Authors: Doron, Nik and Phil

Follow Doron, Nik, Phil and BTP on Twitter

Beyond The Pitch and Stretford-End.com have come together once again to record another podcast, the fourth in the series. As ever, we look back on recent games and discuss the Reserves and Academy. Regular Stretford-End.com writer, Nik, joins the show this week to discuss referees specifically. You can also hear Rio Ferdinand and Fergie’s thoughts on the QPR game.

To listen to the podcast, click on this link. It is available to listen to or download on iTunes at this link.

Topics covered:

Looking back at QPR

Understandably, focus was on the Derry-Young incident but we did remember there were other incidents in the game! QPR set up negatively and United did struggle a bit against 10 men.

Refereeing and diving

Lead by Nik, we look at diving and the idea of ‘winning a penalty’ – acknowledging how hard it is for referees to get right and why some players do dive.

Paul Scholes and Michael Carrick

The impact he’s had on the team has been amazing – how has his form helped our title challenge? In fact, is he playing as well as he ever has? And, how come he’s suddenly learnt to tackle?! Meanwhile, has Scholes had an impact on Carrick this season?

Reserves and Academy

A full round-up of results and other news from the players below the first team. An U17 side and an U19 side have been taking part in prestigious youth tournaments abroad – the AEGON Future Cup and The Dallas Cup; both sides made it to the finals but how did they get on? This Friday sees United play in the FA Youth Cup semi final, a second leg tie away at Chelsea – can the young Reds turn around a 2-1 deficit? Player focus this week is on Daehli as he stood out at the Future Cup in Holland – technically he was as good as anyone there, including the Barca players. Meanwhile, Doron picks out Joe Rothwell and Ben Pearson as being key for the U18s.

Looking ahead… Wigan, City and the squad

With Wigan tonight, can we continue our good away form and win at the DW Stadium? Will Fergie rotate and use the squad again – a squad that is arguably the best in the league. Given the momentum is with us and our record at Wigan is so good, we all believe that we’ll get three points. In terms of changes – Hernandez and Giggs may come in for Welbeck and Young – we explain why.

We then get a bit side-tracked, discussing City, the United squad and whether it’s good enough to challenge in Europe. Do we need to sign a squad player or a star?

Bold predictions

You’ll just have to listen to find out what they are!

Once again, to listen to the podcast, click on this link. It is available to listen to or download on iTunes at this link.

To listen to the first three podcasts, click here.

Authors: Doron, Nik and Rob

Follow Doron, Nik and Rob on Twitter

Here’s installment number five of the “Things” column. Musings this week are brought to you as ever by Nik, Doron and Rob along with Anam from the excellent Arsenal Column who’s written about on Rooney. Boomshakalaka!

Former teenage prodigy needs to move again?! (by Doron)

Victor Moses shot to prominence as part of a group of talented youngsters at Crystal Palace – Clyne, Bostock and Scannell being the others. He was in the Palace first team from just before his 17th birthday and whilst he’d often impress in patches, he could never hold a regular starting spot – which of course was fine as he was just a teenager.

His move to Wigan in January 2010 was probably well-timed. He’d just been on a goalscoring run for Palace and would be involved in Wigan’s first team as much as he was at Palace. Whilst Martinez and Wigan attempt to play passing, attacking football, they’re not a particularly progressive team. Wigan are unlikely to ever advance much beyond the relegation zone and more often than not, are defending more than attacking.

In hindsight, Premier League football having just turned 19 sounds like a good idea but one has to wonder whether Victor’s ability has improved on the expected trajectory. Usually he’s used wide and sometimes through the middle as a striker – the lack of a settled position that truly suits him seems to be an issue. I think he’d be best used wide in a front three, a bit like Sturridge at Chelsea.

With Wigan battling against relegation, Moses issued a reminder of why he was so highly coveted as a teen – his composure and finish away at Norwich on Sunday was superb and got me thinking. He’s been involved in almost every league game for Wigan this year as well as being capped by Nigeria; yet, the hype around him seems to have dissipated.

I wonder if this summer is the time for him to move on again – to a better team. Wigan’s likely relegation won’t help his progression; surrounded by better players who are in possession more than Wigan may well benefit him. The question is, who’d make that gamble?! Villa, Swansea, Everton? Weird as it sounds, maybe even Arsenal? Either way, I’ve come to the conclusion he needs to move and get back onto the path he was on a few years ago.

The Dave, Rio and Jonny Show (by Rob)

United are finally back on top of the league, after spending approximately 23,791 weeks hot on City’s heels. The run-in has gotten off to a good start, and we’re starting to hear lots about ‘squeaky bums’ – proctologist fodder – and ‘every game being a cup final’ – glee for knockoff trophy manufacturers, Flava Flav, and hopefully this guy – all that means that the teams at the top will be under huge pressure, will probably play a few bad games, and will have to ‘win ugly’ a number of times in order to win the league*.

As any hackneyed American sports commentator can tell you, the key to winning championships is a good defence. This isn’t actually true, but having a good defence certainly helps. Since the long-term injury to Vidic, United have spent months hoping and searching and groping** for a solid goalkeeper and centre-back combination, to add some solidity to the backline. Finally, it seems like we’ve found it, as David de Gea, Rio Ferdinand and longtime fans’ favourite Jonny Evans have been superb in recent weeks.

Since the injury to Anders Lindegaard, Big Dave has looked like a man transformed. We all know about the brilliant saves he’s been pulling off practically every game. But look at how much more confident and commanding he looks when coming out for crosses, or barking instructions to the defence. He’s got lots more improvement still to do, but what a long way he’s come in 7 months. A scary thought: despite the beard, he’s only 21.

We all know what Rio’s capable of, and he’s adapted his game really well, using his positioning and reading of the game to make up for his new physical limitations. The revelation of the season, though, has been Jonny Evans. On either side of the City defeat – where he was unfairly scapegoated – Jonny has been fantastic, not just getting stuck in with great tackles, blocks and interceptions, but in supporting the attack by making smart forward runs and exhibiting his vastly improved ability on the ball. Even in the sound defeat against Athletic Bilbao, he had an excellent game while all around him was crumbling. In short, it’s been a pleasure to watch him play recently, and he’s arguably been the standout under-25 defender in Europe in 2011-12. The trio were rock-solid again at the weekend vs. West Brom.

We can only hope that this outstanding combination stays fit until the end of the season. Once it does, we’ve got every chance to win the league.

* – Some snarky observers would suggest that United have been ‘winning ugly’ all season. To which my response comes in two parts. 1: No they haven’t. 2: Look at this picture of Luis Suarez.

** Apologies if I’ve made the team sound like a pervy old man on a train.

Sagna rekindles Walcott flame – and Arsenal’s right (by Nik)

It was only the start of last month that Arsenal appeared to be staring into the abyss (3 straight league defeats and a 4-0 pasting in the San Siro), and worryingly, were completely devoid of ideas and/ or fluency on their right side. Sagna was missing through injury, and Walcott, though tirelessly working the flank, had seemingly forgotten how to ply his trade on the right wing. On the left, Arsenal’s approach was working with greater efficiency, with Gibbs’ support (and Santon before him) and Arshavin’s inconsistency allowing Oxlade-Chamberlain to flourish; despite results remaining poor. Sagna’s return from injury in the goalless draw versus Bolton has re-invigorated Walcott, and with it, Arsenal’s form. Since then, the North London side have won five straight games – the last four of which have been won having conceded the first goal in the game – scoring 18 goals in the process. Walcott’s contribution has been exceptional, with 3 assists versus Blackburn; 2 (essentially) versus Newcastle and scoring 2 goals versus London rivals, Tottenham. Sagna has played more than a supporting role, always an out-ball on the overlap or making a decoy run inside, he too has chipped in with a couple of assists, most notably versus Liverpool at Anfield with a super cross for van Persie. More, his defensive acumen and ability to intercept danger with speed has allowed for a more cohesive back four unit (Wenger tried and failed to fill the gap with four separate players), injecting a much needed confidence boost in defence and Walcott ahead of him. Arsenal have benefited in a number of ways of late, not least Rosicky’s return to something like the player he was at Dortmund; Song’s advanced role and the Koscielny-Vermaelen partnership. But Sagna’s return has arguably had the greater effect. Last night, Gary Neville picked out an interesting statistic at half-time, telling us how Sagna and Walcott had nearly three times as many touches as Gibbs and Oxlade-Chamberlain; Santon was duly substituted at half-time for Perch, but Arsenal continued to attack that zone given the neat interchange on the right – and were subsequently rewarded late on when yet again the goal was assisted from this side.

Have Fluminense found Conca’s successor? (by Doron)

I’ve always enjoyed watching Brazilian football – so many technical and attacking players who want to try and entertain on the same pitch. Ever since word broke about the signing of the Da Silva twins from Fluminense I’ve had a bit of a soft spot for the club and followed their progress closely; introducing me to Dario Conca.

Conca quickly became one of my favourite players. Playing anywhere he fancied in the middle he was the playmaker and the heartbeat of the side for the best part of three years. His appreciation of space in terms of both finding it himself and finding it with his passing was second to none in the league. His left foot was capable of both the most deft touches and thunderous drives.

His transfer in July 2011 to Guangzhou Evergrande in China came as a surprise – at 28 he was unlikely to move to Europe but was getting somewhat restless at Fluzão. Mind you, when you consider that Guangzhou made him the third highest paid player in the world, you can’t blame him for moving. Already his turn of acceleration, trickery and movement have seen him average nearly a goal a game in China.

For Fluminense though they had a problem – replacing the guy who made their team tick. Maybe though, they’ve now found the solution – Wellington Nem. Impressively, Wellington is even shorter than Conca (who’s only 5ft 5) and despite playing slightly wider than Conca it appears that he’s become the go-to man for Flu already this season.

Wellington spent last season out on loan at Figueirense and was voted the best Brazilian newcomer. He’s quick, skillful, always demanding the ball and loves to run at players. Capped as a teenager for Brazil’s youth sides his progression seemed to stall as he couldn’t break into the Fluminense set-up but already this season he’s had a crucial role in the Campeonato Carioca, bringing his goalscoring form from Figueirense to Fluminense.

Early signs are that Wellington has become an important player for the club already – eight years Conca’s junior, he may well end up in Europe unlike his predecessor.

If Rooney wants to succeed at No.10 he must learn how to roam laterally (by Anam)

Against Athletic Bilbao, Rooney played some delightful passes and some very bad ones, at times his influence becoming a hindrance, retarding attacking moves due to poor execution of the final ball and at times, getting in his own team-mates way. That’s because his positioning is often Manchester United’s best and he knows it, the Gaffer knows it and that’s why he’s been playing as United’s number 10. In the 2-0 win over West Bromwich Albion at the weekend, United might have found the answer with Rooney, even if it did require a certain adjustment to his role – as part of a 4-2-3-1 system, with two passers in the centre and Danny Welbeck on the right. Instantly, the side looked better than they did in midweek – and there wasn’t the same reliance on Rooney. He didn’t have to continually drop back to pick up possession because Scholes and Carrick could do that ably – indeed, he only passed it in his own half once in the first half. Rather, he operated mainly in the opponents’ half, spraying ball wide and trying to get onto the end of crosses.

Welbeck, who continually drifted inside of the flank, did so again, with Hernandez latching onto the ball in the vacated space as he cut in and shot; Rooney helping the ball into the net. It wasn’t Rooney’s movement, however, that made the goal, it was Hernandez’s and initially Welbeck’s. Because, as Michael Cox writes for ESPN, creators and number 10′s in today’s game, “simply have to be capable of roaming laterally.” And that’s because, he continues, the top clubs increasingly want the wide players “to come inside into the middle of the pitch, or they field them as “inverted” wingers on the side opposite their strongest foot, where they can cut in and shoot.” By doing that, space is created away from the centre and the defenders are dragged out of position. In the end, West Brom’s defenders didn’t know who to mark. If Hernandez didn’t take up the space Welbeck vacated, the home side would have been throwing away a space that was free on the pitch. However, that should have been Rooney’s job to do so. It’s interesting that he did that more often last season and he frequently swapped positions with Ronaldo and Tevez in 2007/08. If the Englishman wants to get back to his most influential best, he has to learn how to better roam laterally.

Premier League: the weekend in numbers (by Nik with a tip of the hat to Duncan Alexander)

It was a funny old weekend in the Premier League, with 8 home wins; 1 away win and one draw, and 17 goals scored in this latest round of games. It is rare that a game isn’t drawn (has only occurred 3 times this season) and we had to wait until the last game on Sunday for the draw at Norwich vs. Wigan (1-1). With the only away win being Kean’s rejuvenated Blackburn (at Wolves), the remaining teams used home advantage to great effect (5 of the wins came with a 1-0 scoreline, again highlighting the importance of scoring the opener). In fact, it could probably be argued, that due to current form and rhythm most teams were enjoying, the wins were largely predictable – Arsenal attempting to overhaul Spurs; Sunderland enjoying sterling home form under O’Neil; United hitting peak form in March as the title run-in hots up etc; with the only real outliers being City and Fulham failing to win – both teams of course notorious of late for failing to open up defences away from home. Spurs might have expected at least draw at Goodison park, but instead suffered a third consecutive defeat, against a resurgent Moyes side, for the first time since Ramos’ time at the Lane. With 10 games to go then, United are in the driving seat at the top of the league (meticulous planning from Fergie yet again!), and it still 3 from 5 as the relegation battle twists and turns by the week.

A few more numbers for you:

- It was the first time since December 17th/ 18th 2011 that any team failed to score more than two goals.

- Saturday saw the record for the most attempts (10) on goal hitting the woodwork in a single round of games

- Chelsea conceded 0 shots on target for 1st time this season

- Arsenal have now matched Spurs in counter attack attempts (28)

- Drogba has now scored 68 of his 100 League goals at Stamford Bridge

- Balotelli caused his 23rd argument (this time with Yaya Toure) since joining City in the summer

- Liverpool fans sung that Dalglish has won more in a year than Moyes has in 10 years but, Dalglish has spent in 12 months the same amount that Moyes has spent in the last 9 years – £114m

- Downing has now played 1944 minutes in the league for Liverpool without an assist or goal to his name

Authors: Doron and Nik

Follow Doron and Nik on Twitter

United played Wigan in their penultimate game of 2011. A 100% record against The Latics was likely to be extended – Wigan had only ever scored one goal at Old Trafford previously and United have entered into some good form. Jones and Smalling were surprise absentees through illness whilst Lindegaard kept his place in goal. Rooney was rested giving Hernandez and Berbatov the chance to shine. What followed was a routine dismantling of Martinez’s side.

Below, we discuss the talking points and invite Wigan fans as well as United fans to join in the discussion.

Berbatov (by Nik)

Dimitar Berbatov scored a hat-trick and seemed to exude the kind of poetic nonchalance that has become a symbol of his style of play in a United shirt. It wasn’t a thoroughbred performance, and nor was it his finest, yet this kind of display is the very reason the Bulgarian remains at the club, four seasons on. Whether it was the dropping deep into his own half to start the move that led to the first goal or his Cantona-esque cushioned chest to Park in the closing stages, Berbatov’s creativity and eye for a pass is surely now only under-appreciated by the small minority at Old Trafford. As well as bringing others into the game of course, he can finish; he showed great body strength to control a bouncing ball on the edge of the six-yard box (albeit holding off the ageing Caldwell!) and had the determination to swivel and finish neatly to score United’s second.

Berbatov’s second goal came later in the game when he received a pass from the barnstorming Valencia, let it run across his body with the faintest of touches, and finished superbly with the outside of his foot from just inside the penalty area. A word on his penalty too: The feint and neat placement was reminiscent of Cristiano’s technique and works a treat if indeed the goalkeeper is fooled, and was rightly lauded. I cant help but remember the absurd abuse he received for attempting a very similar style against Everton’s Tim Howard at Wembley – a penalty which was ‘lazy’ and ‘indicative of his performance levels’.

What is pleasing for Ferguson is that he now has four fully fit strikers at his disposal, each providing a different option as we enter the second half of the season; and although Berbatov may have to bide his time on the bench due to the prolific scoring Hernandez and the ever improving Welbeck, it is clear that manager will choose the appropriate games for the big man to start (yesterday he commented that he required Berbatov’s height for example). It is not a matter of manager ‘distrust’, simply that the other three offer a style of play more suited to United’s fluid forward-play at the moment, and Fergie continues to play the man in form, a tactic that has served him more than well over the years.

The squad is healthy (by Nik)

Ferguson was his fiery self in the programme notes yesterday, stating:

“…let me make this clear that as far as I am concerned I am the one marching perfectly in step, true to my beliefs and principles. All things being equal, I am perfectly satisfied with the strength of our squad in terms of depth, quality and age range….it is a judgement based on years of experience and the input of our extremely knowledgeable and shrewd coaching staff….”

It may seem odd quoting from Ferguson’s notes, but it is very pertinent given the subsequent 5-0 drumming that a United second team delivered here; a second team that had fans up in arms, and worried about the result.

Firstly, I’d like to start by saying that each of us here at Stretford-End.com would be in favour of a central midfield recruit, indeed given Anderson’s demise and Fletcher’s continued absence, possibly two. However, there does seem to be some false logic being applied amongst some fans; it doesn’t necessarily follow that the current squad is ‘poor’ just because the team failed to progress in the Champions League (Poor displays yes! Poor selection yes!) and City were ‘running away with it’ in the league (as this tabloid response tried to implore just over two weeks ago).

Nobody denies that there are genuine concerns about the debts that are being run up by the Glazer regime, nor that it isn’t an emotive and sincere issue; what is frustrating is rather the repeated (and opportunistic) claims by fans and media alike, that Fergie has his hands tied and that the squad is in perpetual decline just because our ‘Net Spend’ (a term now to be found in the football dictionary) is lower than any of the ‘top four’ teams.

It seems an unnecessary point to make that of course United’s would be considerably less than the (essentially flawed) quick fix approach of Abramovich’s Chelsea; than that of City and the squad overhaul that has been entirely necessary (Toure for Ball anyone?); than that of the vast rejuvenation required at Anfield (£35m for Carroll please sir). That Fergie has also been criticised in the past for buying £30m plus signings in the form of Veron, Ferdinand, Berbatov et al that struggled to settle, and has subsequently altered his approach to the market. Hernandez, Lindegaard, Smalling and Valencia have been impossibly fantastic cheaper additions to the squad, and were brought in, in a timely manner. (not to mention that Fergie’s investment in Nani now seems to be paying dividends too.)

Squad planning and preparation is undoubtedly a manager’s hardest job, and Ferguson has always matched his eye for talent with a frugal approach. In fact, add an extra £30m to that net spend figure, because it is highly likely – given the knowledge that Nasri was indeed due to sign, and Sneijder did turn us down – that United will sign an extra midfielder in the near future, giving us a squad which is at the very least, on a par with City’s. Just give the boss (and his trusted scouts) time to do so …

Evra & Carrick defensive roles (by Nik)

In somewhat of a similar role that Mascherano assumes for Barcelona, Carrick was thrown in at the back yesterday given the injuries/ illness to the likes of Smalling, Jones, Ferdinand and Vidic. Of course, this wasn’t an attempt by Ferguson to replicate the success of Guardiola’s 3-3-1-3 formation, but it was notable how Carrick was asked to play slightly ahead of Evans (just as Ferdinand has been in the last month or so, depicted by Doron here), and his application and positioning in this role was outstanding all game. As you can see from the chalkboard his passing range was a mix of calm authority (seeing the whole game ahead of you helps in this regard) and ambition. Carrick worked hard to track his man (more often Sammon) and sought to nick the ball just before the forward got to it – often close to the half-way line. But the central midfielder was often true to his roots as he ventured forward at times, joining the attack and putting one or two dangerous crosses into the box. In the second half, Carrick neatly laid the ball into Valencia’s path on the half-volley to score with a cracking first time effort.

Chalkboard 1: Carrick passing and Evra tackles

Evra had another good game following on from his exploits at Fulham; he was his lively self in the first half, assisting the opener for Park with a jinxing run that beat two defenders – but he was also disciplined at the back, across the 90 minutes. In the first half, before his move to centre-back, you can see from the chalkboard that three of his tackles came in central and right, deep positions. With a recent onus on the centre-half getting forward, Evra has often been the player to cover, tucking in ever so slightly and trying to intercept the ball before it reaches the striker on the counter-attack. It is perhaps for this reason, the criticism of his positional play has been unduly heavy this term, but his performances (aside from the odd half) have been far from ‘poor’ – Fergie once again praised the Frenchman after the game, commenting on his ‘superb leadership as captain’. In the second half yesterday, Evra was asked to play centre-back with Fryers playing to the left, and he was his usual combative self, attacking every ball, tackling well and initiating attacks.

Valencia’s smiling (by Doron)

Few sights are as endearing as Antonio Valencia’s big beaming smile. It’s probably not seen enough by United fans, not because he doesn’t play well but because he tends to be quite straight faced regardless of what he does on the pitch. However, he has reason to smile and finally, after smashing home an arrowed angled effort for his first league goal of the season.

Having taken a while to get going, disrupted by injury and Fergie’s preference of Nani and Young early in the season, Valencia got his chance after the side lost to Basel and he hasn’t looked back. His confidence and pace have returned and suddenly he’s keen to take men on again and get a cross in. He was deployed at right back against Wigan and spent much of the Fulham game there too. The two fixtures showed exactly why Valencia’s making that right hand side his own.

Chalkboard 2: Valencia tackles vs Fulham and passes vs Wigan

Valencia’s tackling accuracy this season has only just been above 50% but in recent weeks as his confidence has returned, he’s becoming more of a force in challenges. Against Fulham he won 4 out of his 6 tackles and as he has shown time again, he’s a very able covering right back. Against Wigan, with United dominating, he played almost as a right winger making 59% of his passes in the final third of the pitch. It was a welcome site to see him attempting to play so many balls into the box, something he got another assist for when Berbatov made it 3-0. It was Valencia’s sixth assist in just four games. Having praised Nani as the league’s best winger, it’s possible that Valencia with one goal and six assists in four games is the league’s most in-form winger (despite playing as a fullback).

Park and Gibson come good as injuries mount (by Doron)

Illness struck both Jones and Smalling down pre-match meaning Carrick and Valencia had to drop into defence. At half time Jonny Evans went off with a calf injury to leave just Evra as the only fully fit first team defender (Rafael isn’t match fit yet and Zeki Fryers is still on the fringes of the first team). It meant that the midfield required two players to slot in – Young’s injured so Park played on the left and with Carrick at the back, Gibson’s the only other fit first team central midfielder and so he started next to Giggs.

Chalkboard 3: Park passing heatmap and tackles

Despite starting on the left, Park spent his game drifting all over as shown by his passing heatmap. When Evra was at left back, Park moved inside to drag players away, creating space for Evra. In the second half, with United keen to protect Zeki Fryers, the focus of their attacks shifted even more centrally and to the right hand side so Park naturally moved further infield. However, much like his performance against Chelsea last season at home, some of Park’s best work was done off the ball. He was constantly fighting to win it back and made five successful tackles all over the pitch. Just as Carrick and Valencia have come to the fore, Park’s form will be a welcome boost for United as the squad players enter into form as good as the regularly starting players.

The other squad player to play well yesterday (albeit against poor and depleted opposition) was the much-maligned Darron Gibson. He took the Carrick-role to allow Giggs to play with creative license.

Chalkboard 4: Gibson passing

As shown by Gibson’s passing chalkboard, he saw a lot of the ball and was accurate in his passing (to the tune of 95%). There was no sign of panicking or trying anything over-elaborate, Gibson just kept finding the spare United man over and over, becoming the central outlet for United players. Almost every move went through him at some point and he added an assist to his impressive display. Gibson’s benefited from little pressure on him during the game but having missed all the season through injury so far and with the side needing more midfield bodies, it was a performance that United needed.

Summary

United went joint top with Man City after recording a second successive 5-0 win in the league. For the third game in a row United took the lead inside the opening ten minutes and then the game was effectively killed off with the harsh sending off of Conor Sammon for a hand in Carrick’s face. Berbatov notched a hat-trick upon his recall to the side (he’d only played 36 minutes at home in the league previously this season) and there were welcome goals for Park and Valencia.

Wigan must hate facing United – in 14 games they’re yet to do anything other than lose, scoring just four goals and conceding a whopping 46. Fergie must be delighted with United’s response to losing to Basel – his call for goals has been met with 16 in four games and since losing to City they’ve kept seven clean sheets in nine league games.

United can end 2011 top of the table with a draw or a win at home to Blackburn on New Years Eve; a perfect way to end yet another successful year. For a ‘rubbish’ United side, they’re not all that bad!

AUTHOR: – Doron

After a deflating night in Europe midweek, an away game in the league is hardly welcomed. United were at Wigan today and were in for a tough match, until going 2-0 up when Wigan seemingly gave up. A further two goals were scored, completing a 4-0 win that sees United once again open up a 4 point gap over Arsenal. Below are the main talking points from the match.

Talking Points

Edwin and Vidic keep United in the game

It was a first half of forgetful proportions for United fans. Wigan were the more attacking of the two teams and attempted 13 more passes than United – something that is rarely seen whether United are home or away. As the heatmap below illustrates, Wigan spent 32% of their first half in the final third of the United half. By contrast, United were only that deep in Wigan territory for 17% of the half.

Click on diagrams to enlarge

For all of Wigan’s territory, they created few clear chances. Smalling (again) and Vidic in particular were first to every loose ball and dominant in the air. Smalling seems to have a good luck charm about him for United. We’ve highlighted before that United tend not to concede in the Premier League when he plays and after today’s result United have only conceded 3 goals in the 495 minutes Smalling has featured in the league. Today though, Smalling was overshadowed by his more experienced partner. Unfortunately there isn’t a graphic that we can provide that shows the number of headers Vidic won but he was a rock all game (bar one wayward pass).

Behind Vidic and Smalling was Van der Sar. Aged 40 and in his final season as a professional player one could be forgiven for thinking that he’d be prone to the odd error. In actual fact he only had four saves to make today but each one seemed to be better than the last. Whether it was a long-range screamer from Figueroa or a rush off his line to deny Moses Edwin matched everything Wigan threw at him and if it wasn’t for him, United would have gone in behind at the break.

Saves made (blue) by Edwin

Post-match, Ferguson spoke about Edwin to MUTV:

“His composure is just outstanding as is his organisation of the defenders. Van der Sar had to make some great saves, while Vida and Smalling had to keep sticking their heads in to clear things.”

Chicharito

In our match preview, we felt that Chicharito would start today. Prior to this game he had started only 7 league games for United and scored 4 goals. He was somewhat on the periphery of today’s game in comparison to his strike partner, Rooney. Rooney attempted 45 passes whilst Chicharito only attempted 19 (although successfully completed 18 of them).

He did however show how deadly he is in front of goal:

Chicharito shots

He only had three efforts on goal during the game, one was blocked as represented by the grey arrow. However he finished clinically with his other two efforts. The first a clever run across the front of the six yard box to tap home following a swift counter attack by United:

Swift move for Chicharito’s first goal

The second goal was a clever one-two with Rooney before running clean through to finish expertly. This takes his total to 6 goals in 8 league starts for the club, a very healthy return of 0.75 goals per game in his debut season.

It’s worth noting the two men who assisted Chicharito’s goals. Nani now has 14 assists and leads the assist charts. Joint second on that list is Rooney who notched his 11th assist of the season. Both doing a lot of the unselfish contributing this season.

As for Chicharito; he’s certainly put forward a strong case to start on Tuesday. Berbatov hasn’t scored in over a month but in that time has only played just over 3 games (in total) and Rooney despite scoring today still isn’t as sharp as last year so there may be a case to include the form man.

Keeping the ball in the middle

United have been criticised, mainly by fans, for not controlling the central midfield battle in games lately. Today, Scholes and Carrick lined up together in the middle, arguably the two best passers in the squad. Wigan chose to press high and put pressure on every United player on the ball.

It was down to Scholes and Carrick therefore to keep the ball in the middle and control the game by not giving possession away. Between them, they made 109 passes and only gave the ball away 13 times. Both stuck to what they know best by playing short accurate passes and trying to get the ball wide where possible:

Carrick and Scholes passing

The incisiveness and accuracy of United’s second half movement and passing was summed up by the fourth goal. By this point Wigan’s heads were down and United were strolling towards the final whistle but even so, 19 passes were completed before Fabio was able to coolly score his first goal for the club:

19 pass move for Fabio’s goal

Match Conclusion

Wigan started the game on the front foot and it certainly felt like one of the most nervy opening 10 minutes of a game we’ve had this season. Edwin had to make some great saves and the Vidic/Smalling partnership again excelled. After 17 minutes the deadlock was broken – a swift break saw Nani down the left play a low cross in and the unmarked Chicharito was able to tap it home having made a superb run. At half time, United were certainly lucky to be a goal ahead.

Composure returned to United in the second half with Nani starting to assert himself more on the game. After only 5 efforts on goal in the first half, United upped the tempo and had 13 more in the second half, however they’d have to wait until the 74th minute for a second and nerve-settling goal. A long kick by Van der Sar was won by Chicharito who played a clever one-two with Rooney before speeding through to coolly finish past the Wigan goalkeeper.

After the second goal, Wigan heads dropped and two more goals followed. The Wigan defence got their offside trap wrong and a long Gibson pass put Berbatov through who unselfishly squared the ball for Rooney to tap home into an empty net. The 4th was arguably the pick of the bunch – 19 passes were completed before Fletcher’s cross found Fabio at the back post and he was able to send the goalkeeper the wrong way to score. The only sour point of the game, came when Rooney elbowed a McCarthy in the first half. The referee did warn Rooney and give a free-kick so it’s unclear if further action will be taken. The game ended 4-0 and there is little time to rest now with a tough trip to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge coming up on Tuesday evening.

AUTHOR: – Doron

AUTHOR: – Doron

Twenty points separate league leaders, Man United and relegation fighters Wigan. The task facing Wigan is a big one, every time they’ve met United ever they’ve lost – only a win can take them out of the bottom three on Saturday. Whereas for United they will look to once again open a four point gap over second-placed Arsenal.

Last season wasn’t one to remember for Wigan. They finished 16th with 36 points; won only 9 games and conceded a whopping 79 goals. In came Spanish manager, Roberto Martinez and results have barely improved. The club are 18th with twelve games remaining. Winning games and scoring goals has been a problem – along with West Ham they’ve won the least number of games (5); and scored the joint fewest goals (27 – the same as Birmingham). On the flip-side; this is a Wigan team who try and play neat passing football; unfortunately there are countless examples of teams at the bottom who have tried to play like that but have ended up going down.

What to expect from Wigan? There’s no doubt Wigan will try to beat United. At this stage of the season there is little point in Wigan at home trying to settle for a draw. The newly laid pitch at the DW Stadium will allow both teams to pass the ball around. Wigan will be missing Tom Cleverley, on loan from United but instead will look to Charles N’Zgobia for inspiration. He, Ben Watson and youngster, James McCarthy have stood out at times this season. Martinez has tinkered between a 4-4-2 and a 4-5-1 – I expect a 4-5-1 to be played tomorrow with Rodallega leading an industrious midfield.

Wigan come into the game off the back of a defeat at home in the FA Cup to Bolton, but in the league they are 3 unbeaten – their last defeat coming a month ago. Avoiding defeat against United will equal their longest unbeaten run of the season. Against the bigger sides in the league, Wigan haven’t done too badly – a draw against Arsenal, two draws against Liverpool and a win away at Spurs are the stand-out moment. Few however could forget the 4-0 trouncing they received at home on the opening day of the season against Blackpool. It’s not that Wigan lose too many games, just they seem unable to win – 12 games drawn is symptomatic of a team struggling, especially when six of those have come at home. At present, Wigan’s home form is the worst in the league with only 6 points taken from the last six games.

With the exception of Tom Cleverley, Wigan have a squad close to full fitness to choose from. Emmerson Boyce will face a late fitness test for a hamstring injury whilst youngster Callum McManaman is likely to miss out due to a large cut on his leg. If striker, Franco di Santo plays it’ll be his 20th appearance for the club – he’s yet to score for them and only has 1 goal in 60 professional matches so far in his short career. There is a potential milestone for Maynor Figueroa, he is in line for his 100th Premier League appearance.

Wigan have never beaten United in 12 games. They’ve conceded 37 goals and only managed to score 4. Three of those four have come in the five away league games at Wigan. Last year this fixture ended 5-0 to United in a one sided affair. The stadium has happy memories for Reds as United won the league title there in 07/08 when Giggs equalled Sir Bobby Charlton’s appearance record. A year later United won 2-1 as late goals from Tevez and Carrick all but sealed another title triumph.

Enough on Wigan…onto United and my predicted line up:

I think United will line up in a positive 4-4-2 formation. We’ve not seen it much away from home but there’s little doubt it suits United better and will allow for better attacking football.

The team news is somewhat frustrating. Ferdinand and Evans remain out with both unlikely to be fit for the Chelsea game either. In the midfield there is again a lack of width with Valencia not ready to return, Park injured and Giggs a doubt (but unlikely to be risked with the Chelsea game coming up). Anderson’s knee injury will keep him out for a further three weeks and there is no new news on Hargreaves. On the plus side, Owen returns to the squad and could be involved.

In front of Edwin I think Rafael will be favoured over O’Shea, but aside from that Smalling should line up next to Vidic with Evra at left back. It would only be Smalling’s 8th league appearance of the season but already he’s looked very assured and has recently put in huge performances against City and Marseille. Certainly to have a consistent pairing of him and Vidic with the Chelsea game coming up would be good.

Based upon my choice of a 4-4-2 and there only being one fit first team winger I’ve gone for Gibson to play a wide right role. In reality Gibson is likely to tuck in to make more of a central midfield three with Rafael bombing up as a full back/winger. There is a good chance Obertan may be given an opportunity to put the Crawley game to bed, providing natural width. The other alternative is to use Rooney wide again. Despite Scholes being used as a sub in Marseille, I’d save him for the game at Chelsea and have him on the bench. There is a good argument of course that says start him and sub him off but I’d feel more comfortable if we didn’t have to play him at all. In which case Fletcher and Carrick make up the middle pairing with Nani wide left. Up front I’ve picked Berbatov and Chicharito, allowing Rooney a break ahead of the big game at Chelsea. With Owen fit, he too could play a part, Ferguson hinted as much today in his press conference.

United remain top having won their last league game against Man City. It’s three games unbeaten since the defeat at Wolves – still the only blotch on the league record. For both Wigan and United the next few weeks are crucial – United play Chelsea and Liverpool away; whilst Wigan face United, City, Spurs and Chelsea in four of their next five matches. I have the Chelsea game on my mind when picking the predicted line up for tomorrow.

Recent form shows United sitting third in the form league with 13 points taken from a possible 18 in the last six games. Whilst the home form has been impeccable, their away form hasn’t been as impressive. In 12 away games, only three have been won with eight drawn. The problem as much as anything seems to be scoring goals with only 18 scored on their travels. In the last six away league games, United have picked up 9 points – form only bettered by Spurs and Arsenal.

In Dimitar Berbatov United have the league’s top goalscorer (19 goals – Tevez is second with 18 goals) and in Nani the league’s top assister (13 assists; Rooney is joint 3rd with 10). Berbatov and Nani alone have scored 28 league goals this season – one more than the entire Wigan team. United’s defence have generally enjoyed games against Wigan with The Latics only scoring one goal in their last seven matches against United. The 57 points United are currently on after 26 games is exactly the same as after the same number of games last season. Edwin van der Sar will make his 250th appearance for the club if he plays.

United’s record against Wigan has been excellent but the away form this year says this shouldn’t be easy. I think United will put in a rare good away performance and I predict a 4-1 win for the Reds.

You can share with us your thoughts ahead of the match and your favourite moments from games away to Wigan on our forum.

Goals from Patrice Evra and substitute Chicharito gave spluttering Manchester United a 2-0 win to send them level on points at the top of the table with champions Chelsea. Visitors Wigan were reduced to 9 men after 2 red cards in the space of 2 minutes but the Red Devils were true to form and managed to make a struggle out of a procession.

Evra’s first Premier League goal for 4 years and Wayne Rooney’s long overdue return – his first appearance since Stretford-End.com was given credit by CNN for him signing a new long term contract at the club – were the footnotes from this encounter for the hosts.

Wigan did as much as any visitor to Old Trafford could reasonably be expected to do and it was through early optimism that they were almost rewarded; with easily twice as many chances as their hosts in the first half, and good ones too. Hugo Rodallega has been a rumoured target for the top sides for over a year and it was easy to see why – Latics boss Martinez had decided on a bold, combative, pacy frontline and it was causing problems for a first choice, full strength United defence.

Rodallega was the architect of most things good for Wigan; forcing Vidic into a slip but then slipping itself, the ball squirmed to Gomez who should have done better but blazed over in the first 6 minutes. Rodallega then Gomez both tested veteran stopper van der Sar from outside the area, before Nani had United’s first real effort from a similar distance.

But that was it, really, as the game moved towards first half stoppage time. United certainly began to exert themselves in terms of territorial dominance but never really tested the Wigan keeper Al Habsi. N’Zogbia went on a dazzling run, beating 3 United men before van der Sar was pressed into action again though the save was fairly comfortable. From the resultant corner, Rodallega again found himself with space to perform an acrobatic scissors kick but it was well wide.

United are certainly renowned for their goals at unlikely times though and just as Wolves, a couple of weeks earlier, found themselves unfortunate in terms of showing all the right endeavour but not severely punishing their more illustrious opponents when they had the chance, Patrice Evra changed the whole complexion of the game right on the stroke of half time. Rafael’s throw to Ji-Sung Park found the South Korean in space on the right – enough space to pick a pass to the onrushing Evra at the far post, who headed into the far corner. The Frenchman later joked (!) that he would buy his pal a car for the assist.

Despite the lead, United were far from impressive, and Sir Alex was evidently far from impressed, with the team responsive and on the ball early on the second half. Still, with no cutting edge, Paul Scholes and Wayne Rooney were introduced – to cheers, and there can be no doubt that Rooney’s return was welcomed, despite the obvious safeguarding of the timing by Ferguson. Old Trafford rang out the “Rooney” chant on more than one occasion. Rooney’s form before his injury was clearly below par and though such an occasion should have been perfect for him, it was clear there was no magic switch and his return to hitting the back of the net will have to wait a little longer.

United’s own profligacy is not quite so easily excused; sendings off a minute either side of the hour for the visitors should have resulted in a far greater creation of chances if not a deluge of goals. Alcaraz was dismissed for a second bookable offence after lunging at Fletcher and Rodallega demonstrated the lack of discipline that perhaps has denied him a move to a top level team when he pointlessly and recklessly threw himself into a tackle at Rafael – the young Brazilian was lucky to escape injury but responded in the best possible manner, letting his football do the talking as he became chief tormentor.

Unfortunately the rest of the team didn’t take note of the urgency; it was Rafael who put in the cross that substitute Chicharito superbly headed in the 77th minute, but other than that, it was injury time until United finally began to pile in the chances. Nani crossed from the right and Rafael’s late arrival was all that denied him a goal – perhaps it was expectancy of his younger teammate to bury the chance that caught Wayne Rooney off guard but he should still have done better with his effort, sending it right into the arms of Al Habsi.

Scholes had a 20 yard effort deflected to Evra, who in a far more likely position than that which he had scored from inexplicably failed to even hit the target, and Gabriel Obertan’s spectacular volleyed effort hit the side netting.

The 2-0 final score moved United to joint top, behind Chelsea on goal difference. Cause for optimism indeed after such a turbulent start to the season, especially as United can still say they are unbeaten this season, with this latest result taking their run since the last loss to 27 games. The negative aspect is clearly with the failure to stamp dominance on games; with a “fill your boots” invitation with 30 minutes left against opponents who still, to their credit, made positive changes, the Red Devils failed to capitalise. They will be forgiven if it was merely an off day; however, if it was down to inability to do so, as this season’s form would seem to suggest so far, then the questions that were being asked at Fulham and Everton are probably far more seriously relevant after this game.

All in all, yes, United are now level on points, but the fact that Chelsea and Arsenal – both losers on the same day – have now lost 4 games each at this point, will surely cause Sir Alex into a damning evaluation of his own team, given that they don’t hold a comfortable lead at the top of the table.

Ratings : van der Sar 7, *Rafael 8, Ferdinand 7, Vidic 7, Evra 8, Nani 7, Fletcher 7, Carrick 7 (Chicharito 7), Park 6 (Scholes 7), Obertan 6, Macheda 6 (Rooney 6)

It’s two weeks to the day that United last played at Old Trafford in what was a nail biting and often unforeseeable win against Wolves. Today, Wigan are the visitors. They’ve not had much luck at Old Trafford recently managing just one goal in five Premier League matches, but things haven’t been straightforward for United so far this season…

Wigan are a team in patchy, bottom-half-of-the-table form. Their last six matches have produced one win (last weekend against West Brom), three draws, and two defeats. They sit 17th in the league, hovering just above the relegation zone but are only a win off 9th place, such is the nature of the league.

Roberto Martinez likes to get his side to play football ‘the right way’. It would be a real surprise if they came to Old Trafford with a negative set up. Their squad is made up of strong, quick and athletic players. Hugo Rodallega and Charles N’Zogbia will be the two players most likely to cause any problems. Both are direct, fast and tricky. N’Zogbia in particular always feels that he has a point to prove when playing big teams. Slightly less glamorous, but the Alcaraz and Thomas perform important roles in providing the axis for the team.

Wigan only became a fixture in the 2005/6 season when they won promotion to the Premier League. They’ve successfully retained their place every year since, throwing up five league games at Old Trafford. Unfortunately the aggregate score from those games is 17-1 to United and Wigan have never managed to win a point. Last years encounter was a 5-0 win to United with five different goal scorers – Berbatov, Carrick, Rooney, Valencia (against his former club) and my favourite, Rafael, who celebrated so brilliantly by running to his brother, Fabio on the bench.

Wigan will be without Pollitt, Boyce, G Caldwell, McCarthy and Tom Cleverley who is ineligible to play as part of the terms of his loan deal. Wigan’s reserve team suffered a 3-1 defeat to United on thursday evening, can their first team do any better?

Here’s how I believe United will line up:

With all due respect to Wigan, history shows this is a game that should equate to three points. In saying that, so should many of the games United haven’t won this year. Ferguson will have half an eye on an intense away Champions League match against Rangers in a few days time but there is the bonus of knowing that only one point is required in that game. I’ve therefore picked one of the strongest teams available. In years gone by I think we’d have seen the Champions League prioritised with the squad rotated for a home league match but due to the circumstance in each competition at the moment I think a strong team in the league is important.

United have some injury doubts – Rafael, Ferdinand, Smalling and Giggs are all likely to miss the game or not be risked whilst Valencia, Owen and Hargreaves are out. I’ve picked an experienced back four using the other players available – O’Shea, Brown, Vidic and Evra. Following his injury and a full match for Northern Ireland mid week I’m not sure Evans will be given a start, and although putting in a lively display for the Reserves, I don’t think Fabio will break in at right back. This is of course the kind of game where we might see the name Gary Neville pop up on the team sheet so don’t discount that.

The midfield four is hard to call for this game. Out wide there still aren’t many options, Nani and Park should continue, which for me is a shame as I would love to think Obertan’s positive influence away at Villa would merit inclusion. In the middle I’ve picked two fresh players who’ll keep the ball and pick the right passes, Scholes and the in-form Carrick. Fletcher could do with a weekends break, Anderson is available again but I think the Rangers game is where he may be used. It’s unclear whether Gibson is or isn’t available following the illness to his daughter – we wish her well. There are many variations possible, Ferguson may wish to save Scholes for the Rangers game. I personally am keeping up my own campaign to see Magnus Eikrem involved at some point. He missed the Reserves on Thursday as he played international football the night before, I’d like to think he’d make the bench for this game. Up front Berbatov and Chicharito should both start despite the former going two months since his last goal. Rooney’s return will probably only stretch as far as the bench but a start at Rangers should beckon. Kiko Macheda is the striker in the best short-term form. He got a stunning goal last weekend and two goals for the Italian U21 team mid-week – he like Obertan will feel he’s done enough to justify an inclusion from the start.

United go into this game as still the only unbeaten side (just about) in the country. The past two games have thrown up two draws but prior to that it was three wins on the bounce. Wigan should be a good chance to return to winning ways. A fantastic stat from Opta shows that this pitches the team who have converted the highest percent of their chances into goals – United (17%) against the team who have converted the lowest percent of their chances into goals – Wigan (7%) – unsurprising given that United have scored at least twice in 11 of their 13 league games this season whereas Wigan have scored the fewest number of goals in the league.

I’m going to predict a 4-0 United win.

Before I sign off, here is the Stretford-End.com betting info for anything Wigan related:

If you fancy a bet on this game, then with Stretford-End.com you get a special joining fee at Paddy Power:
Get a free £20 bet when you join

Man United Vs Wigan Atheletic Betting Odds (correct at time of publishing)
Man Utd to win 2/9

Correct score markets:
1-0 is 11/2
2-0 is 5/1
2-1 is 15/2

First scorer
Rooney 3/1
Hernandez 7/2
Berbatov 7/2
Fletcher 16/1

Share with us your thoughts ahead of this game on the Wigan thread on our forum

Feel free to follow me on Twitter

In an interview with Inside United, Sir Alex Ferguson has confirmed that the club is likely to recall Tom Cleverley from his loan with Wigan when the transfer opens in January. The 21-year-old midfielder was sent on loan to the DW Stadium for first team action as he continues to develop, but Cleverley has only featured once for Wigan due to a knee injury. With injuries plaguing the midfield, Cleverley may yet get the chance to prove himself at Old Trafford this season.

Many United fans, including myself, were against the loan believing that Cleverley had the potential to play a significant role in the squad this season. Rarely has such excitement surrounded an Academy graduate in recent years, but the anticipation of Cleverley’s first team debut comes with good reason. The English midfield was one of the highlights in the preseason tour of the United States, scoring arguably the best goal of the tour against the MLS All-Stars.

Speaking with Ben Hibbs for Inside United, Sir Alex provide fans with even more reason to get excited: “Tom’s going to be a great footballer, I really like him. I’ve heard the fans are starting to talk about Tom, and I think they’re right to do that because he could very well be the next top player to come through the ranks.”

There can’t be much higher praise than to have Sir Alex say you are likely to be the next player to come through the ranks. This is, after all, the same man who produced the likes of Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes. Few would disagree that Sir Alex has a skill for identifying promising young talent, and it seems he sees great things for Cleverley.

Although I desperately wanted to see Cleverley in the United first team this season, I concede that the loan move to the DW Stadium was probably the best route for his development. Concerns in midfield have arisen in the early stages of this season, though, and reinforcements such as Cleverley may be required. Antonio Valencia has been sidelined with injury until February at the earliest, creating a lack of depth on the wings. Nani has consequently been moved to the right wing; and the left wing has become a weakness in the squad. Giggs is no longer capable of playing every match, and Park Ji-Sung, while always putting in maximum effort, has struggled for form so far this campaign. Cleverley proved in preseason that he is capable occupying the wide left slot and could be a valuable asset for improving that position.

Cleverley also has the potential to contribute in terms of goals. While on loan with Watford last season, Cleverley amassed 11 goals from midfield in 33 appearances on his way to being voted the Watford F.C. Player of the Season. While the level of competition is weaker in the Championship, a return of one goal every three matches in midfield is hardly something to scoff at. This summer, many fans believed that a goalscoring midfielder was a necessity. Tom Cleverley may very well be the answer to fans’ concerns.

The only apprehension I have with Cleverley making a return to Old Trafford in January would be the same concern that Sir Alex had in August – will Cleverley get enough first team action to continue his development? I have such high hopes for Cleverley, and I would hate to see his progress halted by a bad move. However, I am sure that Sir Alex has the player’s best interests at heart and will only recall him if he thinks there will be first team opportunities.

Ultimately, I eagerly await Cleverley’s return. Although nothing is official yet, the thought of Cleverley playing in the United first team has made me ecstatic. Even if he doesn’t get as many games at United as he would’ve with Wigan, developing under the likes of Giggs and Scholes is invaluable for a young midfielder. Just as I believed in August, I have complete faith that Cleverley is capable of breaking into the United first team this campaign and playing a significant role as we chase glory on all fronts.

Sir Alex has an absolute gem in Tom Cleverley. There is always risk involved when giving a youngster a chance in the first team, but as we United fans should know, the reward is often well worth the risk. At the start of the 1995/96 campaign, Sir Alex took a huge risk by placing his faith in the hands of a group of youngsters that would come to be known as Fergie’s Fledglings. As three of those fledglings – Neville, Scholes, and Giggs – approach the end of their careers at Old Trafford, it is time to give another fledgling his opportunity. It is now Cleverley’s turn to light up the Theatre of Dreams. There is no doubt in my mind that will live up to all of our grand expectations.

Discuss Tom Cleverley possible return in the forum.

You can follow Kyle on Twitter at KDill_MUFC.

Ian over in our forum has put together a collaboration of events that look at determining the outcome of the Premier League title and finishing positions for Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal, Spurs and Europa League qualifiers Liverpool and Manchester City. Show your appreciation for a witty, humorous and insightful prediction of what could well happen on Sunday afternoon.

You can view the original thread in our forum. So make sure if you like the thread you let Ian know!

3.30pm – Richard Keys prattles on about how “anything can happen”, while they talk about Spurs’ last-gasp win over Man City on Wednesday and how it not only secured fourth place, but also gives them a sniff of third.

3.31pm – Even though they’re not relevant to the title race any more, coverage of Chelsea and Manchester United games focuses primarily on Liverpool.

3.37pm – It’s announced that Wayne Rooney’s leg has fallen off. Fergie says there’s “absolutely no chance of Waynre Rooney playing football ever again.”

3.38pm – With the Rooney announcement, Manchester United fans swarm the dressing room and in the melee Dimitar Berbatov goes missing. Rumours that he’s been bundled into a car and driven away from the ground by Manchester United fans are unconfirmed. Chelsea fans implore police to find Berbatov so he can start for United.

3.45pm – Rooney is announced in starting line-up.

3.53pm – Berbatov is returned to Old Trafford unharmed by relieved captors who heard on the radio that Rooney was starting.

4pm – Matches around the country kick-off.

4.01pm – Andy Gray sounds more cement mixer than man, as he always does on the last day of the season.

4.06pm – At Hull Rafa Benitez has retreated to the dugout briefly but returns to the sideline with a deck chair under one arm and a Lonely Planet guide to Turin in the other.

4.15pm – Stoke have spent the first fifteen minutes playing in a fashion that makes them unrecognisable from the team that got drubbed by Chelsea. They look like a proper football team for grown-ups.

4.17pm – United fans despair as the news comes through that Didier Drogba has just given Chelsea the lead. He celebrates by peeling off his shirt and revealing a tattoo of Steven Gerrard’s face that covers his entire back.

4.18pm – Tottenham and Man City, away at Burnley and West Ham respectively, are doing their damndest to look like two teams who don’t deserve to finish in the European places.

4.21pm – After 429 consecutive 3-yard passes from Arsenal, the move is capped beautifully when Brede Hangeland smashes the ball from the edge of his own penalty area and Bobby Zamora thrashes it past Polish ragamuffin Lukas Fabianski.

4.22pm – Arsene Wenger remonstrates with the fourth official for allowing Fulham to shoot the ball at the goal really quite hard indeed.

4.26pm – Hull score a hilariously offside goal to take the lead against Liverpool, and the cameras pan to get Rafa’s reaction but he hasn’t seen the offside because he was busy in a conga with Roary the Tiger, the fourth official, and a selection of Liverpool substitutes.

4.27pm – Darren Fletcher and Ryan Shawcross cause a tear in the fabric of space and time when they both go in for a 50-50 tackle two-footed and their studs fuse together.

4.34pm – Tottenham and Man City both take the lead in the space of a few minutes, and both look distinctly uncomfortable about it.

4.41pm – United go a goal down when Rory Delap, taking a throw-in from his own corner flag, sets up Ricardo Fuller who does one of those peculiar headers of his where he tries to head it one way and it goes in the exact opposite direction yet somehow still sneaks inside the post.

4.43pm – Iain Dowie looks flummoxed, or more so than usual, when Rafael Benitez starts reciting to him from an Italian phrasebook.

4.45pm – Refusing to finish the season on anything resembling a high note, Aston Villa go a goal down at home against Blackburn.

4.55pm – Alex Ferguson substitutes Dimitar Berbatov on for Michael Carrick. God help us.

4.56pm – Hope! Charles N’Zogbia is in one of his “being a footballer” moods and spoons a preposterous curler into Cech’s top corner.

5.04pm – Damn! Dimitar Berbatov smashes an audacious volley into the top corner. Unfortunately it’s his own top corner. On reflection he decides that beggars can’t be choosers and he celebrates anyway.

5.10pm – Arsenal equalise at the Emirates. A nicely worked team goal. A safe third-place finish is back on.

5.12pm – The comeback is on! As a cross floats in towards Berbatov, Wayne Rooney grabs him and throws him to the ground before heading it into the bottom corner.

5.13pm – Rafael Benitez has switched clothes with the Hull mascot and is currently wiggling his backside at the Liverpool fans. The chap who was the mascot, however, is wearing Rafa’s suit and doing a better job of inspiring the team than Benitez has in months.

5.16pm – Berbatov gets the ball and runs ’round the Stoke goalie before somehow smashing the ball against the bar from 3cm out. It hits him in the face and falls to Paul Scholes who calmly slots in the equaliser.

5.18pm – United are motoring now. Rooney passes the ball to Nani who nutmegs three Stoke defenders before knocking the ball into the air and putting United 3-2 up with an overhead backheeled chip into the far corner…. but no! The goal is ruled out for Rooney having bumped into a Stoke player. In a rage that wouldn’t look out of place on Bruce Banner, Rooney kicks the referee so hard in the knee that his metatarsal fractures, ruling him out of England’s World Cup group games.

5.22pm – Chelsea are in shock as after battering Wigan with 27 shots on target the visitors break down the field. John Terry catches a Rodallega shot with both hands and lobs it to the centre circle and then looks outraged when the referee whistles for a handball. He gets a stern telling off. Charles N’Zogbia scores from the free-kick and puts Wigan 2-1 up!

5.28pm – Carlos Tevez scores at West Ham but is booked for time-wasting when he celebrates by personally apologising to every Hammer in the ground.

5.33pm – Fulham score from a corner as a cross is nodded in. Arsene Wenger remonstrates with the fourth official for letting Fulham use their heads.

5.35pm – Oblivious to Hull having gone 2-0 up, Rafa Benitez is gleefully trying to start a “Stand Up If You Hate Fergie” chant.

5.39pm – With a minute plus injury time left and Chelsea still losing, Dimitar Berbatov’s moment finally arrives. Valencia puts an inch-perfect cross in and Berbatov controls the ball, nonchalantly flicks it over two defenders and rifles a rocket-shot into the top corner! 3-2!

5.40pm – United seal a win, and surely a fourth Premier League title, as Federico Macheda taps one in from a yard out and reacts as though he’s just scored a wondergoal. The smug-looking git.

5.41pm – Frank Lampard decides to remind England fans what they won’t be seeing this summer by pinging a shot into the top corner from 45 yards out. Just a minute or two left for Chelsea to get the winner they desperately need…

5.42pm – Arsenal, who looked comfortably third for so long, drop to fourth as in the final minute Clint Dempsey tackles one of Wenger’s WonderTots and accidentally boots him out of the stand and into the car park. A fine cross is played into the penalty area from the resulting freekick but various players leave it as they remember Arsene’s warning that heading the football is for neanderthals. It drops to Nicklas Bendtner instead who sends Spurs fans into dreamland by fluffing the shot straight at the keeper as the whistle goes while at White Hart Lane Spurs took three points courtesy of a late Peter Crouch header.

5.43pm – United’s game is over with a 4-2 win, and now all thoughts turn to Wigan. Chelsea force a corner and Titus Bramble tries to head the ball away but somehow ends up with the ball inside his shorts. As he flails around to try and remove it, he stumbles into the net, gifting Chelsea a 3-2 win and the Premier League title.

League finish: Chelsea (champions), Man United, Spurs, Arsenal, Man City, Aston Villa, Liverpool.

• United Lineup and scorers
• Follow us on Twitter
• Enter our competition

It was party time at Old Trafford as Manchester United, winners of 6 Premier League titles, 2 League Cups, an FA Cup, a European Cup, and a World Club Cup in the last 10 years, saw out the decade in style by reproducing their five goal haul at the DW Stadium against the same opponents.

United took a few minutes to get into their proper attacking rhythm with fragmented build up that clearly had potential – Wayne Rooney in particular pulling all the strings. Wigan’s set up was conducive to an open game; in fairness, they have been the same all season, and are probably the perfect team to illustrate the crazy inconsistency of the top flight this season.

Once the Champions did find their rhythm, however, they were devestating, brilliantly utilising the potency of Valencia and invention of Rooney. Early sighters from Rooney and Fletcher were added to by a long range Rooney effort before the number 10 hit the post after brilliantly skinning a defender. The pressure was mounting and in the 28th minute Valencia weighted a ball into the path of the bombarding Rafael.

The full back’s first time cross was precide; Rooney’s first time effort was too, and United were one up. The second was not long in coming with Wigan on the ropes and Valencia turned provider after racing onto a wonderful through ball from Berbatov. Michael Carrick was the recipient of the pull back, and steered the ball into the back of the net.

Wigan didn’t just lie down; an ambitious 45 yard effort from Thomas troubled Kuszczak before dipping just over, and Wes Brown was employed to make a last ditch tackle. The last minute of the half saw a special moment that put the result beyond doubt, Rafael collecting Fletcher’s forward ball and cleverly shifting his feet and coolly slotting home with his left foot from 18 yards. The young Brazilian has a real opportunity to seize a first team spot with the injury crisis at the club and few remember how he was making it his own before he was struck by injury last year. That he adds an unpredictable element going forward is just a bonus to his non-stop energy and the early encouraging signs of his and Valencia’s combination.

Such games from recent past usually peter out in the second half but Sir Alex Ferguson’s men pushed for more goals throughout the 90 minutes, either buoyed by the occasion, wanting to give Fergie an early birthday present, or both. Wigan replaced keeper Kirkland with ex-United trainee Mike Pollitt at half time and the replacement quickly got his hands warm from a Rooney shot – two minutes later, in the 48th minute, he was picking the ball out of the net. Valencia was the architect again, absolutely roasting Figueroa, and his cross across goal was missed by a defender and met by Berbatov who had time to control and finish comfortably.

Moments later and it could have been five – a brilliant passing move concluded with Berbatov waiting and dinking the ball into Rooney, but his header hit the frame of the goal.

Ferguson took the opportunity to makes changes, resting Vidic and Evra, and the Champions continued to perform a seige on the Latics goal, creating chance after chance. It could have been 7 or 8 – in the end, it was only 5, with the last goal coming 15 minutes from the end. Rooney found space to run in the midfield and his through ball was finished quite outstandingly – and thoroughly deservedly so – by the brilliant Valencia, against his former team.

Tomasz Kuszczak also still had time to outline his CV credentials as a potential number 1, making a great save from Rodallega with 10 minutes left.

Ferguson said earlier in the season that if United were in touching distance at the top by the turn of the year that he fancied the Champions to have a real push at an unprecedented fourth successive Premier League title. They are, and with performances such as the one tonight, there is every chance that glory could beckon in the new decade just as it ushered the last one out.

Ratings : Kuszczak 8, Rafael 9, Brown 7, Vidic 7 (Anderson 7), Evra 7 (Fabio 7), *Valencia 9, Carrick 8, Fletcher 8, Park 7, Rooney 8, Berbatov 8 (Welbeck 7)