Newcastle – Man Utd: 1 – 5

Having seen the result from the Arsenal game, the United players knew that they had the opportunity to close the gap to three points…and you could really see that they wanted to make the most out of the game.

As I expected Nani, Carrick, Fletcher and Tevez started the game and United used a 4-4-2 formation for the first time since the game against Man City. Newcastle has been struggling in the defensive play and United quickly showed that the back four would get a busy evening. In the 25th minute Ronaldo received the ball on the left flank, took on a defender and made an excellent cross which found an unmarked Rooney on the far post who could put the first ball into the net of the evening on a volley. Ronaldo then extended the lead when he scored his 20th league goal of the season after a great pass from Michael Carrick. When everyone was expecting Carrick to play the ball out to Nani who was free on the left flank, Carrick found some space between the central defenders and set Ronaldo free with Shay Given. Simply magnificent play by Carrick.

The 2nd goal came just before half-time break and was for sure a severe psychological hit for the home side. It was however not until five minutes into the second half when United killed off the game. After having tripped and lost the ball Ronaldo was delivered a through ball by Fletcher who had won back the ball for United. As the last Newcastle defender Taylor tried to tackle Ronaldo but completely missed him and Ronaldo made no mistakes in his one-on-one situation with Harper who had replaced Shay Given in half time.

Newcastle then reduced the lead to 3-1 after a corner but never came any closer. Instead United quickly extended the lead once more after a great shot by Rooney from outside the penalty box and then substitute Saha finished the scoreline in stoppage-time.

It was a great performance from United and a massive boost in the title race. I have been praising Nani and Carrick lately and both of them once more put on an excellent perfomance. Nani’s crosses and corners are of highest class and with his dribbles he is a massive threat to the oppoisition’s defense. I think with this display his stocks as a player for the starting eleven has increased alot. Carrick continue to show a great calm on the central midfield – winning balls and delivering perfect passes to the strikers. To me he might be the most important central midfielder at the moment. This result will really put more pressure on Arsenal which has not won in three games. Perhaps now the young squad’s handling of pressure will face a real test for the first time of the season. Will they be able to handle it….I think not and Arsenal will drop more points.

Lyon – Man Utd: 1 – 1

The game pretty much went the way I expected and ended in a draw which I think was a fair result. Lyon started the game well but United soon took control of the game. There were not many chances in the first half. Giggs delivered a great through ball to Rooney who turned away the last defender but was unable to put the ball pass the Lyon goalkeeper. Benzema also had a shot just over the bar after a good attack by the home side. However Benzema would get another opportunity in the second half as he received the ball outside the penalty box and this time he showed what a great talent he is. With a quick turn and shot he put the ball in off the post and gave Lyon the lead. The goal pretty much came as a surprise as United had been in total control and started the second half well.

After the goal United had a bad period with lots of bad passing and the team didn’t really create any good chances. A change was needed and Scholes and Giggs were replaced by Tevez and Nani. The subsitutions really made an impact on the game and United started to build some pressure again. Carrick came really close to score after a corner when he tricked a Lyon defender and shot at goal, however the shot was blocked by another player and went out for a corner. This time the corner resulted in a crucial goal for United after Tevez having put the ball in the net from close range.

Although United seemed to have control of the game I think it was just another ok performance on away turf. I think the team needs to raise its game in these types of games if it wants to go all the way. Again Giggs was one more anonymous and with Nani putting on another impressive performance I feel it soon may be time for him to start on the left flank. The same thing goes for Scholes. He’s a fantastic player but when playing at the current level I think Carrick is a better option especially when taking his last couple of games into account. All in all United went home with a good result after a pretty solid performance.

Man Utd – Arsenal: 4 – 0

United are through to the quarter-finals in the FA Cup after a humiliating 4-0 win against Premier League leaders Arsenal. There are so many good things to say about United’s display today that I don’t know where to start. Ferguson decided to rest some players but the replacements were simply outstanding.

Fletchter – two goals and tireless running not leaving any space for Fabregas. Nani – involved in all goals (took the corner kick that led to the first goal, setting up for two goals and scoring one) showed his true potential with great dribbling and crosses and even humiliated some Arsenal players which were frustrated. And I must say that I will be very upset and surprised if Gallas doesn’t get a suspension for his kicking at Nani after the whistle was blown…horrible play by the French international. But what about 19 year old Anderson…such confidence, strength and great passing…marvellous!

Another player in the home team that has to get the praise he deserves is Carrick. His passing today was out of this world and his performance shows that he should probably be in the starting line up. People might forget to mention Carrick’s performance but perhaps it’s just because you expect him to deliver those world-class passes. However I must say that he is probably an under-rated player. And then we got Rooney. I must once more praise his passion for the game and the runs he makes are a constant threat to the opponents defensive line. Of course it was also nice to see him score again (even though he probably should have scored one or two more goals in this game).

I can’t recall the last game in which the I’ve seen such a hungry Man Utd team, pressing the opponents all over the field. I just hope that the team will continue this way and that the next win will come against Lyon next Wednesday.

Manchester derby preview

It’s finally time for the game which I’ve been looking forward to since the loss at City of Manchester Stadium. The result that time was so unfair considering how the game looked. United dominated the entire game and City and had one shoot on goal…a long shoot effort that deflected on Vidic and went in. That game Richard Dunne and Micah Richards were excellent. I just hope that United’s finishing is better this time.

United will have to play without Rooney who is suspended. Considering the fact that Saha is not fit (could make his comeback next week), there are not really many striker options for the game. My guess is that Ronaldo will play as a striker and that Ji-Sung Park or Nani will start the game on the right flank. Perhaps the absence of Rooney and Saha will also make room for young Danny Welbeck on the bench. Frazier Campbell was offered a chance in the beginning of the season when the situation was about the same so we should not be surprised if Danny is among the subs…especially not since Ferguson has already stated that Danny could be involved in the first team this season.

Man City looked really weak against Arsenal last week and I think that it is not as easy for the team to win games now when more people have higher expectations. My guess is that United will honor the Busby Babes and start the game in a very high fashion. Final Result: 2 – 0

Tottenham – Man Utd: 1 – 1

To be honest I must agree with sir Alex who thought that United only deserved one point from this game. The first half was a really poor performance from the visitors while Tottenham played really well. You might argue that the opening goal should have disallowed since Jenas hit the ball with the arm. However since Spurs had a penalty claim turned down in the second half when Evra accidently brought the ball down with his arm inside the penalty box, you might say that it evens things up.

I have to speak out my mind about Jenas though. Ronaldo always get labelled as a diver even though no one mentions the numbers of times he gets kicked at. I did not expect that I would label Jenas as a diver but in the two last games against United he has dived several times and that really annoys me.

Well back to the game. The second half started better for United and it looked as if Spurs would have to focus on defending. The pressure did not last long though and Spurs raised their game and it wasn’t until Nani and Anderson were brought on (I have to say that Giggs and Scholes had really been under-performing) that United was able to put some pressure again and in the very last minute of the game Tevez was able to score his 11th Premier League goal of the season.

The draw means that Man United was left two points behind Arsenal which bet Man City in Manchester. Although it was two very important points that were lost, to at least get away with one point could be crucial in the end.

Man Utd – Portsmouth: 2 – 0

When I saw the United line-up I thought that this could be a tricky game even though Portsmouth are without a number of important players due to the African Cup of Nations. It did however not take long before the home side showed me I was wrong.

The first half contained excellent attacking football from United and once again Ronaldo showed how leathal he is in front of goal. His first goal of the evening came after a nice setup by his fellow country man Nani and Ronaldo could easily put the ball between the legs of David James. Only a few minutes later the Ronaldo’s second goal of the evening came from a superb 25-yard freekick. The goal was his fourth this season coming from a free kick and I think this proves how much his game has improved in this area.

While the first half was simply brilliant, the second half proved to be more of a sleeping pill with United very comfortably securing the three points. Rooney, Ronaldo and Nani all had great opportunities to increase the scoreline but a mix of sloppy finishing and good goalkeeping made the second half goal-less.

All in all I think it was an impressive display by the United team and I’m glad that both Ji-Sung Park and Nani produced good displays and their respective flank. Also Scholes continued his comeback from his injury with another great performance. Even though Portsmouth did not put the United defense to any real test, I think you have to give them credit for another clean sheet which means that the total number of conceeded goals at home in the Premier League this season is 3…impressive!!

Roma – Man Utd: 1 – 1

Well I did think that the game become a sort of sleeping pill and I think it really was – if it wasn’t for the fact that United played so many young players. It was really great to see them perform on this high level and they even played some really good football. The two players from the own ranks that impressed me the most were Pique and Simpson. It must have been very nice for Pique to score his second goal in two games in the Champions League.Nani also showed great potential, especially during the first half. He managed to get pass his defender a couple of times and he also showed good team work with his defensive play.The thing that worries me is that Saha isn’t really looking sharp. His touch isn’t very good, he’s not scoring on his opportunities and I think that he keeps the ball too long every now and then. Hopefully this will change soon as they have to have a good backup for Rooney and Tevez. To summarize it was a good display in a quite boring game. However on Sunday things will change when they travel to Everton to beat Liverpool… and I think they will. 

Roma – Man Utd

I’m really glad to read that Ferguson is planning to play some youngsters in tomorrow’s game against Roma. I’m really looking forward to see Daniel Simpson as a right defender again because I think he did excellent in his last first team game. It will also be fun to see Nani playing again (I’m pretty certain that he will start the game) after not having been involved in the last two games. I’m not sure about what to expect from Roma’s starting eleven but I think we will see some reserve players there as well. Obviously they will be looking for revenge from the last two games between the teams but except from that the game doesn’t really mean anything and they have Serie A to think about, especially since they went another points behind the league leaders Inter.I must say that I have no clue about how the game will end. It all depens on how well the youngsters will manage this second opportunity they’re given. I’m just hoping that the Coventry game was a one-time performance that and the players will show their true potential tomorrow. It will be very exciting to see if and what impact Rooney will have on the team, making his first appearance as a Man Utd captain. Apparently he had really been buggering Ferguson to be given this chance so let’s see how well he takes it.If I have to guess I think the game will end in a loss…2-1.