Tendai Makaripe
It is common knowledge that any game of football is won in midfield. If a team has a midfield that lacks grit and creativity, it will be a mammoth task for strikers to get a clean supply of the ball which automatically means no goals will be scored.
The Manchester United midfield has been tremendously struggling ever since the start of the season and has maintained the poor run of form with remarkable consistency.
The champions’ pathetic attempt at a title defence in 2013-14 has made it clearer than ever that Old Trafford needs to see a transformation in the middle of the park
Man United have been pathetic in every sense of the word. One can never believe that they are holders of the prestigious English title. This title defence, barely worthy of the name, is the second worst in the history of the competition as it stands.
Only Blackburn, in 1995-96, have a worse record as champions after 20 games. With three turgid, predictable 2-1 defeats in a row to start 2014, never has spectacular failure looked so boring.
Millions of people across the globe follow who religiously follow the club religiously may find it difficult to pinpoint blame since the calamity and insipidity has been so widespread but it would perhaps make more sense to look to the club’s current manager and his players. Neither, in large part, are good enough.
The red devils manager David Moyes exclusively claimed that the players he wants to bolster his squad are unavailable this January much to the dismay of the club’s followers who feel changes have to be made soon rather than later.
The Scot has exactly three weeks to find two midfielders above all else. There are no prizes for knowing that with no protection, no production and no penetration, the area between defence and attack has become a no-man’s-land for United, its major let down.
Man United desperately needs a gritty, strong, combative and energetic midfielder who can stop an opposition team’s raids and launch attacks.
There are very few players inn the Old Trafford dressing room who can match that description. One of them is Darren Fletcher, a player tenacious enough to fulfil the role to a large extent but sadly cannot yet be relied upon at the grand stage like the champions league or the more crucial league games given his long-term debilitating illness.
In lay men’s terms, the Red Devils need a midfileder who can win the ball and immediately turn on the opposition as he leads an attack. Most teams in the league especially those in the top eight have combative midfielders who average three tackles a match with the exception of Man United.
“In Lucas Leiva (4.1), Cheikh Tiote (3.9), Aaron Ramsey (3.7), Ramires (3.4), Fernandinho (3.1), Mikel Arteta (3.1) and James McCarthy (3), the champions’ immediate rivals have players more effective at taking the ball directly off their opposition.
“ After excluding the tactically indisciplined Phil Jones (2.5), who has played more games in defence than midfield this term, Moyes’s best tackler is Tom Cleverley, who has on average completed only 2.1 of them per Premier League appearance,” said Jonathan Birchall an British online writer.
United has been struggling to stop direct attacking play as has been seen in the last three games and the team’s overreliance on 32 year old Michael Carrick inorder to retain possession is not doing them any good.
Upon his arrival at United at the start of the season, Moyes targeted Thiago, Fabregas, Ander Herrera and of late Atletico Madrid’s Koke who he has been closely monitoring over the past weeks.
However these players are more effective when going forward than they are when the team is under siege. They are far more creative threats than they are midfield destroyers designed to break up play. The fact is, United are also in dire need of players with the ability to create and score goals.
Teenage sensation Adnan Januzaj, is the only Man United midfielder worth talking about when it comes to scoring goals. He has rattled the nets on 3 occasions this season more than any United midfielder.
It is saddening to note that United’s midfield has offered a woeful six goals in 20 games.
“Yaya Toure (10), Aaron Ramsey (eight) and Eden Hazard (eight) have done better than that on their own. The Premier League champions have the same amount of goals at home as Sam Allardyce’s West Ham,”wrote Birchall.
United seem to be lagging behind in almost everything when it comes to the midfield department. The poor performance of the midfielders means the they cannot provide adequate assists for the strikers.
The gaping hole between the centre circle and attack for United has been made even clearer during Wayne Rooney’s recent absence.
Other clubs have their midfield department working themselves to a standstill when it comes to assists with midfielders from Manchester City providing 20 assists, Arsenal 19, Chelsea, Everton and Liverpool 16, Newcastle 10 and Tottenham eight.
The Moyes’ coached side has managed a paltry four. Only two midfielders, Januzaj and Valencia, have assisted a goal in the league for United this season.
Simply pathetic!
United has no depth at all in midfield, Tom Cleverly , a player who has never scored or assisted more than two goals a season at Old Trafford has been given the nod to start at the heart of midfield ahead of any of his fellow midfielders for the simple reason that Moyes does not have any other options.
Some may talk of Marouane Fellaini, the club’s fourth most expensive signing ever, but frankly speaking the Belgian international has no goals, no assists and only a red card to show for his maiden season at Old Trafford.
The team looks pathetic on paper and on the pitch its even worse, Moyes and company really need to do something and do it fast!
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