Was the Manchester United squad this season really that bad?

Was the Manchester United squad this season really that bad?

This is a note in answer to the question "Was the Manchester United squad this season really that bad?"

To answer such a question I shall not go into comparisons, even though such comparisons may prove the answer to be a simple "Yes". However, those comparisons shall mainly consider individuals and hence might be a bit misleading. What I am concerned with is to draw an answer to the question objectively keeping just this season in mind.

The most important point is that over the past couple of decades ManUtd teams have changed but their manager has remained the same. Sir Alex Ferguson. And the player around whom the team has been formed has changed. Beckham and Ronaldo among the notables. However the MO has remained the same again, i.e. a marauding full back, crosses into the box and a person who knows his way round the goal. The personnel employed have changed over the years- Neville, Evra, Beckham, Nistelroy, Cole, Yorke, Ronaldo in various steads. And the precision has only got better over the years! The present team's biggest star is probably Rooney. A smaller bet compared to the Beckhams and Ronaldos of the previous years.However this does not in any way mean that the team with Ronaldo in it was a better team. That same team had a streak of 9 matches of 1-0 victories in the middle of the season with a 5-0 thrashing in between. So maybe they weren't as marauding as they are made out to be. This year the league has been credited to a poor (I am simply being polite) display by Arsenal and Chelsea at various stages of the season. However, United have maintained a wonderful home record, winning 17 out of the 18 matches! Really impressive! However, 1 such match was won 2-1 even though the losing team WBA were the better team on the pitch. Another match (an away one) against Blackpool was won even after being 0-2 down at the break. This proves very simply the mental attitude of the team- an attitude fostered by SAF over the years with his hairdryer treatments and a strong grip- of a winner! (This is again the same reason Ben Foster was relieved after leaving United for Birmingham City, because he wasn't really in accordance with SAF's attitude of "You HAVE to go out and win every single game!" He preferred the Bong laid back attitude of "Ja hochhe hok!" ) So having touched upon that winning mentality, it is safe to say that as a team they were extremely motivated.

Now, coming to the personnel. I shall neglect any sort of injuries suffered by players over season, simply because we aren't talking about Arsenal. Rooney was extremely good throughout the season after a poor start due to aftermath of the WC. The midfield pairing normally involved 2 of Scholes, Fletcher, Carrick, Anderson and even Giggs. Nani was a Ronaldo in the making in the first half of the season (including the playacting!) Valencia came back very strongly after his injury in the second half. Park was a more refined player and he and VDS have been acclaimed as the 2 unsung heroes, with Park being referred to as the best defensive attacking player around. The back 2 were injured at different times but Smalling filled in effectively. The right back position was a bit shaky but SAF managed to rotate them through. Chicarito was an amazing delight to watch while Berba sulked on the bench even though he remained top scorer of the league with his hattricks!

This above squad was much criticised by many as a "poor squad", a "weak side"-which still managed to win the league. Even Giggs joked about them being a weak side the day they won the league. It was pretty obvious. And what made them say it was a certain lack of flair maybe, a certain touch of dominance. It was in actuality a lack of continuity. ManUtd were dominant in a thrashing of Blackburn, ruthless in coming back at Blackpool and even beating Bolton with waves of attacks even after being a man down, effective against Arsenal at home. But at the same time they were simply out of sorts against Liverpool, went down against a (I have really a lot of questions about what Chelsea were trying to do all season) formless Chelsea, and Wolves all in a span of a week.So there must be something lacking in the team. Yet they won the title.

Now I come to the answer which I think shall explain the squad and the demise at the hands of Barca in the Champions League final. The answer to the question is "Yes". In the last final between ManUtd-Barca, SAF changed his team around- Ronaldo as striker and Tevez benched. The reason he could do that was because he had a strong squad at his disposal. This time around he was really fearful about changing a system which was successful in a number of matches in the league- Rooney and Chica combination up front. When a logical manner of playing this near-perfect Barca side is an obvious 5 man midfield, a 4 man midfield- and that too with Giggs as one of the central 2 (at least initially)- made sure that tactically ManUtd had lost the game (which was the only manner they could have won it, they couldn't have defeated Barca on basis of skill! ) Loads of space for Messi to run into, with last ditch attempts by the medios and drawing Evra out of position at will, spelled doom for ManUtd. Couldn't Ferguson have employed a 5 man midfield of Scholes, Carrick, Park, Giggs, Valencia or if you please ask Rooney to play as a proper midfielder ? No, he stuck to his team. The same team which won him the league. And that same team was played around by the Trinity. Mourinho employed Pepe, a centre back, as a defensive midfielder. Ferguson didn't have any such resources, at least any resource which could stand up to the might of Barca, to employ. he didn't trust any of the same second string of players who comfortable beat Schalke in just the previous match of the competition.

It is important to note here that the United midfield was hampered by injuries- primarily to Fletcher and though he wasn't ever in the equation, hargreaves. Scholes isn't a spring chicken anymore and he didn't start. Anderson wasn't deemed worthy. Again this points to a demented squad at his disposal. And what makes the above point more interesting is the fact that Ferguson has chosen many a time, if not all, to play a 4-5-1 against the big teams of the EPL-against Arsenal and Chelsea especially. He has benched the then in-form Berba and played Rooney alone up front as a defensive ploy. So why on earth did he not employ the same tactic against Barca. The bottomline stands that he was much more cautious against Arsenal in the first leg where United won 1-0 through a Park deflected header than against Barca where the stakes were much higher and they were up against a team which is far more superior. Blame it on the squad and the consequent inclusion of Chica.

The fact which corroborates the above view is that- when ManUtd were being bullied by Barca, Ferguson didn't stray to make any changes which might swing back the control of the game in ManUtd's favour. He could see,as could the rest of the entire football frenzied world, how Messi was running into space. Did he even then not realise the importance of a midfield link to stop him? (which was the reason for both the first 2 goals) A simple interchange of Park and Messi wasn't enough, as the result proved. Why, then, not bring on another midfielder at the break when things were still not out oof hand? Simply because of his faith in a squad which supposedly had the "winning formula". For the beleaguered league maybe. But not against Barca. And that is same reason why a certain refurbishment of his wares, whom he can send on to the field, is very much required. And this squad, for all its achievements shall not enjoy the same glint of respect in our eyes.

I do not in any way suggest that Manchester United could have perhaps beaten Barcelona in the final with a strengthened squad, but I wish to point out a primary reason which was responsible for the 90 minutes of Barcelona dominance which was played out at the Wembley.