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Relentless United outclass City
Relentless United outclass City
Marc Fox
However much Sir Alex Ferguson tried to downplay the significance of the scoreline in the Community Shield before the match kicked off, his jubilance when Nani scored an injury time winner to sink Manchester City on Sunday belied his true feelings.
Managers read more into fixtures such as the traditional English Premier League curtain raiser than they might always let on, but regardless of Ferguson’s pre-match antipathy he would have known this was going to be the first public test for a new crop of yet another wave of youngsters at Old Trafford.
That they passed with flying colours against a disappointing full-strength City side was probably as unexpected as it was satisfying.
The average age of United’s new-look side was so young at one point in the second-half of their deserved 3-2 victory that Ashley Young, a summer transfer from Aston Villa, was the oldest player in the side aged 26.
All United’s close season signings left an impression, notably Young’s forays down either flank.
The impression given by Ferguson’s starting line-up at Wembley was that far from replacing Nani, Young and the two-goal Portuguese will be United’s preferred wide men – certainly at home – while Antonio Valencia and Park Ji-sung might offer greater discipline and work rate away from Old Trafford.
Goalkeeper David de Gea was at fault for City’s second, but, again, supporters will have already been calmed by the pre-season assurance of Anders Lindegaard. De Gea has time on his side and the support of a patient manager.
Although Manchester United lost Gary Neville, Paul Scholes and goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar to retirement within the space of a few months, the spine of the championship-winning side remains mostly intact.
And the returns of Danny Welbeck and Tom Cleverley will feel like new signings for Ferguson, who couldn’t have expected either to return from season-long loan spells at Sunderland and Wigan with any more verve and enthusiasm.
The addition of Welbeck, who was called into England’s squad for this Wednesday’s friendly against the Netherlands by Fabio Capello, further bolsters Ferguson’s attacking armoury, while Cleverley was masterful in midfield on the back of an impressive under-21s campaign in pre-season.
City fans, by contrast, will have been left with more questions than their cross-town counterparts after watching their side not only uncharacteristically throw away a half-time lead but also play second fiddle all afternoon.
Furthermore, the comments of Roberto Mancini, the City manager, on United’s greater squad depth in the run up to the weekend’s game looked unerring in their accuracy given the displays of Welbeck, Cleverley, Chris Smalling and Phil Jones.
Whether Mancini still thinks his side is only, in his own words, “five yards away” from United after this display is uncertain.
© Marc Fox & Soccerphile.com
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