12 Feb 2014 23:28:12
Thought Vidic was absolutely immense tonight, and although he may be past his prime, he's still capable of dominating games. He's going to be a tough void to fill next summer, and I'm truly sorry to see him go.

Shame RVP didn't put that early chance away; it would have been a completely different game.

I'm sure the majority of people won't see it this way, but I thought Cleverley had a pretty good game. He broke play up much more effectively than Carrick and his passing was quick and sharp. He keeps the ball moving and is a pretty effective 'water carrier' player. I don't think that he should be a regular, as he doesn't have the natural talent to take control of a game. Cleverley is a solid squad player, english and home-grown, so I don't see him leaving any time soon.

However, people saying that he should be sold and blaming him for much of United's shortcomings is ridiculous. United just doesn't have the personnel to make a truly dominant midfield at this point, and the amount of stick Cleverley receives is just absurd.

It's not like anyone else in the midfield has been very productive. Carrick has failed to replicate his form from last season, Anderson has left (finally), Fletcher has only just come back from a career-threatening injury, and Giggs shouldn't really be allowed anywhere near the pitch anymore sadly.

I'm of the opinion that Rooney would make a solid central midfielder and have been expecting him to make the transition for a few years now. However, given the way he reacted to SAF playing him there, I don't think we can expect Rooney to drop back willingly.

No doubt that this season has been a huge disappointment. Almost nobody expected United to have such a tough time transitioning after Sir Alex retired. The squad is not an easy one to handle at this point, and its flaws are clear to see for everyone.

David Moyes is here for at least a couple of years. Regardless of whether he was anyone's first choice, or if he's never won anything before, or if he's out of his depth, or if he plays negative football, he's here to stay.

Judging him after this first season is always going to make people extremely critical. We'll never know how another manager would have done, but I honestly don't think this team would have been challenging for the title even if we had brought in Klopp, Mourinho, Guardiola, etc.

People will point to the fact that we won the title last season with relative ease with virtually the same squad. I don't believe this argument holds much weight. SAF was the manager last season, and this year Moyes dismantled the entire coaching squad and changed the way things are run.

I also believe that the other top clubs have become stronger. Liverpool's patience with Rodgers has immediately paid off, and they play exciting football. Arsenal have been the top points collector since the second half of last season. Chelsea are a much more organized unit under Mourinho, and have made good additions to their team. City have bought well, (contrary to what many thought in the summer) and are much more clinical in front of goal.

David Moyes needs to be judged a year from now. Once he is able to get rid of some of the deadwood and bring in a few new faces, it would be acceptable to be more critical of him.

Honestly, the changes that have been made to the squad since Moyes took over have been positive in my eyes. Fellaini has hardly featured, but I think he'll turn out to be a useful player even if we overpaid. Mata is quality, and will lessen the impact of Rooney/Kagawa/RVP leaving in the summer. I highly doubt that SAF would have been giving Januzaj the game time he's received this season, and he certainly is a player that we can build a team around.

All in all, as poor as United have been this season, I think the doom and gloom won't last as long as some people are fearing. We're almost certainly won't get Champion's League football next year, and that will hurt us but it shouldn't be detrimental. Hopefully United can get their business done early next summer, and we can strengthen the obvious areas. (CM, LB, CB)

Sorry for the long post. Cheers.

Ruudinthemood

{Ed007's Note - I didn't want to delete your post so I looked through your posting history and tagged it but can you please make sure to log-in in future, cheers.}

1.) 12 Feb 2014
Thanks Ed, sorry I thought I had logged in.

{Ed007's Note - No probs mate.}

2.) 13 Feb 2014
Whats up Ruud, our midfield problems needed to be addressed on day 1 of the new managers tenure. Its a complete disappointment that fergie had a few transfer windows and didn't fix it, something that brought me close to a few burst blood vessels in truth. It is a damning indictment of Moyes that he's had 2 windows and failed, for whatever reason, and now the club suffers, more than is needed as you admit yourself we should be expressing ourselves far better, and honestly could be IF he focused on the gaping abyss that is our midfield!
I cannot forgive him for this error as It is the main reason our ball has been lacking.

The details behind our decline seem to be hidden from some fans, a quickening minority. His mentality does not match ours. Its very simple to see. I'm afraid he's going to try and buy players to fit his perspective, rather than building a team emulating the teams of Sir Matt and Fergie.