...And with those words, the match commentator perfectly summarised the latest fixture of the Manchester United-Alternate-Route-to-the-UEFA-Champions-League Project which was played against St. Etienne at the vibrant Stade Geoffrey-Guichard yesterday. 0-1 it ended, with the lone goal scored by the excellent Henrikh Mkhitaryan in the 16th minute. 0-4 on aggregate. Into the pot for the Round of 16 draws. Soft work. Slight work. Job done.
The line-up was as expected: A mixture of first teamers and bench warmers to give the appropriate balance of seriousness and a winking acknowledgement of comfort. Romero was in goal, Young started at right back and Fellaini in the midfield. Zlatan however started to serve as a present goal threat to the hosts. If you were expecting a Noisy Neighbour v Monaco treat, this game wasn't for you and that was exactly how we liked it. No agitations, no pulse-racing moments, no resurrection of side-lined strikers, no comical defending - just control. And we had the perfect manager for just that type of job.
After Mikki scored the technically brilliant but simple goal, the tie was over as a contest. St. Etienne needed 5 goals to advance and except they were somehow able to rush through the retrospective transfers of Lionel Messi, Xavi Hernandez, Andres Iniesta, Pedro Rodriguez and David Villa (and in prime form. Not with Florentin Pogba or Aston Villa flop, Jordan Veretout), they was no way a Jose Mourinho team was going to concede a handful without returning at least one. So that was a done deal.
(Dethroned) King Bailly (insert angry emoticon) made 2 absolutely bone-headed tackles within the space of 180 seconds and correctly earned himself a red card. The tackles were needless, at neutral areas of the pitch and unnecessary considering the scoreline and the level of control we were exerting over the opponents. The textbook case of 'rush of blood to the head'. Thankfully, it was 'only' a red which honest watchers would agree has been long overdue for our defence titan. (I still think he may one day be charged for assault and have civil claims filed against him with the way he tackles). He misses the 1st leg of the Round of 16 tie. A bit of carelessness has been creeping into his game in the last couple of matches and I hope this will serve as a no-snooze wake up call. Rant over. Still the best defender in the club.
"O' Calf and Hamstring Injuries, Where are thy stings?"
In the only downsides to the routine victory, Mikki and Michael Carrick have cupped hamstring and calf injuries respectively. More damaging is the injury to Mikki who gives United an added dimension no other player in the team possesses. He is in many ways the X-factor in the side and there is no doubt that we would be a poorer side with his absence. How long does it take for a strained hamstring to heal? He's almost certainly out of the Sunday final and possibly the Bournemouth league tie, the Chelsea FA Cup blockbuster and the 'Borough away game. I imagine it's the manager's job to immediately start to figure out alternative strategies.
Carrick's loss is a bit more manageable to the extent that he has since stopped being a starter and now comes in fundamentally to replace Ander Herrara who was (1) suspended for the game and (2) needed a rest. The calmness, composure and technique of the veteran in that quarter-back role has however been a viable option in varying the team's game play. Lest we forget, it was the introduction of Carrick that steadied the ship when the team was on a losing streak earlier in the season.
We can't have both players back soon enough.
Coronation at Wembley?
Let's be honest, the (potential) English Football League Cup is not ordinarily a trophy that a club of our stature should be excited about. Heck, we gave up participating in the FA Cup a.k.a. Greatest Cup in the world, in 2000 just so we could win the FIFA-plaything World Cup Cup. But the reality is that...things have changed. Sadly? Not really. The league is now as competitive has it has ever been. The chasm between Manchester United and other clubs has since closed up and has even threatened to envelop us. We've been on an unbeaten run in the league since October 2016 and we are still 6th. If that doesn't tell you something, nothing else will.
So a trophy of any shape and form is a welcome addition at this point. Grab what you can. In a room full of ravenous ill-bred (not to mention, disrespectful) brothers, any slice of bread you can snatch from the loaf is a positive. Also trophies and cups give the fans and the club a boost the attainment of a top 4-non-winners spot cannot give. It's not to suggest that winning a trophy and coming 6th would be a 'good' season, but rather that a trophy is a sideways step of improvement. Manchester United belongs in the Champions League and that is a sacred mandate for any manager that assumes the reins at the club.
That said, I'm looking forward to a fantastic game of football which would end with Smalling/Rooney/Valencia (Good Lord...those are our captains?) hoisting the trophy.
Clock in at 5.30 pm on Sunday, the 26th of February, 2017. Glory, Glory, Man United...
Signing Out,
B.L...
In Other News:
* Football legend and all-round good guy, 'Bobby' Baggio turned 50 (fifty!) earlier in the week. One of the (now increasing) few to have played for the the big trident in Italy: Juventus, AC and Inter Milan. With more than 300 career goals, the Divine Ponytail will best be remembered by me for the couple he scored in the 2nd Round tie in the 1994 FIFA World Cup where he broke millions of Nigerian hearts. My brother kept punching his poster on the wall when the 2nd goal went in during extra time. Raw pain. And inflicted by the one he loved...
*Referenced earlier, the Pro Evolution Soccer 2017 football game between City and Monaco was a highlight of the week. 5-3, the final score but you could easily multiply the scoreline by 2 and there would be no exaggeration. Petulant Pep should please hold on firmly to his beliefs that 1. Aguero is the past. Jesus is the present and the future. 2. John Stones is world-class. 3. Bravo for Bravo and kudos for Caballero. 4. You do not need defenders in modern football. Well played! Keep at it, sir!
*In an era where it seems people don't want to know (facts) but would rather want to believe (prejudice/'opinion'), where do you stand? Do you think your utterances and submissions, particularly on social media (who never sleeps or forgets) will be defendable in any number of years? Are you controlled by your id or ego? Do you research information presented to you or do you play 'fastest fingers' and fire off without a second thought? Do you want to think about this or have you since stopped reading?
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