EPL Week 31: Macheda Puts Manchester United United Back On Top
April 8th 2009 05:57
Without Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic manning center defense, was it really a surprise to see shades of the early-2000s Manchester United whose defense often had difficult games? As the starting line-up stepped on the field on Sunday afternoon, Patrice Evra was the only sure thing in that makeshift defense. Berbatov's injury and Rooney's suspension made things even worse as the Red Devils would have to play without their two regular strikers, leaving the energetic – but short – Carlos Tevez as the lone man in front with Ryan Giggs free to roam as he pleased.
Aston Villa probably surprised their hosts by taking a proactive approach to the game instead of letting United take the ball to them. Cristiano Ronaldo's icebreaker in the 13th minute – on a rare indirect free-kick inside the box – didn't really reflect the direction of the play in opening minutes which was heavily in Villa's favor. Carew made things right by equalizing the mark at the half-hour mark.
Agbonlahor gave the Villans a 2-1 lead with a superb header after peeling off Evra's back. What Evra was doing there instead of Evans is something that I still can't understand but the goal was mostly caused by Cristiano Ronaldo who lost the ball upfield which led to a break down the other end. The Portuguese winger redeemed himself by scoring his second of the game in the 79th minute right at the edge of the box with a weak but precise shot.
From that point on, Manchester took control of the game as the visitors decided to imply defend. Sir Alex Ferguson took a gamble by replacing the ineffective Nani by youngster Frederico Macheda who was making his first ever appearance with the first team. The young striker didn't really bring anything new at first and since Tevez was also pretty quiet that day, he was replaced by Danny Welbeck, giving more freedom to Macheda in front. With minutes running down the clock, Macheda received a pass from Giggs, erased his marker with a nice first-touch and fired a desperate curling shot that made its way around Brad Friedel in the 93rd minute to give United their first win in three games.
Once again, Old Trafford lived up to its reputation of The Theater Of Dreams. The Red Devils were able to get that winning goal thanks to an added-time of five minutes that seemed to came out of nowhere (I expected three) against a Villa side who definitely deserved better. The win puts United one point ahead of Liverpool at the top of the table still with a game in hand. However, I feel that the heavy schedule coming up will see Ferguson giving up at least one trophy this season. Winning all five as expected will simply take a miracle because this United team is looking beaten with every game that passes by. Nani and Anderson simply haven't delivered this season, meaning that Giggs and Scholes will be overused. As for the defense, Neville isn't getting any faster, and Ferdinand's back problems combined with Vidic's lack of discipline could make it hard for Manchester in the coming weeks.
Manchester United v Aston Villa
Manchester United's line-up: Edwin Van der Sar; Gary Neville, John O'Shea, Jonny Evans, Patrice Evra; Cristiano Ronaldo, Darren Fletcher, Michael Carrick, Nani (Frederico Macheda, 60th); Ryan Giggs, Carlos Tevez (Danny Welbeck, 87th).
Aston Villa probably surprised their hosts by taking a proactive approach to the game instead of letting United take the ball to them. Cristiano Ronaldo's icebreaker in the 13th minute – on a rare indirect free-kick inside the box – didn't really reflect the direction of the play in opening minutes which was heavily in Villa's favor. Carew made things right by equalizing the mark at the half-hour mark.
Agbonlahor gave the Villans a 2-1 lead with a superb header after peeling off Evra's back. What Evra was doing there instead of Evans is something that I still can't understand but the goal was mostly caused by Cristiano Ronaldo who lost the ball upfield which led to a break down the other end. The Portuguese winger redeemed himself by scoring his second of the game in the 79th minute right at the edge of the box with a weak but precise shot.
From that point on, Manchester took control of the game as the visitors decided to imply defend. Sir Alex Ferguson took a gamble by replacing the ineffective Nani by youngster Frederico Macheda who was making his first ever appearance with the first team. The young striker didn't really bring anything new at first and since Tevez was also pretty quiet that day, he was replaced by Danny Welbeck, giving more freedom to Macheda in front. With minutes running down the clock, Macheda received a pass from Giggs, erased his marker with a nice first-touch and fired a desperate curling shot that made its way around Brad Friedel in the 93rd minute to give United their first win in three games.
Once again, Old Trafford lived up to its reputation of The Theater Of Dreams. The Red Devils were able to get that winning goal thanks to an added-time of five minutes that seemed to came out of nowhere (I expected three) against a Villa side who definitely deserved better. The win puts United one point ahead of Liverpool at the top of the table still with a game in hand. However, I feel that the heavy schedule coming up will see Ferguson giving up at least one trophy this season. Winning all five as expected will simply take a miracle because this United team is looking beaten with every game that passes by. Nani and Anderson simply haven't delivered this season, meaning that Giggs and Scholes will be overused. As for the defense, Neville isn't getting any faster, and Ferdinand's back problems combined with Vidic's lack of discipline could make it hard for Manchester in the coming weeks.
Manchester United v Aston Villa
Manchester United's line-up: Edwin Van der Sar; Gary Neville, John O'Shea, Jonny Evans, Patrice Evra; Cristiano Ronaldo, Darren Fletcher, Michael Carrick, Nani (Frederico Macheda, 60th); Ryan Giggs, Carlos Tevez (Danny Welbeck, 87th).
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