Roaring Forties

What a finale it is going to be for the 2007/2008 season.

After leading the English Premier League with a four points advantage, Manchester United squandered it all when they drew with Blackburn 1:1 on 19 April and then losing to Chelsea 2:1 last weekend on 26 April. Now, they would need to win their next two matches to ensure that they win the championship. Only Chelsea stands in their way and Chelsea also needs to win both remaining matches and hopes that the Red Devils falter as they have an inferior

May 3 - Manchester United vs West Ham United in Old Trafford

May 11 - Manchester United vs Wigan at the JJB Stadium

The final curtain will be when they meet their greatest rivals for the season, Chelsea for the European Champions honour on May 21.

Three matches and 20 days separates Manchester United from a season double.

May 21 - Manchester United vs Chelsea at the Luzhniki Stadium

Dec 16 - No matter which teams, Manchester United beats, it is always special when they beat Liverpool, more so if they did it in Anfield.

Carlos Tevez (pic below) scored the only goal of the match in Anfield two minutes before half time in a match which Liverpool dominated.

Liverpool had 60% possession of the ball, they ran up and down the flanks, they managed 20 shots compared with the Red Devil’s 5. Liverpool did everything but score. Liverpool could not capitalise on the two rare mistakes from Edwin van der Sar, the first occasion when Harry Kewell shot straight at Anderson while Fernando Torres headed wide in front of an open goal 6 yards away.

The 1:0 win over Liverpool stretched Manchester United’s unbeaten streak at Anfield to 6 years. More importantly, the win caused a killer blow to Liverpool’s title ambitions.

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Oct 27 - It was another dazzling display which resulted in 4 goals for Manchester United who has done likewise in 3 preceding matches and thus matching a 100 year old record set in 1907 when they did a four in four. Nani open the flood gate with a 30 yards flyer in the third minute. Wayne Rooney add the second in the 33rd minute while Carlos Tevez came good with two goals in the second half. Now for the showdown at the Emirates Stadium on the 3rd of Nov with Arsenal.

It was another 4 goals and this time at Villa Park as Rooney and the boys ran riot in the first half to add another scalp in a 4:1 away win over Aston Villa. The first half was fantastic with a free flow of attacking football where the Red Devils hit back after falling behind in the 13th minute. A 10 minutes blitz from the 36th minute had Wayne Rooney showing his class act by grabbing a brace and Rio Ferdinand adding a 3rd during the first half stoppage time.

Villa had two players sent out, Nigel Reo-Coker in the 60th minute for his second yellow card offense and Scott Carson for a professional foul in the 66th minute on Carlos Tevez. By then, Villa with only 9 men left on the pitch, lost all hope of saving the game. Rooney failed to get his hattrick when he could not a penalty but by then, Manchester United appeared to have lost their appetite even though they had superior numbers. Only a fine solo effort from Ryan Giggs saw him scoring the only goal in the second half.

SAF expressed that this was the best game Manchester United played this season but I beg to differ as I felt that they were treating the last 25 minutes against a 9 man team more like a practise session than a real game. There could have been more urgency to get a couple more goals to reduce the superior goal difference which Arsenal currently enjoyed over Manchester United.

Overall, Wayne Rooney orchestrated the win with his brace, Tevez had a good game, Nani proved that he can play well consistently and Giggs  showed that age has not blunt his skills.  It was Gerard Pique that branded out an outstanding display as a central defender, so much so that the absence of Nemanja Vidic was not felt at all.

It was not the best game of the season as SAF put it but definitely it was a good work out for Red Devils. 

After their second stringers were thoroughly outplayed by Coventry in the Carling Cup and losing 2:0, the seniors continue to slog with hard fought 1:0 victories over Birmingham in the EPL and Roma in the Champions League with Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney scoring their first goals respectively for the campaigns.

It is turning out to be a difficult season and the games are keeping fans at the edge of their seats. Where is free scoring Devils of last season? Everyone is asking. With high expectations from the new signings, this season has so far proven to be a dissappointment. Now that Tervez, Ronaldo and Rooney has all got their first goals, maybe it is about time for them to show what they are really worth.

For the fans, we can take some comfort from the hope that the team will hit top form during the second half of the season. 

Manchester United won unconvincingly 2:0 in Old Trafford against Chelsea in a scappy match to extend their match winning streak to 5 games. Apart from the full points, the other positive outcome from the match is that Carlos Tevez finally got his goal and let’s hope that this goal will spur him on for more to come. Louis Saha took the easy way by reacting to a poor tackle and won a penalty. He would need to brush up his acting skills to avoid being red carded in future matches for diving as he was lucky to get his penalty in this one. Overall, it was a poor quality match and the Blues clearly missed Jose Mourinho.

Sir Alex Ferguson then field the second stringers for the Carling Cup where the only notable regulars included were John O’shea and Luis Nani. The second stringers flopped against Conventry which resulted the Red Devils losing 2:0 at home. SAF may not put much emphasis on the Carling Cup but nevertheless, the game was dissappointing especially for the 74,055 fans who came to see their team play. Unless the second stringers show much improvement especially Oliveira Anderson, there isn’t much hope for Manchester United to last out the long season.

It was a dissappointing week espcially for Man U to drop off at the very first hurdle in the Carling Cup.

The Red Devils slogged on with narrow 1:0 away victories over Everton and Sporting Lisbon as they continue their 2007/2008 compaign. Good news is that Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo are back but Manchester United has yet to show their fire power. So far, they have been shooting blanks.

The highlight of the month would be the dismissal of Jose Mourinho whose departure will not be felt only by Chelsea but also by the whole English Premier League as the Chosen One, which Mourinho called himself, was indeed one of the most outstanding and colourful managers in recent years.

Would be interesting to see if the Red Devils could capitalise on the Blues’ shortcoming this week end.