You can't win the title in your first ten Premier League games, but you can certainly lose it, and that is exactly what happened with Manchester United. They were unfortunate to have such a tough run of fixtures. United had to face Chelsea, and then Liverpool and Manchester City away so early on. United took one point from those games, below their normal standards, but it was their failure to bounce back that cost them. Dropping points at home to West Brom and Southampton were catastrophic.
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| United were blown away by Manchester City. |
Traditionally United are known to score late goals to gain crucial points. This season, their failure to see games out, notably against Southampton and Cardiff, has cost United crucial points. I remember these matches and it wasn't because the manager made a mistake, the players were missing easy chances to kill the game off. After a poor start to their title defence, and seeing things I'd never seen before, such as booing at Old Trafford, David Moyes started to get the team going. It was always going to be tough for whoever took over. But United went on a run of six wins in a row in all competitions, a run that stretched through December and in and out of the Christmas period.
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| Adam Lallana snatches victory away from Manchester United. |
The final hurdle was Spurs at home and the luck just wasn't on their side. United defended poorly, having said that they absolutely battered Spurs in the 2nd half and had seven attacking players on at one point, extraordinary. The referee was poor, but United can't look at this game and say the title was lost here. United lost at home to Spurs last season but still won the title, it was always a tough fixture. United's mistakes at the start of the season blew them away. I think David Moyes had probably hoped the teams further up the league would drop more points, but it just wasn't to be. So where do United go from here because it's not all doom and gloom, they had the perfect month in December.
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| United's form in December was almost perfect. |
To climb the table, Moyes has to maintain the standard that has been set in the last month. The midfield desperately needs strengthening and signing players in this transfer window is crucial. If December's form can continue, they'll certainly climb the table and get into the top four. The title has long gone unless the top teams capitulate, which looks extremely unlikely. It was always going to be a transitional period but I believe Moyes will have built a top side by next season, if not the season after. Young players such as De Gea, Rafael, Evans, Cleverley, Jones, Januzaj and Welbeck shows that United have a bright future. With some key signings, this team will be up there with the best in the country, make no mistake about that.
