Things look so similar to last season for United -the initial struggle and the comeback later on. But this season has had a tough set of fixtures which means we're in better shape than the table suggests. From now on, it can only be trouble for other teams!

Man of the Match : Christiano Ronaldo

Chelsea 1 : 1 United

Goals:
Chelsea : Solomon Kalou(80th min)
United : Park Ji Sung (18th min)

Chelsea have a lot to thank Wayne Rooney and Salomon Kalou. Rooney's overzealous(can there be another side to him!) rash tackle gave Chelsea a free-kick inside United's half while United were running away with the match. That free-kick lead to Kalou getting a free header in front of the United goal which he gleefully put it past Tomasz Kuszack, United's substitute keeper, to keep Chelsea's 85 match unbeaten home record intact!

Well, the result could so easily have been different. United's start to the game was another Anfield - full of life in the attack. With Rooney and Berbatov starting alongside upfront, for the first time and having more accomplished wingers to assist in a 4-4-2 formation, United looked really eager to put the Anfield disappointment behind. Chelsea on the other had were without their new midfield maestro Deco. Rooney, Park, Fletcher, Hargreaves and Evra made life difficult for Chelsea right from the opening whistle. Fletcher and Ferdinand each had a golden chance to get a goal for themselves only to be denied by Petr Cech on each occasion So could have Wayne Rooney when a cheeky volley could so easily have embarassed Cech. But United did get their deserved goal as early as the 18th minute. A searching run by Evra had Rooney feeding him and Evra found Berbatov to shoot. Berbatov's shot was fumbled by Cech and a lurking Park gleefully put it into the back of the net. But like against Liverpool, United just seemed to switch off after the goal which gave Chelsea lot of possession. Chelsea kept probing to get an equalizer - but weren't successful in the first half.
The game also lost it's fluency because of the highhanded approach of the referee and also the injury to Van der Sar who had to leave after he almost committed another howler.

Second half had Drogba and Ronaldo getting into the thick of action after their substitution. Chelsea enjoyed huge amount of possession and they looked like getting the equalizer anytime which they did around the 80th minute through Kalou. But United could so easily have killed the game through the numerous counter attacks they created. Somehow, it seemed as if the match was bound to end in a stalemate. The pace of the game was hardly anything to comment as it had huge number of disruptions. Referee Mike Riley seemed to be eager to brandish a yellow to every United player that came near him!

From United's point of view, they could have ruined Chelsea's Stamford Bridge record so easily had they taken their numerous counter-attack chances. Ronaldo particularly looked pretty inane in his runs. We also have gone for the second goal with much more vigour, something we didn't get to see and it looked as if one goal was all we were looking for. That's one characteristic I have seen in these big matches, one team gets a goal and completely goes into defensive mode. And the other side comes up with a barrage of attacks and most often than not wins an equalizer. No wonder most of the big matches end in a stalemate.


Man of the Match: Wayne Rooney for his hand in the goal and those runs to cover the defense.

Liverpool 2 : 1 Man United

Well...what started in flashy brilliant style turned into a sour saga in the end for Man United at Anfield. They conceded their first defeat to arch rivals liverpool in 4 years. What more, it was the first time Rafa Benitez got the better of Sir Alex Ferguson!

United hadn't played any league matches for 2 weeks, courtesy of the Uefa Super Cup and the International break. But something quite momentous had transpired in between - Sir Alex's prime transfer target Dimitar Berbatov had been swooped in sensational albeit controversial fashion. With a target man finally inducted into the team, the gaffer had a big decision to make - what would the formation be and who would partner Berbatov in case of a 4-4-2. He went with the safe option of having Tevez partner the big Bulgarian (he probably wanted to be fair to Tevez as he'd been putting up good displays lately) and have Rooney play wide right (he'd played wide quite a few times last year). He also had Anderson play wide on the left. So it was quite a strike force Liverpool were up against. It certainly showed when the match got off to it's start, in frantic fashion. United looked like they were out for an outright win. Berbatov had a shot on goal off his first touch! But it was blocked by Skirtel. And just in the 3rd minute we had a goal scored! And it had Berbatov's signature on it - he outsmarted his markers to put Tevez free in front of the goal and Tevez didn't disappoint any of us -the brilliant move had been started by Anderson. And for about 20 minutes or so, United seemed like they would steamroll Liverpool at in their own home.

Liverpool started to give it back to United almost immediately. They came scintillatingly close to scoring when Edwin Van der Saar almost gifted them a goal but recovered to make a good save off a Kuyt shot. But the next time he made a mistake, something he's getting used to of late I must say, he wasn't that lucky. Alonso's shot deflected off Evra and ballooned somewhat dangerously inside United's box, which VDS made a hash off, trying to push it away while he should only have collected it. He inturn pushed it straight into Browne's path, who had no time to react leading to an own goal. A huge stroke of luck for the Reds and that equalizer spurred them up like nothing else could. From then on, Liverpool looked miles apart. Remember they didn't have their two talismans - Torres and skipper Gerrard. Yet they were putting up a good show. Another reason the game changed after the equalizer was Carrick's affliction with a leg injury which kept him limping almost for the most of the first half and had to be substituted.
It was even stevens at half time both in terms of goals scored and quality delivered.

Second half saw an even more inspired show from Scousers. Their midfield duo of Alonso and Mascherano began to dominate. And on the wide left, the combination of Riera and Aurelio was outwitting their United counterparts. Liverpool were playing by far the more dominant game.
But they weren't quite able to convert that into a goal for a long time.
After around 70 they did get the goal they deserved although this time again it was through United's carelessness. Ryan Giggs, of all people, tried to be too cute when he should have conceded a safe corner and in turn lost the ball to Kuyt who fed it to Ryan Babel, a second half substitute. Babel though mis-kicked the ball and yet found the net as the ball bounced luckily for him, over United's twin center halves! So a bit of luck and some indecision from United gifted liverpool a valuable lead. United kept pressing from then on for an equalizer. But they didn't really come too close - excepting a brilliant volley from Giggs which was just about kept out by Reina. Infact, Unied looked more and more jaded with time ticking away. As the match was closing to an end, United's eagerness to change the scenario cost them a player. Namanja Vidic went for a harsh tackle in the air with Alonso and found himself at the mercy of the referee who had no other option but to give a second yellow and hence had to leave the field. That pretty much closed the doors for United. Liverpool in the end came out the deserved winners - albeit with a lot of luck helping them get the two goals they ended up scoring.

If you look at it, Liverpool were quite fortunate to get their first win against their traditional rivals, for a long time. Consider this - an own goal, a red card, an injury to the main midfielder (Carrick), make-shift wingers (Anderson and Rooney), an lucky bump ball getting a goal - all of these contributed to Liverpool to get their victory. Probably it's that tough to beat United! Yet as far as the quality of the game goes, Liverpool did produce the better quality of football after a a spirited start by the Red Devils. I must say though that I hated the sight of Rooney playing wide. He wasn't effective playing on the wings yesterday at all and I hope this was just an experiment by Sir Alex. The idea of playing him wide just to accommodate him in the team was pretty wrong according to me - You either play him upfront or bring him on in the second half. We want him running through defenses creating havoc than doing the retrieving job in the middle or at the back. I hope things change once Ronaldo returns. It's Stamford Bridge next and United can ill-afford dropping more points there. Or theyll be left doing the catching up job for most of the season! Hopefully sanity will soon return to our proceedings.

Win at Portsmouth, Surreder at Monaco

I couldn't really get to watch the Portsmouth match fully - could only watch the second half.
By half time United had already scored a goal, again through Darren Fletcher who's been playing on the flanks filling in for the injured wingers. Second half display from United was a treat to watch - Tevez, Anderson and Rooney ravaged the Portsmouth defense but just couldn't get the goal that could seal the game once and for all. Scholes was impressive too as he controlled the midfield like he usually does when he's at his sublime best. United had a lion's share of the possession as United kept bombarding Pompey with attack after attack. Somehow, they didn't get that last pass that could fetch them a goal. One goal cushions are really slender to hold on to. And Portsmouth could so easily have spoiled the day for United had they just got one shot right - they did try doing that with Van der Sar having to keep off strong long range efforts. The defense, as usual, was lead by the rock solid Rio Ferdinand and the warrior-like Nemanja Vidic, who fought off a couple of stiches in the middle of the game to see the match safely through.

United's goal scoring has been pretty ordinary this season considering their performance since the pre-season. Last year's top-scorer Ronaldo is still nursing his injury. But how long can we rely on a winger to get us goals? Rooney has been struggling to be amongst goals - his continued goal drought gives more fuel to the raging debate in the English media about his real abilities and the positions he should be played in. Tevez hasn't yet got to a prolific scoring rate and I doubt if he'd be able to do that either. Even if the Rooney-Tevez combine has proven to be quite successful, I just feel playing them together all the time, specially away, doesn't really do justice to either of them as both like feeding off a taller target man. Is United serious enough about the dire necessity we have for a target man? - Berbatov or a similar striker is a definite necessity we can't just take lightly.

Chelsea on the other hand got all 3 points through a solitary goal - a Deco strike, to keep themselves at the top of the table. They did seem to struggle away against Wigan, which would probably mean they aren't as unbeatable as they are being touted to be this season.


I was lucky to watch the Super cup tie against the UEFA champions Zenit St Petersburg. And I must say I hadn't watched United being dominated that way all my life. The Russian side was full of energy and great confidence. And they savaged United with beautiful passing play and speed. Well deservedly they came out worthy winners. United players looked jaded most part of the game - either they were put off by the dominance their opponents put them under, something they are not at all used to, or may be they were just being indifferent.

Opening Day blues

It feels as if it's been ages since Man United won the premiership last season. Thanks to the long drawn (and ofcourse frustrating) Ronaldo transfer saga and partly due to the less than happening United pre-season (No summer signings against 4 last season!) The build up to the season has been dry and unstimulating and so was run-up to the season opener. Come to think of it, it seems as if we've forgotten we won the coveted Double just a few months ago. Unbelievable is all I can say!

For a host of different reasons, the starting line-up looked shockingly low on resources and that inspite of having almost the same team that won the Community Shield. But the fact is that the team that started was nowhere near our full-strength side. Here is the list of absentees : Hargreaves, Ronaldo, Park, Saha (due to injuries), Nani (suspension), Anderson (away at Olympics), Tevez (last minute omission for family reasons). Rooney getting fit in time was a consolation. It was no wonder that there was a fear of deja-vu striking - remember last season's frustrating opener against Reading at home. The flip side to it was the excitement of seeing some of United's starlets - the talented Frazer Campbell got a start to play alongside Rooney and also there was the promise of seeing the Silva twins.

United did start the proceedings in their familiar attacking vein. Campbell could have had a memorable goal scored inside the first 15 minutes had it not been for the Newcastle shot-stopper Given who stopped his effort from close range off a brilliant cross from Rooney. Had that goal been scored things would have been much different than the way they panned out. As it happened, the Magpies didn't sit back and play a defensive game but played with sufficient flair and confidence - specially through their new signings Jonas and Colocini. And they were rewarded for that in the 22nd minuted through the talented Obufemi Martins who scored off a powerful header to silence the noisy first day Old Trafford crowd. Jolted by the blow, United answered back almost immediately through Fletcher, who made a smart run-in to square things off. But United didn't have much to smile about after that. Carrick had to be taken off inside the first half due to an ankle injury. And after the start of the second half, Ryan Giggs had to leave the field too, again for injury reasons. With the midfield stalwarts leaving, United hardly had any creativity in the midfield. Consequently, they found chances hard to come by. There were the regular chances created by the likes of Rooney and Vidic, United actually were struggling to find a clear opening. Youngsters Possebon and Rafael de Silva were handed their debuts and were quite impressive but couldn't really do anything sensational to help the team cause. With every passing minute Newcastle appeared to be happy to play for time and obtain a valuable point - something not many teams can relish. They did succeed in keeping off United's usual last minute bombardment and ended with a creditable draw.

It was a disappointing start to say the least for United. To not see 5-6 regular first team faces is a hard one to take and possibly that's what cost us 2 points and more importantly it cost us a lot of pride considering the imperious start Chelsea had to their campaign. One thing this match underlined for certain is the growing necessity of a striker who could fill in for either of Rooney or Tevez - perhaps Berbatov signing is going to be a no more a luxury, specially with the lofty ambitions of retaining a double being nurtured. Youngsters getting a look-in probably was the only take away for United. Campbell looked very sharp but seems to lack the physical strength - something he should be able to build with more first team chances. The Silva twins also look like they're here to stay - who would mind having more of the Brazilian flair in the middle! Hopefully with the likes of Tevez , Anderson and Hargreaves set to return, we can put this result behind and get back into the reckoning.

United Champions!!!

Hurray!!! United are champions again!
In what was supposed to be a high pressure game, Man United showed why they're the best team in Europe by comfortable coasting to a 2-0 victory and hence sealing the Premier League title for the 10th time.

Things didn't seem to be all that rosy from the start. It was pretty much a given that United needed nothing less than a victory to capture the title - as if to say Chelsea winning at Stamford Bridge against Bolton was a foregone conclusion. Teams travelling to Wigan this season have struggled there, mostly because of the quality of the turf. Mathew Flamini had termed it as the worst he had witnessed in his professional career, after Arsenal had failed to score in a nil-nil draw. But United were lucky though - there were to play on lush green relaid pitch.

United didn't look their fluent best in the first half - perhaps the pressure was telling. Wigan looked the better side initially, creating most chances but not really able to take any of them. Though United were playing 4-4-2, chances looked hard to come by. Midway during the first half, United were lucky to not concede a penalty through Rio Ferdinand. Just minutes later United obtained a deserved penalty, when Rooney was brought down by in the box. As usual, it was Ronaldo who stepped in to take the penalty and given the kind of form he's been in nobody would dare doubt his confidence - and convert he did with consummate ease - as if there was no pressure on him at all! With that, United went into the half time with the comfort of having scored a crucial goal. The other good news at half time was that Chelsea were yet to open their account at the Bridge.

Before the start of the second half, with rain coming down heavily there were fears of rain affecting the freshly-laid pitch. But with just a single-goal cushion, United showed desire for more. They seemed to come to their own in the second half, creating more chances. But most times, the Wigan keeper Kirkland seemed to be the one hurdle they couldn't breach. Kirkland came up with some brilliant saves - he first prevented Rooney from scoring and then came up with a quick reflex action save to deny Tevez. Meanwhile Giggs was brought on who, playing in his record appearance seemed to add some pace to the wings. And that pace was going to bring United their second goal - Rooney put in a clever little pass for Giggs who found himself clear of defenders and came up with a dream goal. It was a goal befitting Giggs' durability and class given the importance of the goal. That was pretty much the title-sealing goal and United had no problems getting to the finish line.

Over all, United showed why they're the team to beat in Europe at this moment. Second league title in succession from a young side talks volumes of talent that is in store.

United 4 : 1 West Ham

West Ham have been United's bogey team for some time now. For a team that was battling relegation till the last day, they did extremely well to beat United last year and had beaten United at home in their home fixture this season too. With such a reputation preceding the Hammers, United were bound to be nervous going into this fixture at Old Trafford. The fact that two of their star men this season, Rooney and Vidic, were unfit to play in this one made things more interesting going into this must-win tie for United. But United weren't going to get distracted by any jinxes in such a crucial tie especially after the mighty delight of making it to Moscow. So, a scoreline of 4-1 in the end pretty much sums the ruthless efficiency with which United got the job done.

First half was one eventful period of the match. United had their peddle on the gas right from the word go. Christiano Ronaldo, the man of the season so far, wasted little time in letting his opponents know that he meant business. His goal came as early as in the 3rd minute and that was one goal that could describe the confidence with which he's played all of this season and gone on to be voted the player of the season - he drove the ball in from the half-line, kept pegging, cut-in from the right and unleashed a furious shot past the goal-keeper. West Ham weren't doing too badly on the other side. United had to make one goal-line clearance and were lucky to survive a hand-ball claim against Brown. Second goal came pretty soon after that for United - Hargreaves, playing on the right-back, where he's been doing pretty well, put in a smart left footed cross which, courtesy of some poor West Ham defending, found Ronaldo who smartly thighed it into the goal. Just as it was beginning to seem that United had settled any nerves that existed before the start, there was some real delight to follow - Tevez came up with one of the goal's of the season - a 25-yard scorcher that had enough swerve and pace to easily bamboozle the West ham goalie. So, there you were, within 30 minutes, the match seemed to have been put to bed and United had probably started thinking about Wigan already. But there was more drama to follow - Nani's immaturity seemed to explode unnecessarily and had to be sent off for head-butting the Hammers' skipper Lucas Neil. That was followed by a brilliant Dean Ashton bicycle-kick goal to make the tie more interesting. With United down to ten men, there were fears of seeing a West ham revival.

Following the Ashton goal, United settled down to play the holding game - most of the second half saw United doing that. But West Ham didn't seem to be doing too much to make use of the advantage they had been provided with. United kept the odd attack going and they did score the fourth through Micheal Carrick around the 60th minute. That fourth goal pretty much put the game to rest and United calmly saw through the remaining of the match with little hassle.


United will now head to Wigan where they'd be playing the last game of the season. If they win there, the title would stay at Old Trafford. The focus now is on Chelsea who travel to Newcastle for their penultimate fixture. They need to win that to keep the pressure on United. I'm hoping Kevin Keagan's in-form team will do some damage to Chelsea's title hopes.