It
has been said before, time and time – that the new era post Sir Alex Ferguson will
be difficult, for the club and its fans. Even the man himself warned that the
difficulties will be ‘present’ – for periods longer than most fans would
expect. And it has been said that David Moyes must be, and will be given time
to manage Manchester United after Ferguson’s successful era. But in the new
era, United is the defending Premier League champion, a football powerhouse as
well as one of the biggest clubs in the football world – as compared to when
Ferguson took over in 1986.
To be fair Southampton is a good team as well as a difficult team to play against. It is to no surprise that there are sitting so high up in the table compare to Manchester United – and they are still the team that concedes the least goals in Premier League. Their point at Old Trafford was well deserved and it is United that has its back against the wall. It happened in the Shaktar Donetsk game where a lead was not maintained and late goals were conceded. But at Donbass Arena, the point gained is still the most important outcome for United in the European competition, at Old Trafford on Saturday it was two points dropped – after lying in a lowly 12th position before the start of the game.
To be fair Southampton is a good team as well as a difficult team to play against. It is to no surprise that there are sitting so high up in the table compare to Manchester United – and they are still the team that concedes the least goals in Premier League. Their point at Old Trafford was well deserved and it is United that has its back against the wall. It happened in the Shaktar Donetsk game where a lead was not maintained and late goals were conceded. But at Donbass Arena, the point gained is still the most important outcome for United in the European competition, at Old Trafford on Saturday it was two points dropped – after lying in a lowly 12th position before the start of the game.
Team
selection wise, it was not a big surprise but it is the tactical changes that
makes David Moyes looked like a novice in the Old Trafford seat. Granted, Moyes
wanted some extra aerial defensive options hence the introduction of Chris
Smalling but it makes fans wonder why Moyes did not go for extra offensive
options to kill of the games earlier on. Moyes options on the bench will walk
into Southampton starting XI (attacking) anytime but he (Moyes) opted for
security with the introduction of Ryan Giggs in place of Nani – it should be
Marouane Fellaini instead.
With
Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspurs all recorded
convincing and important wins the pressure is on David Moyes to deliver
results. Many experts and fans have already given up on United retaining the
Premier League title, at best the hopes rest on finishing creditably – meaning that
United will still be in Champions League next season. And already the hopes of
silverwares lie in the other three cup competitions. Moyes must understand that
while at Everton winning trophy is not a prerequisite, over at Old Trafford it
is a tradition. The draw with Southampton was also a letdown since it is a
series of four consecutive home games in which United must wins – as there are
deemed ‘winnable’ games. Now the next three games at Old Trafford will invite
even more scrutiny for Moyes – it is his team selections that will be the
talking point – again!
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