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Club Focus – Manchester United – United bounce back with another convincing home win over the Hammers
After the disappointment of dropping two points at Fulham last weekend, Manchester United bounced back with an excellent performance and a convincing win over West Ham at Old Trafford.
The match was reminiscent of the opening-day victory over Newcastle, not just in the 3-0 scoreline but in the pattern of the game. In both matches, United controlled the game early on without making the breakthrough before dominating totally once ahead without racking up the number of goals their superiority deserved. After the match with the Magpies, Sir Alex Ferguson described his side as “a little bit wasteful” in front of goal but after the Hammers game, he chose instead to focus on the positives. He was delighted with the overall performance and the tempo that his team played at. He did concede that the Red Devils could have scored more but was pleased to have earned another convincing home win.
With two England games coming up, much of the press focus was on Wayne Rooney. A lot has been made of Rooney’s lack of a goal to his name since March but, whilst the run was indeed the longest in terms of games in his career, it has been a run disrupted by injuries, the unique pressures of a World Cup and a disjointed preseason. This was only the second league game of his season and he took his penalty with all the confidence of the pre-March Rooney. Ferguson admitted that the goal will have done his striker good but preferred to eulogise about his performance. He rightly pointed to the energy that Rooney displayed, looking full of life and working his socks off. Sir Alex knows his player better than anyone and seems confident that all Rooney needed was game time. For once, the boss is glad of one of his players having international games to play, knowing that the additional match time can only be of positive influence ahead of tough United games with Everton and Liverpool and the return of the Champions League against Rangers.
As well as the positive signs of the team bouncing back from the disappointment of the previous game, there was the welcoming sight of a big performance from Nani after his late penalty miss at Fulham. The Portuguese winger walked away with the man-of-the-match award and a fine goal to his name and could have had more but for a fingertip save from Robert Green and a wrong decision in front of goal when he chose to lob Ryan Giggs’ through pass rather than poke it under Green. For a player whose temperament has been previously questioned, Nani responded perfectly to the criticism that has come his way over the past week. He looked a constant danger cutting in off the flank but also stayed out wide when necessary, putting in crosses and providing an assist for Dimitar Berbatov’s acrobatic volleyed goal. Ferguson said that Nani is probably more comfortable on the right, a potential issue he will have to address with Antonio Valencia to accommodate. The Ecuadorian is more of a traditional winger, hogging the touchlines, and would not fare as well if switched to the left where he would need to cut inside with regularity, although this may be something United consider experimenting with if Nani repeats his West Ham form.
It has been said that United’s best bit of transfer business over the summer was tying down Nemanja Vidic to an extended contract and it would be hard to argue with that assertion after he won his individual battle with West Ham’s Carlton Cole. The tall England striker posed a stern physical test for Vidic and Jonny Evans but his impact was nullified. There were a couple of exceptional recovery tackles from the Serbian, who again captained the side, that underlined his prowess and Cole must have been left wondering how he was going to find a way past the defensive behemoth. The composure that Evans plays with is beginning to pose the question of whether Rio Ferdinand will walk back into the team when fit. Vidic has recently spoken about looking forward to Ferdinand’s return, talking of the ease he finds playing alongside the England defender, but his partnership with Evans is looking promising after a second clean sheet in three games.
The timing of the international break will bring varied impact for United. Whilst the Fulham game was something of a disappointment, the overall level of performance from the team in the Community Shield and league games has been very encouraging and it is a shame to have the disruption so soon. At the same time, the additional game time for numerous members of the squad can only aid their return to full match fitness and should see United come back even stronger for some big games in September.
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