An off-colour Manchester United glanced past West Bromwich Albion with a glance of Javier Hernandez’s head, but Di Matteo’s Baggies will almost certainly see this as an opportunity missed following Peter Odemwingie’s terrible penalty failure.
United started the half in a familiar 4-4-2 formation, with something of a twist to compensate for Nani’s absence. Rooney partnered Berbatov in attack with Gabriel Obertan on the left hand side and Darren Fletcher along the right, yet his natural instinct to play inside the centre led to quite a narrow midfield.
This in itself wouldn’t have caused too much for a concern if it wasn’t for Ferguson’s choice of right-back. Rafael has been hugely impressive in recent games in spite of his youthful, tendencies and is normally very industrious on the right. Gary Neville, however, is not. Neville offered very little going forward and even less defensively, arguably exposed by Fletcher. This culminated in a rash challenge that should’ve seen his dismissal and a penalty to West Brom.
It didn’t take Ferguson long to ring the changes, with Fletcher finally allowed inside, Rooney dropped to the left and Obertan swapped over to the right in order to aid Neville. Swapping Obertan’s flank also bore its own use, as himself and Patrice Evra were playing like they had been introduced at half time and, as a result, several attacks broke down due to their lack of familiarity.
This tactic was changed yet again, however, after the break as Ferguson rang the changes in an attempt to salvage the game for United. Off went Berbatov, struggling to have an impact when left to toil on his own, followed by the equally ineffectual and frustrating Obertan and Gary Neville. Replacing them were Darron Gibson, who took over right-sided duties; Fabio Da Silva, whose pace seemed to nullify a fair amount of Jerome Thomas’ movement and Javier Hernandez, who once again popped up in the box to score what could prove to be an all-important goal for United come May.
After Hernandez’s headed goal, which came about from a frankly appalling piece of set-piece defending from West Brom, the half played out without too much drama and United achieved what they couldn’t during the week, holding on in the midlands for three points.
Sir Alex Ferguson will undoubtedly be thankful for the result, though, as this match could have finished very differently. Ironically, the centre of United’s problems today lay out wide. A disastrous day at the office for Gary Neville and Patrice Evra was complimented with a thoroughly fruitless display by Gabriel Obertan and the absence of another out-and-out wide player. This seriously impacted on United’s forward play where there pass completion rate in the opposition half was their second lowest of the season at just 68%, Obertan the chief offender, misplacing 12 of his 36 attempted passes, eight of those in Baggies territory.
The opposing end of the ball-retention scale was Michael Carrick, who is quietly achieving something of a renaissance in form over recent weeks. His presence in the side is something of a calming one and he operates completely differently to the likes of Fletcher and Gibson. His subtle passing eases pressure on the defensive line while probing for openings in the opposition and the United chief will no doubt value an in-form Carrick. His pass completion rate was amongst the best on the field, standing at a highly impressive 89.7%, including a dynamic, midfield splitting pass for United’s opener whilst losing the ball on just six occasions all afternoon. He might not receive all the accolades or grab the headlines, but his value cannot be overstated when he is this effective.
by Guardian Chalkboards
Taking the West Brom stance, Roberto Di Matteo must be wondering how a midfielder can achieve such a high pass completion rate in a league as competitive. The answer is relatively simple, he was never pressured into a mistake or rushed pass by West Brom’s central midfielders… It’s a lesson that they must surely learn from if West Brom are to realise their potential, as the Premier League is full of midfielders capable of dictating the tempo in such a way if they’re given the time and space to do so. The midfield duo of Mulumbu and Dorrans made a combined eight interceptions, yet just one was in United’s half.
Also integral to United’s win was Wayne Rooney’s work rate and determination. Ending his goal drought from open play will have come as a huge relief for Rooney himself, but more pleasing for the fan’s will have been his all round performance. Even during the short spell in which he found himself shunted onto the left towards the end of the first half, the position he struggled in against Birmingham, he ran tirelessly and looked to create opportunities, doing so by placing the ball on Chicarito’s head for the winner. Rooney’s stats are equally as impressive, winning all but two tackles made, making four interceptions and completing a string of forward-moving passes to inspire United forward.
by Guardian Chalkboards
Manchester United were far from their best on today’s showing but have escaped the worst of the congested Christmas period exactly where Ferguson will want them; topping the table. If they can continue to grind out results while a number of players are off-colour, then they’re a good bet for the title destination.
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