Since I haven't really posted since the start of the season, I'd like to express my views on how I feel United's new signings have fared so far.
From an attacking point of view, I have absolutely no reason to complain. We've been simply breathtaking at times, unplayable. The passing and the movement a joy to behold, a much welcome relief from the result driven performances last season. Sir Alex has well and truly started building his fifth team of his legendary tenure. We've been scoring goals galore, creating chances aplenty and importantly, finishing off these chances. Ashley Young and Danny Welbeck seem to have hit the ground running and look like they've been at United all their life, which although in Welbeck's case is mostly true, you know what I mean :P
The addition of Ashley Young has served more than just providing us with an attacking thrust on the left of midfield, which, to be honest, we've been lacking since Giggs was in his hay-day. However, other than that, it has allowed us to play Nani on the right, which is his strongest position. I honestly believe Nani, on the right wing is currently not just the best winger in the Premier League, but also one of the best the world over. He's added consistency to his game, started delivering telling final balls and also scoring quite a few goals. It's no co-incidence that he's grown as a player after being deployed in his favoured right wing position, something that wouldn't have been possible in seasons gone by.
The addition of Ashley Young has served more than just providing us with an attacking thrust on the left of midfield, which, to be honest, we've been lacking since Giggs was in his hay-day. However, other than that, it has allowed us to play Nani on the right, which is his strongest position. I honestly believe Nani, on the right wing is currently not just the best winger in the Premier League, but also one of the best the world over. He's added consistency to his game, started delivering telling final balls and also scoring quite a few goals. It's no co-incidence that he's grown as a player after being deployed in his favoured right wing position, something that wouldn't have been possible in seasons gone by.
Secondly, as much as I hate to admit it, Evra seems to be very much on the slide. Ever since the catastrophe of the 2010 World Cup he has with France, his head doesn't seem to be right. Much renowned for his attacking forays and his astute defending, there seems to be an evident drop in form from our Frenchman. This is where Young comes into the picture. Ash provides much more of an attacking threat than Park, and can defend almost as well as Park. When Park plays with Evra, on the left hand side, he tends to drift in, doing most of his defending and attacking through the middle. This gives Evra much more responsibility, both to attack and defend, considering our play revolves around wing play. However, given the added attacking burden, Evra has been found out on several occasions against quick, tricky wingers in the mould of a Walcott (Yes, I know he's quite useless, but he can run), Lennon and so on. However, when Young plays, Evra has less responsibility to attack and can concentrate on his defending more than before. I feel this makes us much more stable and it was no surprise that our worst defensive display of the season came about indirectly because Young wasn't playing, both against Basle and Norwich. Basle scored 2 of their goals through crossing from the right wing and Steve Morison of Norwich drifted towards our left hand side as much as possible, with often Evra being caught upfield. Thus, taking all these points into account, 20 million pounds for Ashley Young, relatively young (no pun intended :P), English, and an accomplished winger at the highest level, is an absolute bargain. Well done, SAF!
As for our new goalkeeper, I have been hugely impressed. I was one of the first ones to criticize him when he made two mistakes at the beginning of the season. However, what has impressed me the most is the courage and confidence he has shown to recover from his early season blunders. He's grown into the role of stepping into Van Der Sar's shoes admirably and he looks more solid with every passing game. His performance against Stoke was probably one of the most impressive goalkeeping performances I've seen in a very long time. So, let's hope David has recovered from a shaky start and I honestly believe that, given time and support, he will be our number 1 for several years to come. Once again, 18 million pounds doesn't seem too much in this highly inflated market, where most clubs are paying insane amounts of money for relatively average players.
Next up, Phil Jones. What hasn't been said about this kid? The next England and Manchester United captain, the new Duncan Edwards, 'born to play for England', bargain of the century and so on. However, I do believe these claims are still very premature. No doubt he's a fabulous talent, no doubt he's got everything needed to be one of the best defenders in the world, no doubt he has a level head on his shoulders and no doubt he will go on to be a United great, but is it right to expect so much from such a young, inexperienced kid? With injuries to Rio, Vidic, Smalling, Sir Alex hasn't had much choice other than thrusting Jones straight into the deepend, and although he hasn't disappointed in the slightest, there is still room for improvement. I often hear my mates calling for Fergie to drop Rio from the team and install Jones as Vida's first choice partner, but, having watched football for a long time, one thing I am certain of is that nothing can rival experience. There are certain aspects of Jones' game that need to be worked on. Yes, he's brilliant, no doubt and I'd have him in my team over any other centre half in the premier league, but not now, not for a season more at least. Why you might want to ask. Well, here goes. So, with his young age, Jones has the exuberance of youth. We all know how comfortable he is on the ball. He definitely could slot straight into our currently average midfield with complete ease. However, he needs to learn when to make these runs and when not to. For example, in England's draw with Montenegro midweek, with England cruising with a 2-0 lead, with a minute to go to half time, Jones decided to charge down the right wing and when Rooney misplaced his pass, Jones was caught out of position. While the goal was nowhere near his fault, (Terry looked like he wanted to do everything possible to block Joe Hart's view of the ball, and Walcott forgot he's part of a team, which normally requires you to cover if a team mate is caught out of position.) it is this inexperience and exuberance which could cost United dearly in bigger, more important games. (Yes, if you haven't figured it out, I don't give a f**k about England and would much rather have United players stay back instead of wasting time in an underachieving team.) Other than this, small problems which come from inexperience, like positional play will definitely be a thing of the past in a few years time. Having said all this, it's hard to criticize this monster of a player, an awesome talent, and definitely one of the best youngsters gracing the world of football.
Let me know what you think. Comments are appreciated!
