Terrace Talk

There were a number of subplots to what would be a great day for the Reds. I was surprised that I hadn’t heard more media hype about Dimitar Berbatov coming to Old Trafford. Usually The Sun would be completely consumed with catalyzing transfer gossip, however it seems that a new manager and the complete dismantling of Arsenal the previous week was enough to qualm any creative rumors. In the build up to the game, I heard more about Juan Ramos’ refusal to open a bottle of red wine if his side lost, than I did about the Bulgarian’s supposed transfer.

Looking at both starting sides and United’s stingy defense at Old Trafford, which has only allowed 2 goals this season to opposition prior, I couldn’t imagine anything else but a Red victory. Huddlestone has looked quite good the previous two seasons, but placing him in central defense against United’s attacking force did not foster optimism in the traveling fans, regardless of his time at Derby County. Is it just me who looked at Huddlestone and was reminded of Big Bird?

The opening ten minutes of the match were quite scrappy with United guilty of missed opportunities. On multiple occasions, United made poor passes, and generally did not show the level of sharpness with which the fans are accustomed to. This is not the first time this season I’ve seen United drag their feet in the first minutes of the game, and I truly have to wonder if the lack of focus is due to the missing Gary Neville. With traffic only going towards Cerny, possession was surely, not the issue. I truly feel for the goalkeepers that are exposed to shots from Ronaldo and Rooney, for the first time. Both had some crackers and he was definitely tested early.

Patrice Evra was the highlight of the game up until the opening Robbie Keane goal. He has a fantastic eye for seeing the passing lanes and in particular, has met the physical challenges of the league when it’s been required. In fact, I think he must have been in the weight room over the summer because he has looked quite strong. That said, he was too slow against Aaron Lennon, who setup a goal against the run of play.

Speaking of defensive mistakes, Dawson and Lee should seriously consider a career in bad comedic Broadway theatre (bas is a little redundant). They should probably be joined by Jenas, who left his shooting boots at home, once again. With Ramos looking to make changes in the coming months, I wouldn’t be surprised to see many of Tottenham’s defensive players leave for teams lower in the table. While I was impressed with Tainio and O’Hara, I could not help but wonder if Spurs would have been more composed in the last half hour if Ledley King was on the pitch.

United continued to have issues in the second half, while still dominating possession time. Neither Hargreaves or Carrick looked particularly solid and I celebrated the inclusion of the “Ginger Prince” on 63 minutes. Immediately he showed the difference in class. A series of passes to Ronaldo and Tevez, really underlined why he has been the best English midfielder for over a decade.

The game was over after the Dawson’s red card and Ronaldo’s subsequent penalty. I found the crowd’s rendition of “Are you Arsenal in disguise” quite amusing, considering it was the visitor’s chant only a half hour before.

Anderson came on after 80 minutes for the absolutely brilliant Carlos Tevez. Both will only improve, but I’ve truly been won over by Tevez. He blends the calm and composure of Ryan Giggs with the terrier like determination of Wayne Rooney. I never doubted that the Apache would be able to fit into the system, but neither could I unequivocally say that I understood what Sir Alex had in mind.

This game actually had more importance than we think. United have been quite poor this year when the opposition scores first. Against both Manchester Shiteh and Blackburn we played poorly when we needed an outstanding performance. Today we didn’t need an oustanding performance, but we certainly proved we could give up an early goal and still save the plot. In the end it was a quite comfortable second half for United if you ignore a strange ball off of Wesley Brown that hit the post. United certainly missed Vidic, but have still moved into the next round. We’re the famous Man United and we’re going to Wembley.