Premier League: Manchester United 1-1 Leicester City

'Hopefully Man United can do us a favour.' Ok, first of all who does the favour here? No one is sitting here saying 'I have to beat you so that other team can win the title'. Nobody thinks about others here. It’s a competition for God's sake. It was really unnatural comment to make and when I read it, I was like 'Are you out of your mind?'. Anyway, that is what happened few days ago but what I want to write today is mainly about what happened today. I was desperately waiting for this match since last week. It was a moment of truth, moment of history and a huge contribution to the Premier League. So, just before the game started, I decided I will be happy whoever wins but huge part of me wanted Leicester City to win. While I write this, I am already imagining all United fans giving me 'WTH' look and throwing tomatoes at me. 

@goodreads

Now you all are probably thinking a fan like me has no place in United membership and it’s all my fault that United didn't win but before you start cursing, judging, buying tomatoes just to throw at me and kicking me out of the fan club, let me make my points clear.

As a United fan, I certainly wanted them to win as always but as a football fan, I really wanted Leicester to win. I know there is a matter of top 4 and Van Gaal's job security but look at the other side. Leicester city wining Premier League is one of the most beautiful things that can happen to EPL and somehow I wanted that to happen in Old Trafford. I wanted United and us to be the part of their win. I mean of course they can still win the title and we can still be in top 4 but after waiting desperately for a week and being restless since morning, all I get is a draw? This is not fair. I was really disappointed after the match. How difficult was it to score one more? I was so disappointed that I wanted them to replay this game. I am not going to accept draw here. 

Only if it was possible to take this case to the court. I was actually going through this scene in my mind, what if it can really happen in real? How would I defend my case? I went through it again and again in my mind. First of all I imagined all fans from both teams supporting me. Then I imagined all other teams including officials of EPL going against me. Now the case was getting tough. Then I would make a huge group of pro teams and give them speech everyday why this game should be replayed. The case would finally reach to the court. I was not scared because I had huge supporters. Finally the case ended after a long battle and obviously in my favour :). Then they decided to replay in Old Traford. Then what happened after that, I didn't get to finish my imagination. My friend sent me a message 'United neither wins nor let others win'. He was supporting Leicester too. Here you go, another one in my team :).

Anyway, the game was really tensed. Both teams were in huge pressure to win and that was making them more nervous. Towards final 10 minutes, it was like one of those times in exams where you have final 5 minutes to write and you just write whatever, hoping to get some points. Anyway, my whole excitement is gone now and I feel so empty. Looking forward to tomorrow's Chelsea vs Tottenham.

Manchester Derby: Manchester City 1-0 Manchester United

Holly suffering cats!!! No idea what on the earth was on Smalling's mind. At 39th minute, United was down to 10 men. 

Still the game didn't go as bad as expected. It was a typical Derby game. Very competitive and very enjoyable. The game we always know about. Everyone was doing their best but just that it was an unlucky environment. Rooney was great too. Anyway, it was nice to see him after long time. On the other hand, I was hugely impressed by De Gea. Some magnificent saves he made there. So proud of the team!! What a test for United and they carried it out perfectly well!!

Without a doubt, my man of the match is De Gea. 

BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE: Manchester United 1-1 Chelsea

WOW!!!

I was waiting for this match for a long time and without a doubt, it met my expectation. You know what, when Van Persie scored in stoppage time, it was an emotional time for me. Until that time, De Gea was my man of the match, and I seriously thought Jose Mourinho got away with that.

It was a great game and well deserved scores. We could have won but draw is always better than losing. I remember how United degraded last year and equally boring were their games. Now, things have changed. With new manager and £150m investment worth of new players, we have a quality squad. Di Maria, our £59.7m investment is definitely someone to look for. He will shine as he has always.

Chelsea looked very organised and confident from the beginning but on the other hand, United worked very hard. Although Chelsea look stronger this season, United challenged them with their hard work and winning mentality. Chelsea actually had to wait for corner to score, but that is corner, where players come on the way of goal keeper and poor goal keepers are lost in the crowd. Then came incredible equalising by Van Persie with his left foot. More than equalising, it was time for Van Persie to prove himself again and he did it magnificently. He still needs to improve his games though but I know when Rooney is back, everything will be alright :).

United is slowly getting used to their new tactics. Still lacking in defending position but in games like football, there is always room for improvement even though you are a winner. On the other hand, Jose Mourinho has definitely worked hard this season but lets not declare the winner now. As Van Persie said- 'We still have more than half of the games left so we can still catch Chelsea'.

It's not David Moyes who failed but Sir Alex!

I thought I won’t write anymore post about Premier League this season but situation changes. Especially when time like this, I can’t do any work but refresh twitter and BBC news frequently.

Last few days, I didn’t have proper access to internet. I couldn't watch United's match against Everton. So, I asked my friend to watch it and update me. He told me- 'It’s good you didn’t watch. United played really badly'. I couldn’t imagine how bad they could go from the last game I remember. 

Again yesterday, I got another message from my friend. He wrote -' Good news for you. Moyes is out of the club'. 

Actually, I don't consider "Moyes leaving United" a good news. My Professor has one saying- ‘If a student fails, it’s a mistake of a supervisor’. I feel exactly same here. I see mistake in Sir Alex’s decision. For a normal job, when a company hires a new employee, they don’t only check a person's experience but also whether that person’s skills and his style of working are compatible to the company’s Motto. David Moyes may have been brilliant manager for Everton but he couldn’t last for United because these are two different companies. Although they make same product, it’s other things that differentiate their position in league. Moyes didn’t come to United to destroy them. It was certainly not his intention. He worked very hard to keep the club up to the standard but its really difficult to replace someone like Sir Alex. When all the United fans were cursing him and all the fans from the opponent teams were laughing at him, I was still supporting him and I still think he should have been given until end of the season. After all, he is so called ‘The chosen one’.

I also believe that Moyes was being really unlucky. First, Van Persie and Rooney both got injured and strikers like Welbeck and Januzaj replaced them who were on bench most of the time during Sir Alex’s time. That’s the one mistake Sir Alex did. He should have promoted young players more. I couldn’t help thinking if all the players were fit to play, may be we would have at least ended up in top 4. On the other hand, I think people demotivated him too much. When they lost, they cursed him but when they won, players took all the credits. That job must be really difficult. There were numerous speculations that 'Rooney wants to leave', 'Van Persie wants to leave' 'Players don’t like Moyes' etc etc. We still don’t know what exactly happened in between the closed walls but in every interview, players and manager claimed everything is all right but from the way they played, someone would be stupid to believe their claim.

Someone would say, 'nothing will happen by giving him time until end of the season as we have already seen enough of him' but nothing will happen by firing him now. It’s just 4 matches to go and looking at how other teams are playing, I think 7th position is the best United can get this season. May be United is scared that they might slip down from 7th too. 

So Moyes, as I have always supported you, I still say you have worked very hard for this club. You certainly deserve to be treated well. So hope you end up somewhere in good position where your skills and technique will be more compatible. Good Luck!

BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE: Manchester Derby

Manchester United 0-3 Manchester City 

Belated post........

Was that really Manchester Derby?

Sometimes while watching football, I get a feeling whether losing team ever think in the middle of the game- “that’s it! We can’t do it anymore”.

I never thought United players think like that until last Derby match. So many times in past, we have seen them coming from behind but this time, it was regretfully inconceivable. 

Manchester Derby is the most competitive and popular derby in English premier league. Not only there is a competition to become a king of the Manchester but to dominate the English football. Their level of competition has always made this derby even more enjoyable to watch.

Now things are not same anymore. Since United has no hope of getting into top four this season, the plan was to stop loud neighbours getting 3 points. Draw was something I was looking for. Honestly, looking at how United is performing, I didn’t think United would win anyway. 

So, it was a big rivalry night but United looked really vulnerable from the start. It looked like United has no more winning mentality. It was torture to watch them play like that. Around 80^th minutes, I actually started feeling sorry for them.

During last 15 mintues of the game, I knew that was it. The game was over. Then fans started leaving even before the match finished. They were disappointed as me. As the supporters, we always want to see them working hard in the pitch no matter what but City totally controlled game and United looked totally lost. It looked like they didn’t want to play anymore. It was really embarrassing.

I have had enough of complaining and mourning about United players and their games. Still, I choose to disagree that was Manchester Derby game. That was definitely not what we know about it. 

All I can imagine was, Bayern Munich players thinking “This is who we playing next? Lets go to pub for pre-celebration."

BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE: West Ham United 0-2 Manchester United

I really wanted to write a post about the match against Olympiacos but couldn't spare a time. Anyway, it was a great come back for United. Who would have thought that they would turn the game like that? Thanks to our goal scoring machine Van Persie.

So back to Premier League! Since United’s living martyrs Van Persie and Valencia are unfit to play, I was concerned about who Moyes was going to pick and how the team will perform without the main striker. 

Today, when I saw the line-up, I was just happy that Moyes didn’t choose Januzaj and Welbeck to replace Van Persie and Valencia. It was time for Kagawa to shine. I had already forgotten he exists in the squad. So, Rooney replaced Van Persie and Mata took over Rooney's place. I must say it’s a great combination because that position was proved to be an effective position for Mata when he played for Chelsea, but Rooney-Van Persie partnership is just too good to let that place go to someone else. Both of them read each other very well and make great connections. To be honest, I didn’t see much of Mata today. I am just waiting for the day when he will score and make United’s investment worth it. Anyway, nothing to worry about, players have other duties to do in the pitch than just scoring. While Fletcher replaced Carrick, he was pushed down to defending position. I really respect Carrick’s all rounding ability. He is just perfect.

As always, Kagawa was very active and showed his great stamina. Fellaini was better than previous games today but sometimes he is just too slow. He takes the ball, holds it and thinks what he needs to do next. I mean, being United’s player, you have to be quick in decision making. I am also bit concerned about Rafael. He just seems to make too many fouls. However, the boys defended very well. Not to forget our great keeper David De Gea. When Rooney scored one of the best EPL goals till date from half way line, David Beckham and Roy Hodgson smiled from the crowd. Beckham was probably telling his son “I did that too” and Hodgson was probably thinking “I want you to repeat that in World Cup”. I am sure fans around the world took long deep breathe and relaxed a bit. Among them was United boss David Moyes. It was again Rooney who scored second goal and secured the victory. Today was totally his show.

Near to the 80^th minutes, Chicharito replaced Rooney and Welbeck replaced Mata. I would have liked another goal by Rooney but I was more excited to see Chicharito playing finally. We hardly see him now days. For me, he is one of the most hard working players in Manchester United. When he is in the game, you see him fully focused for 90 minutes. Something I like about him. I also understand Moyes' plan. Since Van Persie might be ruled out for the rest of the season and we don't know how long Valencia will take to recover, we should save Rooney and Mata for future games. 

It was great to watch United scoring and getting valuable 3 points. Boys didn’t show the fear of not having Van Persie in the team but still as a supporter, you get a feeling that had he been there, it would have been more than 2 goals. Anyway, this was Manchester United’s week. Tremendously happy about it :D

It was easy to choose Man of the match today, of course our dear Wazza!

BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE: West Brom 0-3 Manchester United

Oh my beautiful God!

It was RVP’s left foot free kick and baby Phil Jones’ heading that opened luck for United today. I always knew Phil Jones is a great player and splendid defender. An asset for both United and England.

Actually, it was hard to spot Van Persie in the pitch before the first goal. He was nowhere to be seen around the goal post (his usual place) and the way he was playing was as if someone had forced him to do that job. Utterly awkward to see him like that. I couldn’t help but wonder if the recent speculation about him losing interest in Old Trafford was true. Then came first yellow card for him. Again, he was close to getting second one. This time, Moyes didn’t want to gamble anymore. He thought it’s better to replace him rather than wait for probable distressful outcome that could make the team down to 10 men. If Chicharito wasn’t injured, he could have been an easy substitute for Van Persie and I knew if Van Persie was going out, Welbeck would come in which I didn’t want. And you know what? My prediction was right. Van Persie was out and Welcome Welbeck!

Van Persie should have been replaced immediately with Valencia but Moyes took time to decide. With Valencia in, Rooney could have taken Van Persie’s place and Mata to Rooney’s, and then Valencia to Mata’s. That’s what I would have done if I were Moyes. However, I kind of understand why Moyes prolonged the decision. United had to get this 3 points anyhow today and without Van Persie, it is mostly impossible.

I seriously didn’t understand what Fellaini was doing there. Kagawa would have been lot better than him but Moyes at some point have to prove that he did right by bringing him all the way from Everton. Still it was good to see Kagawa playing later on.

Anyway, lets not mourn much today. As long as they score, that’s all it matters. Then came a brilliant heading by our highest paid player, Rooney. Thank you Rafael for the great pass. That’s all we care about at the moment. Then Welbeck scored, making it 0-3 :D. So now, I take back all I said earlier. He proved to be a good choice after all.

Final remarks- Defenders did great job today whereas passing between the players still needs improvement. De Gea calmly made few great saves and it’s graceful to see Mata adapting into the team so well giving an indication that he always belonged here. It was hard to choose man of the match today. Mata, Carrick, Rooney or Phil Jones. It’s seriously hard. Let's just give credit to all of them.

So, that is Manchester United playing! That’s what we want to see.

Next week is another big and rivalry match against Liverpool. I would like to see few changes in today’s line up. Mata to left wing and Valencia to right wing, and please choose Kagawa over Fellaini.

BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE: Crystal Palace 0-2 Manchester United

I don’t remember when I enjoyed the match this much last time. After 5 days training in warm weather of Dubai, I guess every fan of United was expecting something magic today. At this point, every game becomes crucial and you have to win every one of them. After Everton lost against Chelsea, United fans and players were already excited to win and move up to 6^th position. It was also important day for Rooney: his 300th premier league appearance for United and his first game since his new £300,000 per week contract.

When I first saw the team line up, I wasn’t happy. I don’t know whether it's me or something else, I have never been impressed with Januzaj’s performance. He just looks too weak and you can never play like this for 90 minutes. Moyes seems to like him bit too much. People keep addressing him “Man of the match” sometimes but I don’t see at what aspects they say that. May be I watch different game than them. I thought Valencia would have done better job.

I must say, in the first half, I could really see some magical difference in the game though they struggled to score. At some point, they looked like they have forgotten how to score. Once upon a time, I used to criticize their defensive skills but now, I am talking about the strikers. I even asked myself “What happened to our Van Persie who used to score when he wanted to?”. Crystal palace might not have been in Dubai for the training but they certainly had similar training as United. They were defending very well. One of the closest target shot from United's side was by Fellaini. He got great chance from 10 yards but still couldn’t find the net. Isn’t that depressing? Well, we haven’t seen much of him anyway.

Second half was lot better. It all started when the penalty came in. I tweeted- “Thank you Evra for getting injured”. Speaking from an experience (I missed penalty once L), penalty is nerve dreading for both striker and goalkeeper. Since United has a reputation of missing penalty, I actually closed my eyes during that time and peeked through the gap of my fingers to see if they were celebrating. Then I knew it went through! And of course, Van Persie, a golden boot winner of last two seasons can never afford to miss penalty. Then came magnificent missile by Rooney; another goal for Manchester United.

So, that was the highlight. Moyes later brought Valencia and Giggs in and took Van Persie and Januzaj out. I didn’t actually understand what he was trying to do there. I got confused on whose territory is which after that but it was another 10 minutes to go and I wanted them to defence as much as possible. In 5 minutes remaining, Fletcher came in. I must admire Vidic today. Boys! if you can defence like that, we might just want to focus on mid field and striking, and we are done.

In conclusion, great game today! Van Persie and Rooney both scored and clean sheet for De Gea. The most important thing is United escalated up to 6^th position (Yay!) :D. David De Gea made some amazing saves and for me, either him or Rooney are eligible for man of the match title.

PS. Crystal Palace fans were bit rough though. I know its a big competition but you don't treat guests like that. Let them do their job. You just sit back and cheer for your teams but do not discourage others. 

BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE: Arsenal 0-0 Manchester United

Although this was not the top of the table clash, it is one of the games that not only fans but also players wait desperately. Manchester United and Arsenal have a long history of rivalry and when there is a feeling of strong rivalry, games become enjoyable no matter what. The highlight of show was Van Persie, who has a record of scoring from both sides. Since he joined United, he has scored in all games they played against Arsenal. So, he was expected to scored this time as well but since Manchester United haven’t managed to give quality games this season and Arsenal’s embarrassing 5-1 defeat to Liverpool last weekend, people were actually confused on whose favour the result will be this time. At least I expected Van Persie to score. Oh I know what happened! He couldn’t score because he was booed when his name was announced at the start of the game. Arsenal people still haven’t forgiven him for leaving them for Manchester United. C’mon people! You cannot expect players to retire in one club. Its his choice what he wants to do (Just like Ronaldo left Manchester United for Real Madrid). If he wants to change the club, learn new skills, work with new people and move on, that’s his choice. You all should respect his decision. You should admire player’s skills not the club’s trophies.

So that’s enough mourning. Lets review a game. Arsenal is pretty difficult club to beat especially this year when United is degrading and Arsenal is upgrading. Although United played better than few of their last games, I actually found this game quite boring (considering its Arsenal vs Manchester United). As strong as their rivalry is, the game used to be so exciting to watch. I guess draw was expected. I have actually reached to the stage where draw is like a win for me. However, I must admit United’s defending was magnificent today. I have always complained about their defence but today, they were playing like reigning kings. Vidic was very noticeable. Actually, even Carrick, Rooney and Valencia were seen defending and it was very clear that players were more focused on defending. Van Persie got few amazing chances but he couldn’t find net for himself. Attacking side was still bit weak today but we shouldn’t forget Goalkeepers did great job too. Both of them were so alert, active and defending. Juan Mata played from left wing but he wasn’t really noticeable this time. The team is still lacking some serious management plan. It looks like the whole team has to be reorganised and the players have to focus on what their part is. Sigh! 12 games left but wait! I actually forgot- “when was the last time United won?”