United remain a capable team but no one needs to tell Sir Alex
Ferguson that his veterans look vulnerable
Wayne Rooney's skill and tenacity against Manchester
City almost made up for Manchester United's deficiencies.
Photograph: Mike Egerton/Empics Sport
Manchester United still have admirers
in high places. Roberto Mancini, once the successful
manager of Internazionale, showed them every respect on Tuesday
night. His policy, for the most part, was one of mere containment,
yet it worked well enough to leave his Manchester City side with a 2-1 lead
to take into the second leg of the Carling Cup semi-final.
Innumerable teams have felt compelled merely to try to get in
United's way. Over the years, they have usually been trampled by
Sir Alex Ferguson's players. The
visitors did run all over City once again but the only real harm
was to the dignity of Mancini's players. United may have scored,
but the opposition's goalkeeper, Shay Given, was asked simply to be
his usual impressive self and had no need to be superhuman.
United need nobody to tell them about the fallibility stealing
over their squad. They have now endured seven defeats in all
competitions and there are a lot of stiff challenges still. This
campaign is, all the same, an odd one since the team is definitely
not in desperate straits.
It would be no shock if they recovered to eliminate City in the
second leg. For that matter, they have a close-up view of the
pinnacle of the Premier League, since they are only a point behind
the new leaders, Arsenal.
The Champions League did not cause them all that much distress
either, even if Besiktas beat them at Old Trafford. The gap between
English and Italian football is probably narrowing, but United will
expect to wriggle past Milan in the last 16 tie next month.
United must primarily be concerned about the medium and
long-term prospects. Nobody has to tell Ferguson that key men are
getting old. On Tuesday, Gary Neville had to confine his
provocative gesturing to the sidelines, since he was an unused
substitute. Paul Scholes, 35, was not introduced until the 88th
minute and Ryan Giggs, 36, looked ageless in the autumn and may
have other sprightly spells to come, but his impact was limited at
Eastlands even if he was in position to knock home the opener.
Edwin van der Sar, 39, had nothing to apologise for, but the
veteran understandably does not dominate the goalmouth.
Ferguson may well have had it in mind to engineer a transition,
but Ben Foster was undone when he had to justify his sound
reputation by standing between the posts for United week after
week. The manager is having some trouble in accomplishing what he
has achieved memorably in the past, the reconstruction of the
squad.
Some additions such as Anderson have still to convince and he
was at fault when Carlos Tevez, with his second goal of
the night, scored the winner against United. Apart from that,
renewing the squad is a thorny topic in this financial climate.
United followers, understandably, rage against the Glazers and
the various means they can deploy to extract money from the club.
Unless the takeover had been conducted by a bidder of immeasurable
means, as Sheikh Mansour sometimes seems to be at City, the owner
of United was bound to a target of understandable rage.
The Glazers are not endearing, but having completed the
takeover for £800m in 2005 at the delirious heights of the Premier
League's fashionability, they will not be stopped now from striving
to make sense of that benefit. A splurge on signings would only
make sense if it was calculated that the disaffection of fans was
liable to be even more costly. It would take a great deal more
distress before Ferguson turned into some rogue manager who gave a
coded endorsement to would-be insurrectionists. The very idea is
inconceivable. Ferguson's emphasis will be on winning and it is not
at all outlandish to visualise the Premier League trophy remaining
in his grasp.
There was a piquancy about Tevez's goals, but few people had
quibbled when United did not exercise the £25m option of retaining
the Argentinian in 2008. He had almost seemed to try too hard,
omitting in the process to show his flair. The manager would not
have guessed then that he would have to take a chance on a Michael
Owen who had . a limited impact at Newcastle UnitedFerguson will
explain that he has merely refused to pay outlandish prices of
late, but he is left with a squad that, while capable, is in
gradual decline. United badly need to see Rio Ferdinand returning
to the line-up, but at the centre-half's age a back condition will
probably have to be managed anxiously rather than cured. Amid the
various difficulties in the squad, Wayne Rooney had the industry on
Tuesday of a man determined to make do for every deficiency.
That level of technique and desire is precious. Should Rooney be
injured, jaded or disillusioned, United's niggling problems could
turn into agonies of despair.