Random Thoughts Recorded Whilst Watching A Thorough Boro Beating

By: Taylor Rockwell | September 24th, 2008

Watching a streaming United game broadcast in Arabic is a very, very strange experience.
English is no big deal (unless it’s coming from Tommy Smyth, then it’s instantly muted). Spanish I can handle. But Arabic definitely through me for a loop…. hooray for streaming video right?

Who the hell conducts the draws for the FA Cup and Carling Cup and why do they hate us?
This pertains mostly to the FA Cup, but of the 10 matches yesterday, 6 pitted Premiership teams against lower level teams. The fact that two of those EPL teams were eliminated and two others were taken to penalties makes no difference to me. The FA Cup is far worse. In the past two seasons, United have faced 10 teams in the world’s oldest domestic tournament. Want to guess how many played in the Premiership? Here’s a helpful hint: all f-ing ten!

My man crush for Rafael da Silva is fairly significant
His no-look back heel to Welbeck, which nearly allowed His Holiness a second goal was pure genius. Rafael’s defending was consistent and class, and his curl-fro was top notch.

My instant man crush for Manucho dwarfs my man crush on Rafael
As soon as the 19 foot tall Angolan striker entered the field of play, I felt myself swooning like a 13 year old girl staring at a Beckham cutout. Seriously. I haven’t rooted that hard for a new player to succeed since… well… ever. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to write “Mr. Taylor Manucho Goncalves” over and over again on my binder… with little hearts surrounding it… obviously.

For the love of god, when will Anderson score a goal?
For certain he is a class player, but all I want is to see him finish one after making one of his nice long runs. He seems to do everything right, and comparing his touch to that of the Boro youth department was like comparing The Rolling Stones to the guy in Animal House who gets his guitar smashed by Bluto. Not quite on the same level. And yet, until he finds the back of the net, I won’t really be able to trust him as a reliable squad player in crunch situations. Take a note from Nani and have a screamer from 35.

Giggs continues to be class
That’s really all I need to say, right? That was a heck of a finish and other players (see above) might have bottled it.

Tevez has been far and away our best (and most valuable) player this season
I love Rooney and I am excited for the Berba Era (yes, it’s capitalized) to get underway, but Tevez has been the consistent bright spot this season. Nevermind his aptitude for finding the back of the net or the fact that his energy could simultaneously jump start a stalling squad AND Atlantic City. It is his ability to upset the opposition that is truly fascinating. Tevez seems to get more opposing players carded than any other athlete in the league, and this makes him especially hard to deal with (and fun to watch, if you’re a United fan).

Either Vidic or Nani (or possibly both) will score against Bolton. MARK MY WORDS!
Vidic looked determined to A) kill someone or B) get on the score sheet, and I expect that that determination will spill over to Saturday. Nani looked exceptional yesterday and it was unsurprising that it was he who slotted home United’s third goal. He looks absolutely determined to keep a spot in the starting XI, and nearly every aspect of his game looked as sharp as I’ve seen it… which reminds me…

What’s the hell is C. Ronaldo’s problem?
I may be alone in this, but I am getting to the point where I would relish the opportunity to sell him for £134 million come January… even if it is to the Middle Eastlands. Yes, he scored and it was glorious. But every other aspect of his game looked rusty as could be. His passing was shocking and his off the ball movement just wasn’t there. What was even more upsetting was that, after he lost the ball or sent an errant pass, it didn’t seem as though he was too bothered by it. If this is the beginning of an era known as Ronaldo the Sulk, then he can, in the words of our Beloved Manager “rot in the reserves”.

As soon as I saw the replays of Emanuel Pogatetz’ tackle on Possebon, I could only think about Ben Collett
For those who don’t fear irony, Ben Collett was a promising United youth player whose career was cut short by a devastating tackle from Boro’s Gary Smith. I have been pretty impressed by Possebon’s development this season, and sat in terrified silence as he was stretchered off the pitch. The good news is that the leg wasn’t broken, but the injury could take quite a bit of time to heal. It’s clear that Possebon is a future starter, but I worry that this injury will curb his immediate growth (since our 46 other center mids tend to keep his playing time to a minimum as it is).

United’s future looks bright… unless your last name is O’Shea, Fletcher, Brown, Neville, or Scholes.
I would argue that last night’s performance was far and away our best of the year, and it was pretty obvious that the main difference between the XI against Boro and the XI that started against Chelsea was age. We clearly have a lot of talent coming through the ranks, and it won’t be long before it is our long time veterans who find themselves relegated to the bench.

Boro is one of our bogey teams, which made the win all the sweeter
Recently, Boro, West Ham, Reading, and Bolton have given United all sorts of trouble. So, it was a relief to see a solid performance from a mixed-bag lineup last night… which I can only assume scares the pants off of Bolton. United’s guns will be blazing full force this weekend, and I expect a far difference performance from the Red Devils than we have seen thus far… and hopefully (God willing), I might even catch a glimpse of Manucho on Saturday, causing me to squeal with delight and clap my hands like an elated 5 year old. Only time will tell, I suppose.