United Dodge Bullet (Reading 2 - Manchester United 3)

I like early goals, but I think after today's game, I'd be hoping we don't score too many early goals.

We started the game with only 2 recognisable first team players, Edwin Van der Sar and Rio Ferdinand, and 9 other players from the squad. Of course an argument could be made for Saha being the first choice striker.

Anyway, we started the game with a bang, scoring 3 times in the opening 6 minutes. Goals from Heinze, Saha and an exquisite strike from Ole put us beyond Reading....or so we thought. For the next 15 or so minutes, we threatening to turn this into a route, probably on course to break some scoring record. But it was not to be, complacency and sloppiness creeped into our play and allowed Reading to regain confidence and control of the game.

They responded with an open header by Kitson on 23 minutes when the entire defense went napping.

And for the rest of the game we simply played awful soccer. While it was not Fulham-awful, it was still hard to watch for a United fan. We had numerous chances to put Reading to the sword on the counter, but besides Ole, everyone was plagued by stupidity and greed. The entire team was guilty of being too clever by making the extra pass when none was availably or taking a shot when a pass was the right option. To add to that, O'Shea and Fletcher had a terrible time in the centre of the park. They were outplayed and outtackled, basically non-factors for much of the game.

Then late in the second half, Lita scored to make things even more uncomfortable for us in the last few minutes. And in injury time, Reading hit the crossbar. It would have brought the game into extra time, and quite frankly it was something Reading utterly deserved given the way they clawed back into the game. They were the more determined side by far.

While Reading may have lost the game, they've definitely won over this blogger. Credit must go to Manchester United legend Steve Coppell for instilling the kind of character currently possessed by Reading. I wish them all the best....except when facing us.

As for us, if we continue to play in this lacklustre manner, I fear the worst at 'fortress' Anfield this weekend. I can already see Steven Gerrard and gang smacking their lips at the prospect, not to mention my fanatical Liverpool friends.

Ronaldo Steals Three Points (Fulham 1 - Manchester United 2)

Just when it looked like United was heading towards a 1-1 draw, up stepped Christiano Ronaldo to score a wonderful solo goal, skipping past two defenders to put United a whooping 9 points clear of closest rivals Chelsea.

Throughout the entire game, we were outplayed, outmuscled and outhustled by a very spirited and determined Fulham side. And it was little wonder that they took the lead in the 17th minute. Edwin Van der Sar and Vidic collided into one another while clearing the ball and it fell to McBride. It was by no means a simple tap in and McBride did well to steer it into the net beyond the scrambling Vidic and Ferdinand.

Fulham threatened to score a second goal with their robust play, but failed to do so and were punished by a sucker punch very much against the run of play. Rooney found Giggs with a cross and Giggs somehow miskicked and the ball skewed into the goal beyond Lastuvka.

In the second half, Fulham should have grabbed at least a couple of goals to put the match beyond United. Radzinski hit the crossbar with a header and Simon Davies forced a couple of utterly brilliant saves from Van der Sar, who made amends from his earlier mistake.

The honest truth is that I would have been delighted with a draw given the way we played today. We were second best in every department, and had it not been for Van der Sar, we should have been dead and buried a long long time ago. In fact this was probably and very possibly the worst we've played all season, or more likely, the worst we've been outplayed.

Getting all three points was a huge huge bonus, and underlined the kind of championship credentials we possess. I would be really disappointed if we do not lift the Premiership title this season. It's gotta be ours to lose now...surely.

Despite the amount of stick given to Ronaldo on this blog, he's the best player on the planet right now, bar none.

RIP DJ

As most of you who frequent this blog know, I'm a rather big Boston Celtics fan and today an old hero passed away suddenly. Dennis Johnson was part of the Celtics team that won the NBA in 84 and 86, playing together with Bird, McHale, Ainge and the Chief.

I remembered watching the games on TV (pre-cable days) and loving every one of those starting 5. It's sad to know that a childhood hero passed away at the young age of 52.

It's been a terrible season for the Celtics, losing Red, our record losing streak, injuries and now the passing of DJ.

DJ Tribute

RIP DJ.

Night of Mayhem

From the English Newspapers:

• Report from the Telegraph.

• Graphic account from United fan in the Guardian.

• More fan accounts in The Times.

• The Independent reports on police reaction making things worse. Article is in the middle of the page.
  

From the French Newspapers:

• No help here. Everything's in French and I can't speak a lick of the language, let alone read it!
  

It's Disgusting That.....

1.......the away United fans were treated like caged animals. I caught some highlights of what happened in the first half yesterday and read some reports and felt myself feeling disgusted how badly our fans were treated. I mean they were fenced up and packed like sardines and to make matters worse, they were tear gassed, pepper sprayed and beaten by batons when they tried to get out of an over crowded cage. Safety measures need to be taken more seriously. The last we need to tarnish the game is yet another unsavoury incident causing lives.

2......we scored the way we did. The more I thought about it, the worse it became. Whilst I'm glad we won the game, I'm disgusted with the way we did it. It's the type of goals typical classless losers like Arsenal and Chelsea would take pride in. We are United, and stooping down to the likes of rats taking pot shots is just not my/our style. We're better than this and should play to our level of integrity.....win or lose.

3......Lille coaching staff reacted to the goal. UEFA is currently investigating the reaction of the Lille players threatening to walk off after the goal. In my opinion it's disgusting and they should be heavily punished to set an example to everyone else. Having witness an even worse incident a few weeks back when Thailand did walk off the pitch and got off scotfree, a strong message is imperative. Whoever governing ASEAN and Asian football is nothing but a bunch of monkeys in suits.

4.....the Lille fans tried to hurt Gary Neville with missiles. After the emotions were stirred unnecessarily by the Lille players and coaching staff, the fans reacted by pelting United players with missiles. Again safety of the players and fans was compromised. Already a Dutch team was kicked out of the UEFA Cup due to crowd trouble. No doubt UEFA needs to look at the matter at hand and deal with this situation. Personally I would love to face Lille and give them a good hiding at Old Trafford, but I wouldn't be against it if they were banished from this year's competition as a punishment.

5.....Ronaldo reacted the way he did when he was substituted. Amidst all the controversy, Ronaldo's reaction to being substituted was completely missed by everyone. He was angry and disgusted, openly showing not only his disappointment but his disapproval at the decision. Perhaps rumours that he's no longer happy at Old Trafford does have legs and he's manufacturing a move to another club (possibly Spanish). If this is indeed true, then I've once again lost all respect for him. After completely forgiving him and throwing my fullest support behind him, I would personally feel utterly betrayed if he turns his back on us and leaves in the next couple of years. I'm sure many fans would feel the same after giving him our utmost support after the stick he's gotten after the world cup.

Controversial Goal Gives United a Slender Lead (Lille 0 - Manchester United 1)

I missed the first half coz I was at Cow's house playing mahjong and rushed back in time to set up the computer to catch the second half. According to the commentators, the first half was a putrid affair and I'm glad I didn't miss anything. The second half started with two really sweet chances by Rooney and Ronaldo, and largely us dominating the proceedings. But the dominance was shortlived.

A switch was suddenly turned on in the Lille players. They started to play football and started dominating possession. In fact they started controlling the game and looked the likelier scorers of the first goal. We didn't make things any easier on ourselves by playing scared and backing off from the Lille players, Carrick looked like the worst culprit here. The good thing was that it wasn't entirely one-sided. We still looked really good on the counter attack, without producing though.

In the 83rd minute, Saha was manhandled just outside the penalty box and the referee awarded a freekick. Giggs cheekily took the freekick before the Lille defense was ready and scored before the referee blew the whistle. It sparked a livid protest and a near walkoff from the Lille players ala Singapore vs Thailand in the National Stadium.

It looked like a dodgy goal but Giggs did look like he had the permission from the referee to take the quick freekick. What was more important was that the referee allowed it. Had Lille walked off the pitch, they probably would have immediately lost the tie, incurred a hefty fine as well as a suspension from future UEFA sanctioned competitions. Good thing common sense prevailed and the match did eventually play out.

I'm sure the controversy will continue and would be interesting to read the statements from the referee as well as the opinions in the papers on this matter.

As for the bottomline, we got an away win, an away goal and the lead in the tie. We just need to finish the job at Old Trafford in a fortnight's time.

Manchester Unitred Held in FA Cup (Manchester United 1 - Reading 1)

Unfortunately the Chinese New Year festivities caught up with Kentona and he fell sick, so no one caught the game. So the best I can give is the Soccernet report.

One thing I've noticed is that most of our draws and losses have come from late kickoffs. Both the Arsenal losses have come from Sunday late kickoffs and both Reading draws have come from Saturday late kickoffs. If I'm not wrong, the Newcastle and Chelsea draws also came from late kickoffs. Maybe there's a tread for the gambling types to take note off. I'd personally be crossing my fingers when the next late kickoff occurs.

Happy New Year

Early greeting to all the readers who celebrate the Lunar New Year. May the Year of the Golden Pig bring joy, good health and fortune to everyone, especially me.

As a result of the New Year celebrations, I have to attend a time-honoured tradition of playing mahjong with some close friends, hence tonight's game between Reading and ourselves will hopefully be reviewed by another good friend, Kentona. So give him all the support you've given me.....and all the stick as well.

Replacement Killers (Manchester United 2 - Charlton 0)

Ronaldo and Carrick were not in the squad today, but their replacements, Park and Fletcher scored to give us a somewhat respectable scoreline despite playing like shit.

Credit to Charlton who packed the midfield and made things difficult for us. It didn't help that we looked jaded, having many players participating in the midweek international friendlies. At times, we were also guilty of trying to be overly elaborate in our passes when a simple ball would have made the difference.

In short, we laboured for this victory, and until Fletcher's late goal, Charlton looked like getting something from this game.

We can take away some positives away from this game. Despite not running on full cylinders, we still managed to scrap a win against a spirited and determined side. Adding to that, we got two goals from players who rarely play. Players stepping up from all sides is important in the run in, especially when the injuries pile up and fatigue start to occur.

Van der Sar Injury Mars Brilliant Victory (Tottenham 0 - Manchester United 4)

Once again I'll try to make this short and sweet since I'd be needed to serve the nation in a few hours.

The game started off at a pulsating pace, with both sides playing an exciting brand of football. The referee, Clattenburg, had a horrid first half. He missed two obvious penalties, the first when Larsson was clumsily brought down by Gardner, and slightly later when Neville wrestled Chimbonda to the ground. Then he probably made the worst decision of all by awarding a penalty when Ronaldo tripped himself when he went between Lee and Malbrangue. Ronaldo stepped up to put away the penalty to give us the lead, making amends a point blank shot he missed early in the game.

The half time break did Spurs no favours as we struck two early goals in the second half by Vidic and Scholes to put the result beyond doubt. Giggs added a fourth in the 77th minute when Saha shredded the porous Spurs defence with a superb pass. Berbatov did have a couple of good chances foiled by Van der Sar.

Just when everyone thought the game was sewn up, the drama began. Van der Sar suffered a broken nose when Robbie Keane accidentally knocked into him and was carried off injured. United had already used up all their substitutes and up stepped the ultimate utility man, John O'Shea to don the keeper's jersery. And what a brilliant job he did in the closing minutes, by tackling Irish teammate, Keane in a one to one chance.

It was a comprehensive victory, one which we utterly deserved. And keeping a clean sheet despite the injury to Van der Sar was the icing on the cake. Not to mention, we once again increased the goal difference against Chelsea, who struggled to beat a spirited Charlton yesterday.

United Puts 4 Past Hopeless Watford (Manchester United 4 - Watford 0)

I'm in the middle of my reservist, hence only able to catch this game with one eye open. And I'm making this really short since I'd be outta the house in half an hour.

Couple of things here:
Watford is really hopeless. For most, if not the entire game, they were left chasing shadows. United made several changes from the last game, and it took some time for the players to gel. But when they eventually did in the second half, they absolutely murdered Watford. I have no doubts that Watford would be relegated. None whatsoever. The only bright spark for them this season is Ben Foster....and he's on loan from us.

The last couple of goals in the game were superb. We've simply got keep Larsson for at least this season. He came on as a sub and played really well. Rooney was brilliant as well.

Last but not least, we ended the match with O'Shea and Brown in central midfield. Oh, and Scholes was not missed in this game at all.