Champions League – A Narrow and Nervous Win Over Copenhagen

Manchester United played host to Danish champions FC Copenhagen earlier today at Old Trafford in the Champions League. This was a match between the bottom two teams in Group A, with Copenhagen in third on 1 point and United dead last with zero. The Champions League is the most prestigious club competition in world football, and United are a team that need to be consistently making deep runs in this tournament. That’s the goal, at least. Today, the Red Devils and manager Erik ten Hag just needed three points to pick themselves up off the mat and get back into contention in the group. Only the top two teams from each group advance to the knockout rounds, and United would have a monumental task of getting into those top two spots if they lost today. The same can be said for Copenhagen, who have only been marginally better than United so far in the group.

The match got underway after the laying of a wreath in the center circle and moment’s silence in honor of Sir Bobby Charlton, and it was immaculately observed by both sets of fans. It’s always jarring when 75,000+ people previously being loud suddenly go completely quiet, but it’s the least that can be done for a man of Charlton’s stature. A classy move by the away fans as well to sing his name before the match started.

As has been the case many times this season, the opposition dominated the first half. They struck the left hand post of keeper Andre Onana’s goal around 15 minutes in or so, with the rebound fortunately going out of play. Copenhagen were simply the better side, and they were likely instructed by manager Jacob Neestrup to try and find the early goal. He would have known that United are a mentally fragile side, and that a goal in the opening 20 minutes or so would likely go a long way to getting a good result for his team. United were able to maintain some possession as the half wore on, but it was fairly harmless possession in the sense that we weren’t really doing anything with the ball aside from passing it along the back line. The attack was rather static, and I don’t recall too many real chances for the home side in the opening half. After 45 minutes it was 0-0, a score that suited Copenhagen perfectly well. United would need to find a winner though to keep qualification realistic.

Midfielder Christian Eriksen was brought on at halftime, and the play from United generally improved. Eriksen is very composed on the ball and always knows what pass to play in order to keep possession, which is precisely why he was brought on. United were creating more half-chances here and there, but the final pass or shot would always be just slightly off. Copenhagen weren’t as potent going forward generally speaking, but they still looked very lively when breaking on the counter-attack. The clock was on their side, as well. Every minute that ticked by was one minute closer to them getting a positive result away from home.

The opening goal in this match came on 72 minutes, and it was none other than the much-maligned center back Harry Maguire who delivered it. A cross into the box from a corner by midfielder Bruno Fernandes was only half-cleared by the Copenhagen defense, and the ball was recycled out to Eriksen on the right wing. He delivered a high and arcing cross of his own back into the box, and it found the head of Maguire. He had beaten his marker to get in behind the defense, and he stooped down low to get his head to the ball. The headerhit the ground first, but then bounced up and over Copenhagen keeper Kamil Grabara for 1-0. Maguire wheeled away in celebration, and got a rousing reception from the Stretford End. There was a quick VAR check for offside, but Maguire was deemed to be onside and the goal stood. What a huge goal, both for Maguire and United! He’s put some real shifts in this season, and today was his best. He finally used that massive head of his to it’s full potential. 1-0 to United!

The drama only escalated from there though. Copenhagen struggled to create clear chances in the final 15 minutes or so, but they were temporarily rescued by the referee when they were awarded a penalty in the dying seconds of stoppage time. Midfielder Scott McTominay attempted to clear a bouncing ball with a high boot, and the ref deemed it to be dangerous play. A little soft if you ask me, but I have seen penalties given for less. Forward Jordan Larsson (son of former United striker Henrik Larsson) stepped up to take the penalty. There was a little bit of gamesmanship on this penalty as well. Substitute United winger Alejandro Garnacho (who had missed a clear chance on a breakaway earlier in the match) was seen scuffing up the penalty spot with the bottom of his cleat while several other players were all crowded around the referee to argue the decision. This has become a fairly common practice in world football in recent years, but it can only be done if the referee is distracted and not paying attention.

Still, Larsson had a chance to ruin United’s evening and largely ruin their hopes for qualification if he could bury the penalty. He stepped up and struck it cleanly, only to see Onana beat away the shot with his trailing hand as he dived to the left. The ball bounced away out of play, and the referee blew his whistle immediately afterwards! He had done it! Onana saved the penalty, and United were victorious. Onana was mobbed by his teammates both on the field and on the bench, and it was a massive moment for him personally as well. He’s been guilty of some absolute howlers this season, so for him to make that save was nothing short of monumental. It will be great for his confidence going forward!

Speaking of going forward, the match today felt like the start of something for the club. It wasn’t pretty, but it was a massive three points and huge for the confidences of Maguire and Onana. The Red Devils must capitalize on this momentum, now. Everyone will be feeling very positive about today, and rightfully so. But it means nothing if they come out against Manchester City on Sunday and are flat and tepid again. The players need to believe in themselves. If Maguire and Onana can overcome their frankly poor starts to the season and play like they did today, anyone can.

Self-belief and confidence are important, but so are tactics. I was again unimpressed with the first half display from the team, as I have been many times this season. I know there are a lot of injuries right now, but that does not excuse the poor play from attackers like Bruno, Marcus Rashford, Antony dos Santos, and others. There’s just no creativity on the ball going forward. No one moves around, no one makes runs, and the finishing has been very bad even when they do get the ball into a good position. ETH needs to re-think whatever it is he is telling the players to do, because it isn’t working. We were again saved by moments of individual brilliance today, and that is an unsustainable plan. It’s mind-boggling, because ETH’s tactics and substitutions were so brilliant last season. Have opposing teams figured us out? Is it an issue with effort on the part of the players? Is the plan not being effectively communicated to the team? One can only wonder. I still like ETH’s subs and adjustments for the most part, but the tactical plan at the outset of many matches this season, including this one, leaves a lot to be desired.

United are now third in Group A, just one point off second-place Galatasaray. The matches do not get any easier from here on out for United, though. They have to play away in Denmark and Türkiye still, with the final match of the group having them play host to Bayern Munich. The next two matches in this group will be vital to United qualifying for the second round. Meanwhile, as mentioned above, United have the daunting task of playing City at Old Trafford next Sunday in the Manchester Derby. Any positive result from that match would be welcomed. City are not as good as they were last year, but they still have more than enough firepower to cause United problems.

Glory Glory Man United! Glazers Out!

Premier League – Man United Win Away in Honor of Sir Bobby Charlton

Earlier today, Manchester United traveled to the northeast of England for a Premier League match with Sheffield United at Bramall Lane. This was the first match for both clubs after the international break, with the Blades and manager Paul Heckingbottom (amazing last name) perhaps needing a positive result even more than United. They are currently bottom of the table, having taken only one point from their opening eight matches. United and manager Erik ten Hag meanwhile were looking for a bit of consistency. They won their last match against Brentford before the two week break, but have failed to string together consecutive victories so far this season. Perhaps a bit of extra motivation for the Red Devils would be to go and win one in memory of Sir Bobby Charlton, an England, United, and footballing legend who passed away from dementia just a few hours before kickoff. More on Charlton below.

The Blades were the better side for much of the opening half. Their finishing was poor, but they were moving the ball around well and creating a lot more than United. Keeper Andre Onana was forced into a few important saves as well, but it was United who opened the scoring on 28 minutes thanks to midfielder Scott McTominay. He found himself inside the box and on the receiving end of a sharp pass from fellow midfielder Bruno Fernandes. McTominay’s first touch with his chest sent the ball high into the air, but it fell right back down in front of him to hit on the volley first time. It wasn’t the cleanest of connections and it appeared to take a deflection off a Sheffield defender on it’s way to the net, but it rolled into the right hand side of the net with Blades keeper Wes Foderingham (another great last name) rooted to the spot. The goal was against the run of play to be sure, but that has been the story of Sheffield’s season so far. They create chances, but they don’t finish them and then get picked off at the other end. 1-0 to Manchester United!

Unfortunately, McTominay went from hero to villain just six minutes later when he was adjudged by referee Michael Oliver to have handled the ball in his own penalty area. Oliver pointed to the spot for a penalty straight away, and it was confirmed a few moments later by VAR. Now, this time, I don’t have too much of a problem with this one being given as a penalty. McTominay had his hand away from his body when it struck his lower arm, which under the current version of the handball rule should be a penalty every time. Alright, fine. My problem with this call is that even more egregious handball calls by opposing teams have not been called in previous matches, most notably when United played Arsenal and Tottenham earlier this season. There’s just no consistency in the application of this rule. None at all. It depends on the subjective decision of the referee and the VAR official, and subjectivity was the main thing the new handball rule was supposed to eliminate! It’s supremely annoying and threatens the integrity of the game when the rules are not applied equally across all matches. Blades striker Oli McBurnie stepped up to the spot and blasted the penalty past Onana for 1-1, giving him no chance to save it. The match remained 1-1 at halftime as well, with Bruno striking the crossbar from a free kick being the only other major action after the goals.

United improved in the second half, at least in terms of possessing the ball and creating chances. They still looked fairly uninspired, though. They seemed content to try and play the long ball over the top from midfield towards the forwards, but Sheffield were aware of this and set themselves up in a low block defensively. United have struggled monumentally to break down teams in the low block this season, and those struggles continued for most of this game. Midfielder Sofyan Amrabat struck the woodwork from distance, but most United attacks were breaking down in the final third.

United got their winner however thanks to a moment of individual brilliance from right back Diogo Dalot. United had the ball forward, and Dalot collected a pass in the center of the pitch from deputizing left back Victor Lindelof about 30 yards from goal. After taking a touch and composing himself, he unleashed a divine curling effort that Foderingham was late getting over to. The Blades keeper got a hand to the shot, but he could not keep the effort out and it settled into the top corner for 2-1. It was a massive sigh of relief for the United players and fans, and it came from a fairly unlikely source. Dalot has only scored 4 goals in total over the span of his United career, but he produced some real quality with this finish. It was a goal that Charlton himself would have been proud of! An effort from distance that curled into the top corner. 2-1 to United on 77 minutes.

The final 13 minutes plus stoppage time were not the pressure cooker United have seen at times this season. Sheffield forged some half chances from set pieces, but United looked more likely to grab a 3rd than Sheffield did to get a 2nd. Substitute winger Alejandro Garnacho was a terror down their left hand side in the closing stages, and had his finishing been better he would have had a third for United. The ref’s whistle finally blew and United secured three points on the road, which was a fitting tribute to Charlton.

Positives and negatives on this one. The makeshift back four mostly played well, marshaled by an excellent match from center back Harry Maguire. He was a rock at the back today, always on hand to make a clearance or win a header in the air. The injuries to the United defense have led to him seeing more playing time, and he has given ETH a selection headache with his good play. Also solid games from Lindelof, Onana, and Amrabat. The attack still looks very disjointed, however. They were better going forward as the match went on, but they are not relying on good tactics or build-up play to score goals. We are still continuing to rely on moments of individual brilliance to score and thusly to win matches. It worked today thanks to Dalot and lower quality opposition, but it will not work consistently. I know that the return of key midfield and defensive starters will fix things somewhat, but ETH clearly still has more work to do to get this team firing on all cylinders.

Today was all about Sir Bobby, though. United needed a win on the day of his death to honor his legacy appropriately, as the man did nothing but win during his career. This is a man who was arguably the best-ever player for both England and United. He is one of only 9 men EVER to win the World Cup, Champions League (then called the European Cup), and the Ballon d’Or. He was a menace in the midfield to deal with, and he held goal scoring records for both England and United until relatively recently. He also was a survivor the Munich Air Disaster, the awful plane crash that almost led to United shutting it’s doors in 1958. Put simply, without Sir Bobby, United is not the club it is today. England would not have a World Cup trophy to it’s name, either. He was a regular at Old Trafford well into his 80s, and the place will feel significantly different without his presence in the stands. Tributes have been pouring out from fans, players, managers, pundits, and clubs; and they will continue to do so throughout the week. Sir Bobby was 86 years old.

United next play in midweek in the Champions League, at home to FC Copenhagen. Three points are desperately needed if United want to make it out of their group. After that is the not-small matter of the Manchester Derby next Sunday at Old Trafford. The club’s form needs to improve if we want to win either of the upcoming matches.

Glory Glory Man United! Glazers Out!

England Victorious over Switzerland – International Friendly

The national teams are all in action for the next week or so, with many countries still attempting to book their place for World Cup 2022. England has already qualified, so the next few matches will be centered on manager Gareth Southgate deciding who he wants to take on the plane with him. Switzerland have already qualified as well, so they were in a similar mindset. When your team qualifies from their group outright and you don’t have to worry about a tricky playoff fixture, you have the luxury of focusing on different tactical formations and player lineups. Today’s match at Wembley was an example of both sides trying to figure out what works best for them.

England had some injury issues at the back coming into the match, which forced Southgate to play a back three of Connor Coady, Ben White, and Marc Guéhi (on his England debut). After this match, I don’t think Southgate will be eager to go back to that formation with those specific players. The Swiss aren’t known as a dominant attacking side, but they were very strong in the first half and found a lot of space on the wings behind the wingbacks. Indeed, it was Swiss legend Xerdan Shaqiri who found a bit of room on the right-hand edge of the box for a cross that led to the opening goal for the Swiss. Shaqiri wasn’t closed down properly, and he was able to get in a left-footed aerial cross that found the head of striker Breel Embolo. Embolo redirected the ball back across goal, and England keeper Jordan Pickford had no chance to get to it. Shaqiri should have been closed down on the edge of the box, and White was too far away from Embolo to get to the cross first. 1-0 to the Swiss and England couldn’t really complain about it.

England were lucky to not be down 2-0 shortly after that, after a shot from Shaqiri struck the hand of Pickford and rebounded off the underside of the cross bar. The Three Lions woke up a bit after that though, and finally started making some runs forward consistently and causing problems for the Swiss at the back. England and Crystal Palace right back Kyle Walker-Peters (not to be confused with Kyle Walker, it’s two different guys!) was causing problems down the right hand side. He was combining well with Chelsea loaned-Crystal Palace winger Connor Gallagher, and the Swiss weren’t sure how to mark them properly. Their pressing led to a giveaway from Swiss defender Fabian Frei, as Walker-Peters was able to block his poor clearance straight into the path of Gallagher. Gallagher played the ball along the ground, with midfielder Mason Mount letting the ball roll across his path. England and Manchester United left back Luke Shaw was on hand to strike the ball directly at the goal, and it was a sumptuous strike into the left side of the goal that gave deputy Swiss keeper Jonas Omlin no chance. Shaw doesn’t score many, but he did well to be in the right place at the right time. The Swiss hadn’t made many mistakes up to that point, but England punished them nonetheless.

The second half was nowhere near as fluid as the first, likely due to the litany of changes brought by both managers right around the hour mark. Both sides were defending well, but neither side was creating many dangerous chances. England had shifted to a back-4 with White moving out to right back, a change which seemed to suit him well. The Swiss could maintain possession, but they couldn’t find that final dangerous pass.

England got their second goal and eventual winner from talisman striker Harry Kane on 78 minutes from the penalty spot. A cross came in from the right wing that England headed towards goal, only to see it blocked by the raised arm by Swiss midfielder Steven Zuber. The ref did not award a penalty at first, but after a lengthy VAR check it was decided that a penalty was to be given. By the letter of the law it probably was a handball, although in the past under different iterations of the rule, it may not have been. Zuber had his back to the ball and knew nothing about where it was, but he had his right arm extended out from his body when the ball made contact. Any time an arm is in an “unnatural position” that helps the defender cover more space, there is always a chance a penalty will be awarded.

Kane stepped up to the spot and buried the ball in the left side of the net. Omlin actually guessed correctly and went to his right to save it, but the power and placement of the shot made the ball very difficult to save. Kane now has an astonishing 49 goals for England on just 48 caps, and he is now level second with the legendary Sir Bobby Charlton on England’s all-time scoring list. Kane is simply world-class. Ok yes this was a friendly and yes he would be expected to score from the penalty spot, but to be only 28 and a scant 4 goals behind Wayne Rooney’s all-time record is absolutely staggering. No doubts about his place in the squad when it is time to travel to the World Cup. If he carries on like he is doing and wins a trophy with England, it is very likely he goes down as the best English player of all time.

The rest of the match was mostly drama-free, with England’s talented subs creating a few half chances before the final whistle went. England won the match 2-1, and it’s always good to win in any situation. Southgate will have plenty of food for thought going into Tuesday’s match against Ivory Coast. Rotational players like Gallagher, Walker-Peters, Guéhi, and late sub Tyrick Mitchell all did well; but as alluded to it would be surprising if England played a back-3 again any time soon. If they do, it will be with different players in the line-up. The Swiss took advantage of the space on the wings far too often today, so the experiment there today probably won’t be attempted again. This wasn’t a classic or clinical performance by any standard, bur England got over the line in the end. Room for improvement for sure, but you’re never going to see the best football in a friendly.

Ivory Coast presents a different set of challenges, so I wouldn’t be surprised if Southgate switched things up again for that match. At tournament time, you need to be able to win as many different ways as possible, and you have to be ready to defend against many different styles of play. I would like to see Gallagher and Walker-Peters given more opportunities to shine.

***

Quick note: spare a moment to laugh at Italy. The reigning European champions were eliminated from World Cup 2022 qualification by minnows North Macedonia earlier in the week. A huge upset, and it means a second consecutive World Cup without Italy in it. Couldn’t have happened to a better set of fans and players 😉

Victory Over Chelsea & The Heroic Harry Gregg

The Premier League returned from its winter break this weekend, and Manchester United were given the challenge of facing Chelsea away at Stamford Bridge in London for a marquee Monday evening (England time) match-up. United have consistently had Chelsea’s number this season, beating them 4-0 on opening day and also knocking them out of the League Cup. I expected us to compete with them especially after 2 weeks off and with new signings Bruno Fernandes and Odion Ighalo having some proper training time with the rest of the squad. That unfortunately didn’t happen for Ighalo due to him being on quarantine for the coronavirus (of all things!), but he was able to train on his own and appears to be fine after leaving China.

The first half of the match was uneventful in terms of goals until the very end, but that does it not mean it lacked drama. United center back and captain Harry Maguire got himself into serious trouble when he went down out of bounds and left his leg in the air. His studs made contact with the unmentionables department of Chelsea striker Michy Batshuayi. Maguire was given a yellow and VAR reviewed the incident for a possible red card, but ultimately Maguire was allowed to stay on. It would not be the last incident of grievance for Chelsea concerning VAR on the evening. As a United supporter I will never advocate for our players being sent off unless someone straight up punches somebody, but in this instance had Maguire been sent off I would have been much more upset with his conduct than the referee’s. Can’t leave those studs in the air like that, man.

The Red Devils broke the deadlock near half-time and somewhat against the run of play, thanks to good work from Aaron Wan-Bissaka. He was playing as a right wing back in United’s interesting 3-5-2 formation employed today by manager Ole Gunnar Solskajaer. He got down the right side and pulled off some neat footwork to create space for a cross between him and his marker, Chelsea winger Willian. Anthony Martial had made an incisive run into the box and got his head towards probably the best cross I’ve ever seen from AWB. He’s certainly getting better at it and I am so excited to once again have a United right back who is good both in attack and defense. Martial’s header was quality as well; he put just enough of a deflection on it to ensure it flew into the far corner and beyond the reach of Chelsea keeper Willy Caballero. Martial hadn’t done anything all game until that point, but the moment you sleep on him is the moment he punishes you.

United had all the momentum going into halftime after the goal and came out in the second half playing even better than in the first half. Several half-chances were created but conversely it was Chelsea who ended up having the ball in the back of the net next. They won a corner that was well-taken and after a few deflections the ball fell to center back Kurt Zouma, who struck the ball with some excellent pace and power from the edge of the area and under United keeper David De Gea. I thought Chelsea had their equalizer, but there were protests from United players who were down on the ground. Once again, VAR was called in for a review. Chelsea right back Cesar Azpilicueta crashed into united wing back Brandon Williams as the cross from the corner came in, and a foul was called for the push by referee Anthony Taylor. However, the video also showed that there was contact by United midfielder Fred on Azpilicueta before he crashed into Williams. That further complicated the matter. Should a foul have even been called there by VAR? I’m not sure. A very close call. Yes there was contact, but was it enough to cause Azpilicueta to literally dive into Williams? Whatever the truth is, Chelsea fans were left feeling aggrieved once again with the referee and the VAR referee.

United carried on with their lead and got a second goal from A FREAKING SET PIECE OF ALL THINGS thanks to a lovely ball from a Fernandes corner kick that found Maguire’s massive head on the edge of the 12 yard box. Maguire buried his header (to ad insult to injury for Chelsea fans) and doubled United’s advantage. I suddenly felt much more secure about the result. Yes there was 28+ minutes left but Chelsea hadn’t been able to finish a chance all day, and I felt that United would be able to ride their luck from there on out.

And I was right about them riding their luck! Chelsea substitute striker Olivier Giroud managed to put the ball in the back of the net about 8 minutes later, but a VAR review spotted Giroud’s foot (yes, his foot) was offside when the ball was played to him. I couldn’t believe how close it was, but if the red and blue line graphics are to be believed, Giroud was slightly off just before he scored. The goal was disallowed and Chelsea were once again back down to 2-0. That’s two goals and and a red card that could have been given the other way with different refs on the ground and behind the VAR screen. Chelsea never managed another serious chance, and United substitute Ighalo was unfortunate to not finish a guilt-edged chance in the dying seconds of added time.

Yes United got lucky to a certain extent this match, but we took advantage of our chances when given them and Chelsea did not. For that, we deserve the points. We move up to 7th, normally nothing to be excited about but we are only 1 point of 6th, 2 points of 5th, and 3 points off the Blues themselves in 4th. The race for that 4th spot (and also that 5th spot which could later turn into a Champions League spot) is wide open. Good to see the lads back and in decent form. Fernandes needs to take all corners and free kicks if he is on the pitch from here on out. He’s a different class of footballer and I am so excited to have someone of his quality in the team. Good match for the defense and keeper, especially by Eric Bailly and Luke Shaw. First time “doing the double” (sweeping) Chelsea since 1988!

Next match is against Club Brugge away in Belgium for the first leg of the Europa League 2nd Round on Thursday 2/20/20. Let’s get some vital away goals and set up an easy home fixture at Old Trafford!

*******

Man United FC and all of English football were saddened by the loss of former United and Northern Ireland goalkeeper Harry Gregg, OBE on Sunday. He was not only a top class keeper for United in the late 1950s and 1960s, but he was a hero of a man as well. Gregg was one of the survivors of the Munich Air Disaster, a plane crash that killed 23 of the 44 people aboard in February 1958. The death toll would have been higher if not for Gregg. He emerged from the crash relatively unscathed, and decided to go back into the burning wreckage to save 4 more people, including small children. He was the second to last surviving member of a group of men known as the Busby Babes (after the manager Sir Matt Busby), a group of the most naturally talented English players the nation had ever seen. Only Sir Bobby Charlton remains now as the lone survivor of the plane crash.

Gregg had 247 appearances for United and was crucial in helping to rebuild the club under Sir Matt. He also had a successful coaching career at various clubs after retiring as as a player. He will always be remembered in Manchester and across the UK not only for the caliber of player he was but also the caliber of man that he was.