I’m all shouted out, back at work with the horsiest of throats. You can thank the chaps on Saturday for that.
NOOOO. NO ALMUNIA. WHY? WHAT HAVE YOU DONE YOU BLOODY IDIOT. NOOOO.
WAIT!!!!! HE SAVVVVEEEEDDDDD IT. LOVELY MATTY AMOONEY! HE’S BLOODY DONE IT.
NOOOOO SAGNA, NO STAND UP, ON YOUR FEET!
OH SHITS SAKE! SHIT OFF! HOW DID HE SLIP IN THERE?
Etc, for 90 minutes. It’s no wonder I’m still having trouble breathing, let alone talking.
I think what hurts is not they we played badly, (I mean, have you even seen Manchester United this season?) but that we were unable to rouse ourselves and get back into the game whilst we were still a goal down. Or two. That we had to concede three goals before we started playing football is terrible.
I’m still on Clichey’s back. The chap cannot defend. It’s glaring. He needs one of those dog leads, you know the ones that are a bit springy with the button on them that winds the lead in when you’re dog is being a badly positioned shit. So that when he goes mental and bombs forward, immediately after he loses possession he pings straight back into defense ready to defend. Seriously, opposition teams must look at our left and think “Arshavin/Clichey… let’s have a go on that side”. Arshavin did look moderately more interested to be fair, elevating his effort level from one hand on hip to two hands. Two hands!
It’s all been said anyway, hasn’t it. We were poor in the middle, they capitalised on that and they took their chances. It’s disingenuous to blame the keeper, or the defense, or the midfield though. I’ve said countless times, if Arshavin (or any other forward) doesn’t needlessly concede possession there is no break, if Song makes a challenge there is no pressure, if the defense stop the cross and clear there is no shot and if the keeper has a decent chance he’ll save it. When all of those things break down, you’ll concede goals.
That isn’t to say the second goal wasn’t anything other than Almunias fault entirely. Those shots should be saved – I guess no one will persist with the lie that either of our main keepers are good shot stoppers, what with Flappyhandski juggling it into his own net midweek and Almunia playing volleyball.
My point is United’s middle and defense have been poor of late, and they’ve started conceding goals, regardless of the perceived quality of the keeper. A great keeper will give you a better chance when everything else falls down, but no one is 8ft wide and made of bricks.
My point from pre-season still stands – United have been looking for a replacement for an aging EVDS for two years and so far haven’t found one. Schwarzer has been terrible for Fulham so far this season, also punching the ball into his own net a couple of times – criticise Almunia all you want, but the fact remains there wasn’t a sensible replacement in the summer, so we’re stuck with the moron. You just have have to hope the other parts of the team don’t self destruct like they did at the weekend.
At least there was plenty of good stuff elsewhere this weekend. Spurs only losing by one goal at West Ham a particular highlight. What kind of moron says “it wasn’t a bad result” when you lose to a team who previously had just 1pt. That’s a terrible result.
Lovely Darren Bent as well, continuing his one man crusade against Liverpool, made me smile. Lovely to see him try desperately to ruin his penalty but somehow still get it in. That’s how you rub it in their faces. I’m waiting to see the next Darren Bent penalty where he’ll run up, slip over, headbutt the ball accidentally, and see it bounce not just off the post, but off the other post, the crossbar and then into the goal off the happless keepers back. It’ll probably be against us at the Emirates on the 5th of March.
Speaking of that game, Atwell is a fucking disgrace. Stevie G escaped with a yellow when he should have had a red for self defending someones face with his elbows, and Torres/Sloth From The Goonies scoring the most farcical goal ever in the history of football (minor exaggeration maybe).
The best thing is, people keep suggesting Attwell should not referee in the premier league. Where do you put him? The suggestion is the Championship. Derby and Forest won’t like that. As Hitler said, he’s a silly boy with a whistle who has the refereeing skills of roadkill.
Keep smiling.
