World Cup Group

So the FIFA WORLD CUP 2014 draw for the group stages have concluded. The groups are Decided. The groups are:

Group A: Brazil, Croatia, Mexico, Cameroon

Group B: Spain, Netherlands, Chile, Australia

Group C: Colombia , Greece, Côte d’Ivoire, Japan

Group D: Uruguay, Costa Rica, England, Italy

Group E: Switzerland, Ecuador, France, Honduras

Group F: Argentina, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Iran, Nigeria

Group G: Germany, Portugal, Ghana, USA

Group H: Belgium, Algeria, Russia, Korea Republic

I will be analyzing each group in depth in next month or so.  I will try to focus on each teams and their chances of Progressing to the next round. Let us gear up for the exciting World Cup.

Manchester United v. Arsenal-The Rivalry Resumes

This sunday when Manchester United entertains the table toppers Arsenal a certain missing rivalry will again restart. When I started supporting Manchester united our main rivals were Arsenal. Game against them was the most important one to look forward to. They  had Henry We had Nistelrooy,  they had Viera we had keane, they had Bergkamp we had Giggs, they had Pires we had Scholes, they had Fabregas and we had Ronaldo. Both teams had many ugly fights like the famous tunnel fight between Viera and Keane just before the match, Nistelrooy being mobbed by arsenal players after he missed a penalty, The Pizza Incident where a arsenal player ( Fabregas according to reports) threw a pizza on Sir alex . The Rivalry was so intense that their match at Old trafford in 2004-2005 season was termed as Battle of the Buffet.

But as the years have passed by,the rivalry has cooled down significantly which Sir alex himself has said. With the emergence of Chelsea and Manchester City, Arsenal are no longer considered as our main rivals. On one hand where Manchester United have won Trophies after Trophies, Arsenal haven't won a trophy for more than 8 years. Arsenal have not won a premier league match at Old trafford in their last 6 meetings. 2006 was the last time where Arsenal beat United at Old trafford. The 8-2 thrashing and RVP joining United has also not helped  arsenal. The clashes between the two clubs in recent years have been either one sided or insignificant(Like last years 1-1 draw at emirates).

This season is looking somewhat different for arsenal. They are sitting pretty at the top and have not lost a game since losing to Villa at the start of the season. They have bought one of the best play maker in the world in Ozil and he has been really good for them. They Defeated Dortmund this week at their won turf so that is worth appreciating.  This season where Manchester United have struggled , Arsenal have been in full flow. One player for arsenal who has really come out of age this season is Aaron Ramsey. He has been scoring goals for fun.

 Unlike last few seasons this game against Arsenal will be very important. I know a win or loss in November wont hamper your chances of winning the league but this time it may. Moyes and his boys cannot afford to lose this game. Moyes have somewhat performed better in last month or so. Manchester United have not lost in their last 8 games in all competition. So if they lose this one then all the momentum will be over. Manchester united's situation will be back to square one. Arsenal will be 11 points clear of us if they win the game on sunday. So no way could Moyes and his army afford to lose. This Sunday we will be having after a long time a mouthwatering clash between Manchester United and Arsenal. It is an important game for both the team. I still have my doubt over arsenal. I still feel it is too early to say they are back to their best. Like Rooney said this week " Let us see where are Arsenal in March". It is not an arrogant comment but it is a true comment. So far Arsenal have been good so this clash will also be really good.

I just Hope we see some real good football Acton this sunday. I have always wanted  Arsenal to be our main rivals . They are a club like Manchester United who have not come at the top with the help of Money like Chelsea or Manchester City have. As far as the prediction for the game goes my inner feeling says this will be the game that officially kick starts Moyes's career. I have a feeling we will win. Anything can happen. All I can say I hope this game bring back the missing Rivalry between Arsenal and Manchester United.

Let The Rivalry Resume

Preferred Line up v. Fulham

Fulham away wont be an easy tie by any means. We cannot afford to drop any more points . With Arsenal coming next week it is important we get 3 points from this game. One thing Moyes should do right is field a strong and correct Line up. My preferred line up will be

                      DE GEA

Rafael      Evans         Smalling           Evra


       Carrick                    Fellaini

                     Kagawa

      RVP                            Rooney

                    Hernandez

I know this is not your typical line up but this could be very helpful. I dont want to see Hernandez Benched. He deserves to play more. Assistant Manager Steve Round also said Rvp, Rooney and Hernandez all three can play together, I think this is the best way. Janujaz could replace one of Top 4 attackers. Kagawa also gets to play in his preferred position. What do you guys think? 

Stand by our Manager

This is what Sir Alex told all us fans before leaving "Your job now is to stand by the new manager." Most of the fans are even failing in this job. It has only been 3 months since Moyes has joined and we fans are calling for him to be sacked.

I have heard many say We should have appointed some other manager, You know what it would have been no guarantee that he would have had a flying start here. If 3 months was the criteria for determining a persons Quality then Alex wouldn't have been Sir  Alex, Cristiano Ronaldo wouldn't have been one of the best player in the World, Evra and Vidic wouldn't have been Man United captains and Theiry Henry would have been dubbed as an Ordinary player. 

Moyes is learning fast whether we agree or not. He has dropped Young and Rio. He is not starting with Giggs like Sir Alex used to do. He has given a young 18 year old a chance to sign and convinced him to stay here for long time.  Rome was not built in a day and same way building a team is not done in 3 months. Every manager needs atleast 2 seasons to do that. We do not have a squad like that of Bayern or Barca , we need some quality players which needs time. 

Moyes did not even have a full summer period to analyse what players would be best for us. He knew we needed a midfielder. In January he will have time look for the players we need. His main goal was to keep rooney and he did that. Our squad has been crying for a midfielder for many years and Sir alex didn't buy one so now Moyes has to go and buy and for that he needs one full season to look out for the player we need. He himself has admitted that we need 2 or 3 players so at least that's good. I am confident we will buy quality players.

Even great Sir Alex has made mistakes, Th team selection against Blackburn two seasons ago where we lost was really bad, The game against City at etihad which let them Overtake us was also bad, So let us stop behaving like Sir Alex has never made mistakes. Instead of blaming Manager alone Why not look at our senior players performance. None of the senior players have played well. Moyes needed their help badly in the pitch and they have failed him so far. Some fans really want him to fail because he is not expressive, he is not your typical stylish guy. He did more than a decent Job at Everton, lets see how Martinez does for 38 games. Doing well in first 10 games doesn't make you a top manager. Chelsea, arsenal and city have to face each other so they will drop points. 

We have faced 12 games so far this season and we have Won 6 Lost 3 Drawn 3 so that's not anyway a disastrous start. Give Moyes time, he will do well. I will wait till February at least to comment about Moyes's progress. 

We don't want a Chelsea like situation to happen here, We make fun of them when they keep on changing managers now we are also restoring to the same thing. Let us support our manager, Like Sir Alex said Stand by our Manager. 

BELIEVE

Players Rating v. Southampton

Another Bizarre performance by our players and yet again points dropped. There were times when it was us who used to score goals at the end but yesterday it was opposite. Lets see how our players performed

David De Gea 6.5- I really felt he could have done better for the goal conceded. He did a decent job prior to that though. Its surprising that he is not even getting selected in the Spain Squad.

Rafael- 6 Not his best games by any means. It was not like he had an awful game but his crossing from the flanks reminded me of Valencia's crossing. He was not able to give one proper cross. Having said that he is still our Number 1 Right Back.

Phil Jones- 7 I was very happy to see Jones playing in his preferred position and he did pretty well. His clearance on many occasions were worth appreciating. Unfortunately he made one mistake and we conceded. Overall he did well.

Evans- 7.5 He is one of our most underrated players. I am happy that Moyes took a bold decision and dropped Rio. Evans needs a run of games. He can be our First choice Center Back. I lost count on how many clearance he did with his head. Good performance Jonny.

Evra 6.5 He had a mixed game.  He showed a lot of passion but he was caught out on many occasion. He was decent going forward and nicely linked with Janujaz. Tidy performance but nothing great.

Nani 7.5 He was our best player on the pitch yesterday . He is by far our best winger in the squad and happy he is getting consistent run of games ahead of Young and Tony V. He created many opportunities for our strikers who just couldnt finish. Pretty surprising he didnt finish the whole game. When he was gone it affected our game.

Carrick- 6.5 Unlike last season he is not able to boss the midfield. He did his work yesterday OK but with carrick we expect a lot. He is one of many players who has not found his form this season.

Fellaini 3.5 Ohh God that was an awful performance. Its one thing to have an off day but when you perform like this you really dont know what to say. He kept stranded on his position while Southampton players eased past him and on attacking front he got a really good opportunity but he just shot the ball far away from the goal. I am not saying he is shit or he has been a flop but he needs to improve. Performances like this wont help him.

Janujaz 6.5- Another decent performance by our New prodigy. He is really talented and of you want proof just look at the 40 yard pass to rooney which ultimately led to the Goal. He can also shoot from long distance. He lost the control after 65 odd minutes and should have been subbed but he did well and showed what player we have in our hands. Pretty pleased that he has signed a 5 year Contract with us.

Rooney 5 Yes he was that poor. He lost the ball on countless occasion. It was like he didnt want to hold on to it. Its performance like this that makes me sad and angry with Rooney. Moyes needs to address this issue. If you are having a bad day then you need to be subbed off. Rooney on form can be the best thing for us.

Robin Van persie 6 Atlast he scored a goal for us from an open play. Like Carrick he is also not at its best this season and it is affecting our performance. He also lost ball position many times. He needs to up his game if we have to play well. Atleast he scored one so he will get some confidence back.

Substitutes

Giggs 5.5- Another disappointing performance by our legend. On first place he shouldnt have replaced Nani but having done that he performed pretty badly. He lost the ball and his passing were also not that good. Maybe like Young and Rio , Moyes should learn to use Giggs on a very rare occasion.

Welbeck 5.5 I have always felt that this will be welbeck's season. The confidence that Moyes is showing is worth admiring but he needs to play well. Last night he couldnt run with the ball. It was like there was no coordination between his feet and Ball. I know these things happen even with great players but Danny always does that. Whenever he gets a goal scoring chance he trips himself or fails to shoot properly. He really lacks confidence infront of goal. I still have lot of faith with him and still believe he will be a top player for us.

Smalling N/R- He should be starting more games. He had a good outing with England.

Man of the Match- NANI - Really good performance by our mighty winger. Hope he keeps his good form.

Team's Rating 6/10
If you look at the Substitute Ratings it would seem like they cost us the point and it is partly true also. Moyes made some bad substitution. He has been playing very safe. I know he needs win badly but you dont defend a one goal lead from 60 odd minutes, atleast not in Manchester United. When I saw the bench prior to the game I thought atleast today we may see one of Zaha, Kagawa and Hernandez if not all the three but again none of them appeared even when the situation demanded. He needs to show more trust on Kagawa and Hernandez. Maybe in next few games he will. He is still learning and finding what his best playing XI is. He should learn fast as our rival teams are settling down it seems. Moyes should act fast.

Having said that its not correct to put the blame solely on Moyes. What can a manger do when his players are not finishing the chances of, or his main players like Rooney and Fellaini are performing so bad. Players should take equal responsibility. We dropped 2 points at home but we should not forget that Southampton have been pretty good this season. They beat Liverpool at their turf and have only conceded 3 goals so far this season. So we should not get too upset . Let us stand by our players and manager. Its a long season. Its no guarantee that Arsenal will remain on top, same way its no Guarantee that We will be in 8th position when the season ends. Teams will drop points. Even after such a mixed start we are only 8 points below the leaders.

BELIEVE   

Prediction for this season

We have got some idea how our season may shape up. It has not been a 

great start by any means but honestly its not even that bad like many are 

saying. This is going to be a tricky season for every person who is involved 

with united. We are going to miss Sir alex. While predicting we have to be 

reasonable. But we have not started badly as we have won Community shield. 

I know many dont care about this one  but a trophy is a trophy.

You know as a die hard UNITED fan I would love if we win every competition 

that we are involved in  but we have to be reasonable. So I thought about it 

very carefully and came to a conclusion that this season we may not win many 

trophies. So My prediction for this season in each competition is-




League Cup- Semi Finals We have started very well by beating Liverpool. I 

am confident we will beat Norwich at home in next round. With one of Arsenal-

Chelsea getting knocked out for sure as they are clashing with each other , 

The top teams that will be remaining are one of chelsea or arsenal, City,Spurs 

and us. Semi finals is on the cards. I will be happy if Moyes wins the league 

cup for starter. It may be a mickey mouse cup but this season this also means 

a lot to us. 


FA Cup- WIN This is one trophy I want us to win. It has been almost 10 

years since we won FA cup. Now thats a long time. Moyes will be looking for 

winning in domestic competitions in his first season. 


Champions League- Quarter Finals I have very low expectation in this 

competition. My only requirement this season in europe is clear the group 

stages. Eventhough Moyes himself has said that we dont have a squad to win 

this , I tend to slightly disagree. We do have a decent squad to create a upset. 

When chelsea can do why cant we. But I will say a quater final will be where 

we get knocked out.



League- 2nd This is tough to predict. We are 9th now but we will improve, it 

will be a shocker if we miss out on top 4. I would have predicted 3rd or even 

4th but other teams are also not performing that good. Chelsea and city are 

not bossing the league. Arsenal are playing good football but they still need 

couple of class players like Ozil. Liverpool are liverpool and Spurs need a 

season or two. I still believe we can win the league provided we remain 

consistent enough but at present I am going for 2nd or 3rd.


Yes this is what I Think. You know it may not what we like but I feel this is 

what may happen. I wont mind if this is what happens if  young players like 

Janujaz, Powell, Michael Keane, Henriques get chance in here or in loan  and 

Players like Welbeck, rafael, De gea, Smalling,Jones, Fabio, Cleverley, Zaha 

reach the next level and we play some exciting , free flowing football. I will 

remain happy then. But if moyes fails to develop new stars and doesnt give 

the young blood a chance and we play some dull football then I will say the 

season has been a failure. 

So what you guys think. What will happen this season? 

Players Rating v. Shaktar

This was one of the most boring performance I have witnessed by our time, that doesnt mean the result was bad. I would have taken a point from this fixture. Atleast We did not lose. Lets see how our players performed

David De Gea 7.5- If not for him we would have lost. He is a tremendous keeper. He has become more bolder. He couldnt have stopped the goal. Overall a very good performance by our spanish keeper.

Rafael 7- See how much difference he brings in Right back. He should be starting majority of the game. No Jones, No smalling. The way he moves forward with the ball is admirable. He created a chance for RVP also. Good stuff.


Vidic 7- Captain vida was at his best but he made one mistake and that cost us the goal. He would have got more if not for the mistake, But he really is still our best defender.

Smalling 6- I was surprised to see Smalling making some mistakes in defense. He was caught out of position on more than one occasion. Not a good game . But he will improve.

Evra  6.5- He also had an average game. He lost position quite a few time. He was good in defense though. He handled the pacy wingers quite well. SO good job on that part.

Valencia 6- For me Valencia is a defensive winger, yes that is an awkward term but if you look how he plays he seems to be a defensive winger. His crosses were poor. Only job he did well was defending. Nani is a better choice.

Fellaini  5.5- Now that was a horrid performance from Fellaini. Whenever he got the ball, ref blew the whistle against him. He needs to stop committing so many fouls on opponents. He will take time to get adjusted to play here. I still feel fellaini is an important player for us.


Carrick 6- He did well in defensive work but his passing is still below par. He has not been in his best this season thats for sure. He has not imposed himself into the game. He needs to be more involved in the game

Cleverley 6.5- People never appreciate Tom's contribution  , he was the better of the three midfielders we were playing yesterday. He doesnt bring that much impact but he does move the ball very quickly. I still feel given the chance cleverley can establish himself as a very good midfielder.


Welbeck 6.5- He was pretty good in the first half, scored a goal, defended well. In second half he was not to be seen. I felt he should have been subbed of early. Atleast he has scored more goals than last season.

RVP 6- RVP was hardly involved in the game. He got couple of  chances which he missed. He has not adjusted to Moyes play of style. Last season he was our main man but this season he is not. I feel Moyes should make use of RVP better.

Substitutes

Giggs 5.5- Now that was a poor substitution by Moyes. Why bring Giggs? He was no better than Fellaini. Please moyes, Giggs is not a midfielder. Have nothing more to say about him.

Jones-NA - He came for last 20 seconds. He should have been bought earlier replacing Fellaini and Giggs could have replaced Welbeck. I love Jones as a defensive midfielder, surprised Moyes did not consider it.

Man of the match- De Gea- Vidic was my man until he  made the mistake which cost us the goal.De gea was really good. Really happy for him.

Teams Rating 5.5/10

It was a boring performance. But happy we got a point. I feel moyes is playing too safe. Loss to West Brom and City have not helped him. He tried to be ambitious against WBA at home but lost the match, now he is playing safe. I hope he does field an attacking line up against Sunderland. Nothing but a win is needed. We need to get the season rolling now. The game against Sunderland reminds me of  the same situation of last season where we needed a win at this period against Newcastle away. We had just lost to Spurs at home and needed the win very badly against Castle. Same way this season we need to beat sunderland very badly. Moyes needs to be more positive and ask his team to play attacking football. Just settling for one goal or settling for draw is not United style.

Roll on sunderland

Players Rating: Manchester United v. West Brom

Another  Bad performance from the team. Its like some of our players have forgotten how to play.I will have take my frustration on few players today. Ok lets See how did our players do.

David De Gea- 6.5- He could have done decent for the first goal but he did make 2 or 3 good saves. He needs better support from the defense.

Jones- 5- I dont know why Moyes wastes Jones talent by playing him in RB. He doesnt run back and he is not able to prevent the Crosses. He is a very good defender but not a RB.

Rio- 4- This is one players I am really pissed with. I love rio but the way he has been defending this season is absolute joke. I said in my earlier post that Moyes should drop Rio. He is over depending on him. I dont know what Rio was doing for the first goal. It was very unlike him.I feel this could be the last season of Rio.  Not a good way to end his career.

Evans - 5- It was a poor game by Evans. He should have commanded the defense more. He should have done better for the second goal.

Buttner 4.5- His defending is very bad. Attacking wise he is better but his job is to defend and he fails in that miserably. Cant see Fabio doing Bad than this. Got an assist , good for him.

Nani 7.5- Was our best player. He could have had 4 assist in first half had Hernandez and Rooney finished their chances. In second half he became selfish but he was the most ambitious player in the pitch.

Carrick 5- This is another player who I am very disappointed with. He needs to step his game up. He had a decent start but in past 2 games he has been below par. I have always maintained that if carrick has a poor game we will be struggling and thats what happened

Anderson 6- He did have a decent game. He hit on the post once which was wrongly called offside. He attempted more shot than Hernandez. Not a bad game.

Kagawa 6- Surprised he got subbed so early. He played mostly as a left winger from where he was not that much effective but on few moments when he played from center he was deadly. I feel Moyes is not using Kagawa to his full effect.

Rooney 6.5- It was one of his poor games. Yes he scored but he lost the ball on countless occasion. He looked tired also. He missed some chances. He needs rest.

Hernandez 5.5- He was hardly involved in the game. He did try his best but got no support and when hid got the ball he made mistakes. I still rate hernandez as a top striker. Just keep on giving him chances he will score in every match.

Substitutes

Janujaz 7- He replaced Kagawa and did quite well. By now you all must be knowing that I have become a fan of this boy. He could have scored in the end moment if not for his poor finishing. He is not best as a winger. His play reminded me very much of Kaka of young. I never like comparison but he could be like Kaka for us.

Robin Van Persie 5.5- Rating may be very harsh on him but I expected a lot from him.I hardly saw RVP in the game. He did make some good passes though but We expect a lot more from RVP.

Fellaini 6- He is not your super sub player. He should be starting the match. He was just off side if not he would have got us a point. I still have faith in him and still feel he will become an important player for us .

Man of the Match- Nani -No second thought about that. With the contract talks done he is more motivated. He should be our first choice winger.

Team Rating- 5.5/10
Not a good performance. First half we were decent but in second half our defense got exposed. A home loss against a team like West brom is hard to take, but we have suffered losses like this and still won the league. I am very disappointed with the performances of some of our senior players. Blaming Moyes is not correct. Players like Carrick, Rio, Evans etc should help the manager but they are not doing that.I will say that when the team was announced I was happy to see the line up that moyes chose, but the team's performance was disappointing to say the least.
Only positive we can take is even after such a poor start we are only 3points and 4 points behind our rivals City and chelsea respectively. Arsenal are at the top but cant see them or spurs challenging gor the tittle atleast this season. After yesterdays performance I can only say one thing POOR MOYES AND POOR US FANS

Players Rating: Manchester United v. Liverpool

This was an important win for us and for Moyes. Any win against Liverpool is a good win. Its important Moyes wins a trophy this season, so he needs to give his best in every competition. I am glad we have progressed. It gives our youngsters a chance to perform and also gives Moyes a chance to get to know more about players. Let us see how our players performed :

David De Gea- 8- He needed a clean sheet and he got one. Really good performance. He made some really good saves which at the end proved to be match winning. The Boy is growing and it is good for us. He already is one of the best if not the best Shot stopper in World football. Note he is only 22. I hope he plays for us for a long time. By the way I love his passing. Could have been a midfielder.

Rafael 8-  How much did we miss him. He is our best RB. He is so threatening while going forward which Jones or Smalling are not. His link up play with Nani and Kagawa was also admirable. Good to see him back

Smalling 7.5- I have always said he is better as a Centre back as he is a very good defender. Only flaw he has in his game is poor distribution. He needs to distribute the ball better. I feel he should be playing more games. I think Moyes likes this lad.


Evans  7.5- Atlast he gets to play. People dont understand his value but I actually like and rate Evans. He does commit some mistakes but overall he is a very good defender who is 25 only. Defenders like Goal keepers peak late. I feel time has come for him to take over from Rio.


Buttner- 7- He also had a  decent game. I first wanted to see Fabio in action but Buttner did not disappoint me. But he  needs to improve his defending. Attacking wise he is Good. One thing I really admire about buttner is his passion and attitude. Always ready to fight for the ball.


Nani 7.5- Whether anyone likes him or not but its a fact at the moment he is our best winger. Yes he does frustrated when acts like a selfish player but thats his game. Yesterday he may have shot over the bar many times but yet he kept on trying. He will improve. He was motivated as he has put his contract talks behind him. Our first choice winger. Period

Jones 7.5- I loved his performance yesterday. Those who are saying he is Oshea-II no guys he is better than that. He was playing as a defensive midfielder and he did quite well there. Even moyes appreciated his work. He had to deal with 3 midfielder and also with Suarez and he did quite well. I still prefer him as a central defender but in a 3 man midfield he could really do well atleast this is better than him playing at RB.


Giggs 6.5-  People are always ready to bash giggs. Honestly yesterdays performance by giggs wasnt that bad. His defensive work was really good and his passing is still one of the best. I was very frustrated with his corners. I feel we need to utilise the corners better. Yes we scored from that but still giggs corner's were piss poor. Still judging by rating he was our worst player in the pitch. I still thought it wasnt that bad.

Kagawa 7- I really Kagawa. In the first half I really felt sorry for the lad. But he improved in second half quite drastically that to. He prefers to play in Right side , but his best position is Centre. Kagawa grew and grew the more he took up positions in central areas, clear evidence that he cannot kept being shunted out wide. One thing I did notice about Kagawa is he is a team player and thats why he was successful at Dortmund and is successful with Japan. He loves to play quick passing game. Not a dig at other player here but I feel players like Nani and Rooney prefer to shoot than pass in attacking area. Kagawa could have scored two goals as he was in a great place but he didnt get the ball but saw his attacking team mates shoot the ball. Having said that his link up with Nani and Hernandez was really good.

Rooney 8- He is really putting some classy performances. People moaned why he was given the arm band but I liked that decision. He does very well when given the responsibilty. I feel hodgson should do the same and make Rooney England's captain. If not for Mignolet's Save Rooney could have continued his Freekick Goal scoring run. He is back and I hope he continues to give performances  like this through out his career here.


Hernandez 8.5-  He is one of the best poachers in world football right now. I  was amazed to see how much he has improved his all round game. He needs to start more. If RVP is not fit play him. Moyes should take full advantage of him. He looks motivated and will give his best. Also noticed he has bulked up. Come on play him regularly he deserves it. Loved the goal. He is a world class finisher.

Substitutes

Carrick 7- He really came on and composed the game. I am happy Moyes gave him rest. He needed that. Cant afford an injury to him.

Janujaz N/R- Wont rate him as he didnt get the chance to be involved but really happy he gets to play in big games like this. It is only matter of time before he starts in games.

Welbeck N/R- No point rating him. I liked this substitute. Remember last year's league cup where in we lost to chelsea, it was Nani at the fag end giving the ball away. Smart move by moyes.

Man of the match- HERNANDEZ- Really performed well. His movement was really good. His passing has also improved and his finishing as we all know is  top quality. He must start more games especially if our Main man RVP is not there.

Team Rating- 7.5/10

Overall quite pleasing performance. If you look at the ratings, no on ehas performed bad. Even giggs had a decent day. Players wanted to win it for themselves and for their manager and for us fans. If we had lost this one too then it would have been really hard to get the confidence back. Moyes needed this win more than anyone. Next in the league cup is Norwich at home so atleast we can see more young players in action.  Well done boys

Changes that Moyes should do

It never feels good when you lose a derby match and that to this badly. But we have to look forward. Its not for the first time we have suffered loss like this. We lost 4-1 to liverpool at home in 08-09 season and yet won the league and went on to reach the finals of the Champions league . We lost 6-1 at home to City and bounced back by remaining unbeaten in the next 9 league games.

The Moyes Era so far has been mixed bag for us. We won the Community shield and Thrashed Swansea away but managed to get only 1 point out of 9 from big games. Its too early to judge Moyes but he needs to do some changes. Here are those

1) Bolder in his approach- This has been the biggest Flaw so far in Moyes. I feel he is very reserved with in himself and that shows even in our game. I feel he is hesitating in dropping the experienced players. He even said in an interview recently that he prefers to play with Rio and Vidic. This is a wrong approach. Try being a bit Bolder moyesy, results will come in our way.

2) Needs to drop Rio- He needs to stop over depending on Rio. Ferdinand is having a ordinary season so far. I love Rio but Age is atlast catching up with him. Evans and Smalling would be better choice to Ferdinand at the moment. Evans and Vidic could be our best option in central defense.

3) Needs to play more attacking football in Big Games- He should start to play more attacking football. In all three big games, Moyes has  adopted a defensive approach. It seems he is playing for not to lose rather than to win. This is not United way Moyes. He needs to change this Habit as soon as possible. We need to win big games.


4) Needs to play Kagawa, Zaha and Nani-  Its time where Kagawa gets his chance. I cant understand why Moyes doesnt prefer Kagawa. But to his credit the season is only 5 games old so he will give chance but he needs to do it quickly. Zaha and especially Nani should replace Young. Nani has signed a new contract so he will be motivated so unleash him. Dont start with Giggs. Also gradually integrate Janujaz in the squad.

5) Stamp his authority - Moyes needs to come out of Sir alex's Shadow. This will take time but he should make sure he stamps his own authority now. Not adopt the Sir alex approach. SO far it seems moyes is playing safe. Just adopting the same set up that Sir alex used is not helping him. Take some bold decision.

These were the main 5 changes I want to see in Moyes. I know many  will have some other opinion also but I felt these were the most important. We fans should support him. Dont forget its not easy replacing manager like Sir Alex. He himself has said he needs time so we should be patient. We have had the toughest start compared to other teams . So we should support him.

BELIEVE IN MOYES

Players Rating: Manchester United v. Manchester City

Now if we thought our performance against Liverpool was bad , this was worse. If I want to I could easily describe the poor performance of each player in more than 10 lines, thats how bad they were. I will keep my review shorter. Lets get started.

David De Gea- 5- Really feel bad for the lad. I felt bad when we conceded 6 goals against city 2 seasons ago and now also I am feeling the same way. He could have done better for the third goal. I hope this doesnt effect his confidence.

Smalling 4.5- He is not a RB. I think the same about Jones and also also about Smalling. He should be playing as a central defender. He should have done much better for the goals conceded.

Vidic 5.5- He was one of our players who showed atleast some passion. He did make some good clearance. Having said that I expected him to organize our defense. He failed in that. He did do well in parts but he lost control of the team.

Rio- 3 This was a disaster waiting to happen. He has been our weak link in defense this season and yesterday it was visible. Age is catching up with him. Give smalling and Evans the chance now in Central defense.

Evra 5- I have always noticed that Evra gets lost when there is crisis. He does well in attacking but his primary job is to defend and he fails in that. It also seems he is tired. Give him some rest.

Valencia 5- Again Tony V had a different game in two halfs. In first half he was awful and as the game progressed he was performing a touch better. But that doesnt mean he was good. I feel time has come to give other winger chance

Fellaini- 5- Not a good game. I think he needs time. So dont want to be harsh on him. But did anyone notice he was more involved when we were playing 3 man midifeld in second half

Carrick 4.5- He had a horrible game. Now one thing is clear if this man has an off day we are going to struggle and thats what happened. For first 30 odd mins Carrick was no where to be seen. I felt he was playing too deep.

Young 4- Can we please drop him. Yesterday Kagawa should have played . I dont know how many chances will he be given.

Rooney 6.5- He was our best performer but having said that he too couldnt change the match. His corner was pretty bad. He like carrick was also playing very deep. Good freekick.

Welbeck 4.5- He was one player I was most disappointed with. I expected him to shine yesterday but he was not even involved in the game that much. He is much better than that.

Substitutes
Cleverly 6-  He was good. He was attacking city players which carrick and fellaini were not doing. I think it was more to do with the formation.

Man of the Match- No one deserves it.

I just hope we forget this defeat and move forward. I wont say we wont win the league or squad is shit. NO. That wont be correct. I have faith in the boys they will bounce back. I just Moyes become more bold. He cant be so conserved in his approach in big games. We have played 3 big games and in all those 3 he  has been adopting a safe approach. Thats not our style. Go and play for win and not for draw. I just hope we defeat Liverpool. A win will bring back some of our confidence. Just hope for the best

Best Line up for 2013-14 Season for Manchester United

I was just looking at our squad for this season and just thought what would be our best line up. I always prefer when we have aq fixed line up. We would know who will be starting in big games like we used to have in 07-08 season. Honestly we have a deep and strong squad. I just looked at all the possibility and came with this line up. 
             
              De Gea

Rafael   Rio     Vidic        Evra

        Carrick         Fellaini

                Kagawa
   
    Welbeck(Nani)        Rooney

                RVP

With this Line Up we can Gradually give Janujaz also the chance to perform. Hernandez will also get more chance as he is bound to replace on of the three strikers, In some games he could even start. Problem will be with Valencia and Young as they are natural wingers. Nani and Zaha eventhough wingers could still be effective in this formation but not sure about Tony V. Players like Phil Jones, Smalling , Evans can always chip in. Giggs can always contribute from the bench when needed. The best thing I liked about this line up is we can see both Kagawa and Rooney play together and that to in their preferred position. Rooney-Welbeck-RVP can keep on interchanging their position with Kagawa being the creative genius.


I know people will say we will be missing natural wingers if we use this line up. I agree and I always believe wing play always suits us. Having said that do you guys remember how we used to line up in 08-09 or 07-08 season. Yes ronaldo was a winger but he played more as a Forward and rooney used to take care of left wing interchanging with Tevez. So same could be done now with Rooney and RVP interchanging the position. We dont need a true winger. Kagawa could drift into left when needed. This line up gives us flexibility also. We can change by bringing in wingers.Time for 4-4-2 is gone now and we cannot play 4-5-1 as that will mean only one of Rooney and RVP will play. I know people will say Kagawa has to prove himself before getting selected but he can only prove or improve if he gets selected. He needs to play regularly. 

If I was the manager I will give this line up a try for sure. What you guys think?

Players Rating- Manchester United v. Bayer Leverkusen

Now Clearly that was our best performance this season, yes we did concede  2 goals but atlast we became more creative in the attack. We could have score 6 or even 7. Really good performance. So now lets look how our boys fared

De Gea- 6.5- He had nothing to do for 50 odd minutes but then bayer increased their game level and started to attack. Couldnt do much about the first goal but he should have done much better for the second goal. He needs to command his defenders more. The corner from which the goal was conceded should have been avoided. Even the goal should have been avoided. Other than this he did make some decent save.

Smalling- 7- He is  better option at RB than Jones but I still prefer to see either of the twins (Fabio or Rafael) as RB. Defensive wise Smalling did a great a job which shows he should play as a centre back. He couldnt help valencia by going forward. I have high hopes from him. He should get more chances at his natural position that is Centre back.

Rio- 6- I havent seen Rio been so indecisive in a game like yesterday. He made 3 or 4 mistakes. It seems he is tired. Smalling performed much better defensively than Rio. I wouldnt have mind to see Smalling start instead of Rio yesterday. But Moyes didnt want to take risk and rightly so. I hope he just brings his A game against City.

Vidic- 7.5- He was much better than his partner Rio. He really commands his area. His performances is reminding me of his old days. Hope he just stay's injury free.

Evra- 7- Was is it only me who felt Evra was tired. He was decent in defense but he lost possession 2 or 3 times or even more. I have always loved to see evra going forward and even in this match he did that part really well. He even got a assist. Nice work Paddy.

Valencia -8 - Ohh how much have we missed seeing this Tony V. Especially his second half performance was just awesome. This is how he should play. Be more confident and start taking on the defender. Loved how he scored the goal. A bullet shot. WELL DONE. More of this on Sunday also please.

Carrick- 8- A really good performance by Carrick. I noticed he was more comfortable playing with Fellaini as now he can concentrate on passing the ball rather than also focusing on winning the ball back. He was really good today.

Fellaini-7.5- Pretty decent debut by fellaini. I lost my count on how many times this lad won the ball for us. He is just too strong for players to handle. He will be very useful in these big european games. He also does a great job in the defense, he clear so many balls by his head. The moment he was subbed we conceded a goal from corner. This shows his importance. Only thing that I wanted to see is He should be going forward more often. I thought he was very conserved. But he will improve on that once he start playing more for us.

Kagawa- 5.5- I really love when Kagawa starts for us. It was his first start this season and he didnt do that much. He started of really well by making some cheeky passes to RVP. But as the game progresses he got tired. It was natural as it was his first game. He was easily getting out muscled by the opponent players. He will improve gradually.

Rooney 9- Yes he was the best player in the pitch. I am honest with you guys when I say that I was damn frustrated when Rooney did not pass the ball to RVP when RVP was all alone. After that we conceded and they equalised. But he made amends for that by scoring a goal and passing a beautiful ball to Tony V for him to score. Well done. Congratulation for his 200th goal.

 RVP- 8- Ok I have to get this out of my chest, How come a players scores tough goals so easily and misses sitters. RVP scored a great goal with ease. But at the end he misses a sitter. I have always seen RVP do that. He misses easy ones and score some unbelievable ones. With rooney dominating RVP wasnt seen that much but as the game progressed he played deep and started to get involved in the game. Now that what great players do. This is where he is different from the dutch legend Ruud Van Nistelrooy ( I loved him very much). He has already scored 6 goals this season. So be ready for another 25+ goals from the dutch maestro provided he stays injury free.

Substitutes 

Young 6.5- I have to admit it he has been performing really well. His good pass to Rooney created the goal for Valencia . He was doing better than Kagawa. I feel he will start against City. I also noticed Moyes prefers to play Young.

Cleverly- 6- He was not bad but we saw the difference between Fellaini and Tom. Cleverly does all the hard work but he hesitates to pass forward or take the ball and run with it. His short passing is good though. I always want him to succeed here. Now with fellaini arriving he needs to take the given chance.

Hernandez - NR- Did he even got to touch the ball. I feel for the lad. He deserves to play more but cant blame moyes as RVP and rooney are doing a fine job. Chicho just needs to be patient and Moyes should just keep on reminding him that this is a long season, you will get chance. I just dont want to lose this lad.

Man of the Match- ROONEY. Performed really well and also scored his 200th goal. Great achievement. He should do the same against City as he loves scoring against them. I am loving the fact that now we are seeing both RVP and rooney score goals. Hope this continues through out the season.

Overall it was a fine game for us, 3 points is what we needed. Like moyes said in his post match interview that you dont want to chase the other teams. Next game against Shaktar will be tough. Just dont lose that one. There were few issues that would bother Moyes and that is Defense.  We have seen once we score 3 or 4 our players tend to take it casually especially likes of Rio and Evra. I hope Moyes addresses this issue. I am happy we are scoring goals also. The talks of our team is not creative and moyes is adopting defensive approach has been put to bed for time being atleast.

GOOD WIN.

Our squad status

Current squad status
De gea- Potential to be world class.
Rafael- Same as above Should get over his injuries as soon as possible
Evra- His peak years are over. Replacement needed. Fabio could be the answer
Jones-Another player who can be world class. Very high on him
Rio- Always does a fine job but his days are numbered. Need a replacement
Evans- Above average player but not like Rio or vidic
Valencia- Not a match winner but more than a squad player.
Anderson- Wasted potential. Last season to prove his worth.
Rooney- World class when involved fully.
Giggs- Should be given a part time role. Should not be the main midfielder
Smalling- Cant decide on him. This season(2013-2014) will be crucial;
Lindegaard- Good as number 2. thats it.
Hernandez- One of the best poachers in the world football right now. Deserves more chance
Vidic- Cannot depend on him now. Not sure he can play full season without injuries.Replacement needed
Carrrick-One of the Best player in our squad. Class player
Nani- Had a potential to be world class but this season can again bring back Nani at his best
Young-Average squad player. Thats it. Wont mind if he is sold in a year or two
Welbeck- Another player who has loads of talent but this season(2013-2014) will be the key.
RVP- world class player and oneof the best strikers in the world football right now.
Henriques- Boy is talented like hell. Loan spell would be good.
Fabio- This season(2013-2014) will be crucial
Cleverley- Falls in the category of Welbeck,Smalling and fabio. Needs to stamp his authority. High hopes from him
Fletcher- Unfortunate. Cant depend on him now.
Powell- Deserves more chance. Better version of gerrard for me. Good to see him go on loan
Kagawa- Potential to be world class. Key to our european campaign.
Buttner- Cant decide on him. But he has talent. This season will be crucial
Zaha- Potentrial to be world class. Love the kids play. High hopes of him
Michael Keane- The best defender we have in our academy. Should be playing games and gradually replace Rio.
Janujaz- For sure the best talent we have. Great debut. Sign him to long contract pls.
Fellaini- A great buy. A strong midfielder, just what we needed. Have high hopes from him

Our squad is very much underrated by the pundits and even by our fans. We have very good depth. We have many players who have the potential to be world class like I have mentioned in my squad status. Moyes is already enjoying working with this squad which I am not at all surprised with. I am excited to see how we perform as the season progresses.

Players Rating: Manchester United v. Crystal Palace

I will be from now on rating our players after each game.
Atlast we got our first home win this season and that to quite comfortably. There were quite a few positives from this game. I will straight go into the business.

David De Gea 7 - I cant remember a game where de gea had not to make even one save. This was the game where he had absolutely nothing to do. Glad he gets a clean sheet. 2nd this season.

Fabio 7.5 - Now if I was happy one player starting in the line up then that player was Fabio. He like his brother has loads of talent, poor guy injuries gets better of him but I Feel his time is coming atlast. I am happy Moyes is trusting him. He had a very good game. Just like his brother he was also bombing forward which was very much missing since rafael got injured. Overall happy he got 90 mins under his belt.

Vidic- 7.5- He like de gea had almost nothing to do. But his presence is needed. I have always said if he stays fit for the whole season we will be winning couple of trophies at least. Vital player for us.

Rio 7- He like his partner had nothing great to do but he was caught by Gayle and that could have cost us a goal. He tends to get a bit casual. But again we also need him fully fit for important games. 

Evra 8- He ranks the best among defenders today because of his attacking qualities. He really has proved his doubts wrong by improving his performance immensely. I have always felt he performs much better when he is under pressure. Moyes talked about bringing back up and he performs like a champion. Great performance. Love to watch him.

Valencia- 5.5 Yes he was bad again. In first half he was hardly involved. Fabio was doing a much better job than him .In second half he was touch better but his crossing again disappointed . I dont think he warrants his place right now. With Nani signing his new contract and Zaha waiting in the wings cant see Tony V starting regularly.

Carrick 8- Another master class performance by Carrick. I have always been his fan and he always proves me why I am such a big fan. He was so composed that it was just giving me pleasure to watch him have the ball. His passing wasnt his usual self but the way he controlled the midfield was just worth appreciating.

Anderson 5 - He disappointed me big time. When I saw him starting I thought today is the day he proves his worth but he failed miserably. It is a shame as this boy has great talent. What frustrates me is his lack of interest while he is playing. Just lazy efforts when you know you may not get that many chances. Poor stuff.

Young- 6 So our most controversial player in the pitch. I never support players who dive and young just did that. It brings a bad name to the club also. Having said that the second was a penalty and not a dive like some are saying. Young did produce few good chances for himself and that is why he is ranked better than Tony V. But dont do the diving thing again Ashley.

Rooney 7.5- If you take out the sublime goal he had an just OK day but after the goal he showed his worth, he became more involved . It was just pleasing to see him scoring again. The boy looked interested again and was smiling. The only thing that I want to see him playing the same way with RVP also. He only shone after RVP was substituted. Him playing the same way along with RVP will be scary for opponents.

RVP 7.5- He also had a decent game. He could have easily scored a hattrick if he was lucky. I just love his left foot. His link up play with Rooney and others were nice. He has already scored 5 goals this season. Just stay fit and he could again score 25+ goals this season.

Substitute 
Fellaini 7.5- I dont know about others but he really showed what we were missing in the midfield, Did you guys notice how comfortable Carrick was after the introduction of fellaini. He won the ball numerous times for us and that made carrick and rooneys job much easier. I am eager to see him link up with Kagawa , Nani, RVP, Rooney and all other players. Also loved that bullet shot which was saved. Brilliant signing. Still if people think we should have bought Ozil instead of him then god bless their footballing knowledge 

Janujaz 7.5- I could have easily given him 8 but I controlled myself. Ohh this boy is special. He won freekicks at important position and one of which resulted in a goal. He will become like a Ozil or Silva or even much better. He is not a winger but still played quite well. Play him as an attacking midfielder you will see his real worth. Thank You Moyes for bringing him. i AM sure we are going to see many more skills from Janujaz this season and coming season. Just give him new contract please.

Hernandez 6.5- I should have rated him but He showed his importance in his 10 odd mins cameo. I just hope he start some games also. The boy is much better than a super sub. He has also improved his other aspect of games. Would like to see more of him.

Man of the Match-Evra- Now I was in a confusion on whom to give MOTM between Carriick and Evra. But I decided to give it to Evra. I just love his attacking play. I also heard he gave a inspiring speech to his french national team players before their victory over belarus. Just love Paddy. Carrick also performed brilliantly though.

Overall quite pleased with the result. Like I said there were quite a few positives. One thing that Moyes has done well is he has improved our defense from last season. Last season we were conceding goals for fun but this season we have been doing quite well in that department. Also it is nice to see Moyes trusting young players. A bit disappointed that Zaha did not get few mins to shine. He deserves his chance especially after the poor showing by our wingers. 

BELIEVE IN MOYES

Replacing the great Sir alex was never going to be easy. Even for us fans to see some other manager here in United will b every tough to watch. We have all been used to see the great Sir Alex shouting from touch lines. SO moyes has a great job ahead of him. It has only been 2 months since the appointment of moyes and we have already heard  peopel moaning. 

So This is for all moyes doubters.I have heard some say how good can  moyes be for us? I will give my analysis to it.

I was just looking at evertons performance under moyes in last 7-8 seasons and you know to my astonishment I found them always in top 7. It seems they were the silent heroes in premier league in last 6 years. Then I looked at the spending of everton, the players that moyes have bought. Then again I found that they hardly buy any player. The most expensive player that moyes bought during his reign was fellaini for 15 millions. Now that is soime big achievement if you ask me. Look at liverpool they are continuously spending more than moyesâ€s everton and yet they are finishing lower than everton.

Then another complaints from fans are that he has not won any trophy. Yes he has not but I feel he didnt need to. I saw a comment made by evertonâ€s chairman in 2010 and he said trophies are important but my priority is league, to be consistent in the league. Now what this shows is moyes never had any pressure on him for winning a trophy. All he was asked to do was to be consistently in top half of the table and he did that. Finishing in top 6 consistently with this so limited budget aint easy. He only had 4  OR 5 above average players not even world class just above average. And yet he made everton a top 6 club . He had such a small squad that even if he wanted he couldnt compete in all three competitions (League cup, FA cup and the league). But here in united he will have players. He will have squad full of above average players and 4-5 world class players in it. He will have the pressure of fans and owners to do well in all competition unlike in everton.

The third complaint is he has no experience in europe. Ok answer me did De Matteo had any experience in europe or even as a manager? Yet he won chelsea a champions league. Yeah it was lucky but still he won them a cup. Did experience matter then. Now Did AVram grant had any experience in managing in european games? No. Yet he took chelsea to the final. If terry had scored he would also been a manager who would have won chelsea a champions league and that to without any experience. And Did Pep had any experience in europe? No. Yet he made Barca win Chamions league two times. See Managers experience doesnt count. Its upto the players. If they are good the club is good. 

Moyes has an experience of managing Everton. He has experience of managing against A champions league winning side like Man united, Chelsea and Liverpool and also to runner up in Arsenal. So he has the experience of facing big clubs. I say have faith in him. He is a strong character and not a pussy. He can challenge any clubs manager. Give him few millions to spend he will be enjoying it and with our squad he will be happily winning trophies for us.

BELIEVE IN MOYES