AUTHOR: – Herzog’s Child

There is a naivety amongst football supporters that the entrusting of youth will ease all prolonged concerns. Particularly now, as United’s midfield plunders on, an emphasis has been projected towards its young battalion, as those panicked by a middle blight lean aimlessly towards any semblance of hope. Cat-calls for the promotion of an impressive reserve have sounded regularly this season – a sad, if telling, tale of an issue too often presided over for the past two years. The truth, of course, is that United – as they did in the summer of ’09 – again failed to address its most problematic liability in the summer of last: its midfield. The reasons why they bypassed resolving the crisis can be anybody’s guess: lack of, ahem, ‘value,’ money, overall concern – take your pick. Or, indeed, perhaps they trusted that what they had was enough; which, despite our current position, has been somewhat disproved on too many occasions over the course of the campaign. There’s no need to relay. Those who have regularly provoked sighs have done so again this year, and those who we’ve relied on heavily before – the Carricks, the Fletchers – have too often trundled along. Yet, lost in the noise of anger, misplaced notions of promoting youth have sounded louder than ever before – which has not only highlighted the crumbling effect of our central pairings, but also, too, the naivety with which some willingly view the game though. As with all football brouhahas, the greatest casualties are sense and perspective, as pained calls fervently echo.