No home comfort
THE aura of invincibility surrounding Old Trafford is fast disappearing. A number of insipid performances at The Theatre of Dreams last season have alerted the so-called ‘lesser’ teams to the fact that United’s impregnability at home is just a mirage.
But the final nail was hammered home two weeks ago when Tottenham beat the Red Devils 3-2. Even manager Alex Ferguson admitted that the first-half of that match was probably his team’s worst ever performance.
The EPL table shows United in second place – four points behind Chelsea after seven matches.
But this is only half the story. Even the die-hard Red Devil will admit that United’s form this season has been patchy, to say the least.
The defence, no thanks to injuries and loss of form, has been in sixes and sevens. The only good news is that youngsters Chris Smalling and Phil Jones are on the verge of first team comebacks.
And upfront, Fergie will not be pleased that Wayne Rooney and Javier Hernandez have yet to get on the scoresheet this season.
The farce England endured in Warsaw in midweek is sure to anger Fergie. The four United men on duty – Rooney, Cleverley, Welbeck and Carrick – and their England teammates were made to wait an additional day because the country’s World Cupqualifier with Poland was called off due to torrential rain.
What this means is that United’s players will have one day fewer to recover from their Eastern European exertions.
Stoke would probably not be the manager’s choice of opponents after the international break.
As Man City, Chelsea and Arsenal have found out, playing Stoke isn’t for the faint-hearted. The Potters have earned a reputation for being the ‘Wimbledon’ of this era and, just like the Londoners, have earned the ‘hard men’ tag.
Like Wimbledon, Tony Pulis has fashioned his team to be deadball specialists. Stoke are highly likely to put in crosses, throw-ins, freekicks and corners for Crouch, Shawcross and Huth.
The worry for United fans is that David De Gea (and for that matter Anders Lindegaard) is not the commanding presence in goal that is required when facing the inevitable Stoke aerial barrage.
De Gea’s weakness is his inability to deal with crosses. The Spanish Under-21 international is an excellent shot-stopper, but, if selected, will be put under intense pressure with the expected aerial bombardment from Stoke.
United will hope that Chelsea fall at White Hart Lane this weekend.
Spurs have only lost once in seven matches and will surely make life difficult for Roberto Di Matteo’s boys.
A four-point deficit at this stage of the season isn’t insurmountable, but Ferguson knows he cannot allow Chelsea to get too far ahead.
A favour from Spurs would be great, but United’s home form has to improve if they are to pick up title number 20.