It has been a while since United fans have been able to confidently talk about their team.
Last season was a disaster under David Moyes as he took the reds from 1st to 7th place. Louis van Gaal eventually took over, and United have just won their fourth game in a row. That is not exactly a mind blowing statistic, but the recent performances suggest Manchester United have finally got their mojo back.
It all started on a Saturday night at the Emirates. Arsenal
controlled most of the first half, but De Gea who turned out to be one of the
stars of the show kept United in the match. Valencia ended up drilling a
deflected shot into the back of the net, and from that point onward it was a
case of defending well and picking Arsenal off on the counter. Di Maria and
Rooney linked up devastatingly and it could have ended 0-3.
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| The classic counter-attack ripped Arsenal to ribbons. |
Hull City next, and United passed them to death. It was
arguably one of United’s most dominant performances since Ferguson departed. The
fans are beginning to watch confident performances which were non-existent last
season.
Considering there have been 41 different injuries since van Gaal took
over. United have coped miraculously and with them comfortably sat in fourth spot
already, what is going to happen when a fully fit squad is available?
The biggest mystery this season has been the defence. More
defencive injuries have occurred than any other season. It is impossible to
build a solid defence without a consistent back four. According to most
experts, the back four is United’s weakness. Maybe so, or is that just a
scapegoat?
When you have van Persie, Falcao and Rooney up-front, with Di Maria
on the wing, how can other departments in the team live up to that. Since that
strange game against Leicester City, United have conceded 0.88 goals per game.
Hardly a crisis.
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| What defensive crisis? |
In terms of momentum, the Stoke win was a huge one. It was a
hard fought victory, grinded out right until the end. In the past, the best
teams have grinded out victories to win the title. This season United
will not get near the title, because Mourinho has had a whole year to build his
team. They are miles ahead.
My argument is how good will this United team be
once van Gaal has had a year to build. The good signs are certainly there and
it is time to take United seriously. Under Moyes United would get rolled over
but Old Trafford is a fortress again. I am confident this team will only go
from strength to strength. The good times will be back soon.
