Manchester United..Images which flash in my memory..The red devils..Electric Old Trafford...Noisy ’’We are the champions’’ chants..Cool Kenyon....Fanatical fan following..Charismatic Cantona.. Fighters to the core..Hawkish Fergie..Class with mass appeal...I could go on and on for MAN U is an institution in football crazy England and South east Asia !
Careful analysis of this tremendous teams’ phenomenal success in the last decade has revealed a tactical mix of breeding and grooming talent very early through the youth system (second only to Ajax though) and also strategically acquiring the services of classy overseas talents like Eric Cantona, Ruud Van Nistelrooy to mention a few.
Buoyed by a highly supportive yet demanding fan following, a board with a vision and deep pockets and a disciplinarian manager like Sir Alex, Man U today has forged a successful team out of a brilliant set of individuals.
While on an individual player to player comparison, they might not be as talented as a Real or even a Juve, as a team Man U are as collectively effective as the great German national sides of the 70s and 80s.
Individual Areas analysed:
Goalkeeping:
This is one area where Man u lack stability. Barthez is erratic - brilliant on his day , embarassingly horrible any other time. Roy Carroll doesnt inspire the confidence of his mates whilst Tim Howard looks promising though lacking experience.
Defence:
Gary Neville on the right is a joke by my standards. Old, tired and slow off the blocks , manages to retain his place due to lack of alternatives. Wes Brown could be an option but is yet to establish himself in the big stage as a right back preferring to stay in central defence. John O Shea as the left back is one of the most promising talents to come out of Man u for a long time. He has pace, creativity and can contribute to attacking moves. Doubles up as cover for the central defence too. The central defence with the over rated but effective Rio Ferdinand , an ever improving and maturing Mikael Silvestre looks solid after a long time.
Midfield:
This is , in my opinion , United’s strength. Even after losing the talismanic Beckham and the talented Veon, Man U are blessed with the hard working and smart tackling Roy Keane, immensly gifted Paul Scholes , the tireless Nicky But* and the classy magician Ryan Giggs. Add to this the effective Phil Neville and the yound guns , Quinton Fortune and Michael stewart and we have a midfield which oozes of talent and promise.
Forwards:
Who doesnt think Ruud Van Nistelrooy is one of the best fwds today ? On his day he can be as menacing as a Ronaldo , Vieri or a Raul. But the supporting cast isnt as good. Though ex super sub Solskjaer, current super sub Forlan are effective and new signing David Bellion holds promise, they are in no means in the same league as a Ruud.
In all , if Man u could settle down with a steady goalkeeper, solve their creative void in the right flank and find a second super striker , they could give Real a run for their money.