Manchester United recovered from a disappointing performance in their loss to Wigan, and showed a better attack and finishing in dealing with a slipping Aston Villa side. United benefitted from a controversial penalty, but it had a minimal effect on the outcome as Villa’s defense was overwhelmed and their attack was one-dimensional and uninspired. Villa struggled all game with a Red Devils attack that was rejuvenated by the return of Paul Scholes, and a more even attack up front. United’s ease of control and success going forward, was what the team needed to recover from the Wigan game and prepare them for their next two challenging fixtures. Continue reading

Yesterday was supposed to be a glorious mid-April afternoon of football, as fans across the country focused their attention to Old Trafford and Wembley, with Manchester United looking to restore their gap at the top of the table and Spurs and Chelsea playing out an all-Londoner semifinal to gain a spot in the FA Cup final.

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Manchester United restored their 5-point lead at the top of the Premier League with a 4-0 win over Aston Villa courtesy of two goals from Wayne Rooney and one apiece from Danny Welbeck and Nani.

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Wednesday’s defeat at Wigan was an ill-timed blip and also made for unpleasant viewing, but while it added another twist to a Premier League title race that many – mistakenly, because it’s not over until the title is secure – considered to be all over, Manchester United are still in full control of their destiny.

City closed the gap to two points with a 6-1 win at Norwich yesterday, but United can restore their lead to five points with a home win over Aston Villa in today’s only Premier League tie.

United have won all six of their home league matches in 2012, and a seventh win in a row would continue United’s dominance over Villa. Villa have only one win over United since 1995, and considering that they’re winless in their last five away matches, the odds are strongly against them today.

Manchester United: De Gea, Rafael, Evans, Ferdinand, Evra, Valencia, Carrick, Scholes, Young, Rooney, Welbeck.

Subs: Amos, Jones, Cleverley, Giggs, Nani, Berbatov, Hernandez.

Aston Villa: Given, Hutton, Collins, Baker, Lichaj, Bannan, Gardner, Clark, Ireland, Weimann, Agbonlahor.

Subs: Guzan, Johnson, Delfouneso, Heskey, N’Zogbia, Cuellar, Carruthers.

Manchester United had an unpleasant day at the DW Stadium. In the previous 14 games, United has won all 14 and Wigan has never been able to score. This was a game that showcased several tactical battles and changes by both managers. Roberto Martinez did a nice job for Wigan at countering Sir Alex Ferguson’s moves, and ultimately giving Wigan the chance to pick up points for the first time against United. Continue reading

Shaun Maloney’s curled effort saw Wigan picking up three unexpected points against Manchester United at the DW Stadium.

The result sees United’s gap on Manchester City cut back to five points as Mancini’s men dismantled West Brom 4-0.

United were well below par and suffered only their second defeat since January, bringing to a crashing end their excellent record at Wigan.

Ferguson chose to refresh his side – in came Jones, Giggs and Hernandez for Rafael, Scholes and Welbeck.

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Manchester United are a perfect 14 for 14 against Wigan since the Latics were promoted to the Premier League in 2005, and a 15th straight win will take United ever closer to the Premier League title.

Manchester United: De Gea; Jones, Evans, Ferdinand, Evra; Valencia, Carrick, Giggs, Young; Rooney, Hernandez. Subs: Cleverley, Welbeck, Nani, Park, Smalling, Pogba, Amos.

Wigan Athletic: Al-Habsi; Beausejour, Boyce, Alcaraz, Caldwell, Figueroa; Maloney, McArthur, McCarthy, Moses; Di Santo. Subs: Pollitt, Crusat, Watson, Gomez, Sammon, Diame, Stam.

It is one of the most common, overused and tediously boring football clichés, yet a true one: football is a team sport.

We are constantly reminded that “individuals win games” while “teams win trophies” or, to describe it in a way that would make David Cameron proud, “the team is in this together” and “we win together and lose together”.

Boring and predictable as it might sound, there’s some truth to it, as exemplified by the latest outcomes of the title race.

All year we’ve been treated to a battle between the noveau riche of Manchester City – a collection of egos that would rival the backstage of a Hollywood premiere – with literally too much money on their hands for their own good and Manchester United, a team managed by the son of a working class area of Glasgow.

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Manchester United came into the game against Queens Park Rangers having taken 31 points from the previous 33 available, while Queens Park Rangers came into this game after beating Arsenal a week earlier 2-1. QPR has been involved in a relegation fight for most of the season, and they made some substantial investments in the January transfer window but they still are struggling to get results. United, on the other hand, came into this game 5 points clear a top the table with Manchester City seeming to fade in the final run-in of the season after they had sat atop the table for most of the season.

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Goals! Who doesn’t enjoy sitting down to watch goals, goals and more goals?

I was recently priveleged enough to be given the opportunity to do just that with The 500 Great Goals Collection DVD which is released tomorrow.

From technically perfect volley’s performed by Marco van Basten, Wayne Rooney, Zinedine Zidane and Paul Scholes to unbelievably cute chips by Ruud Gullit, Dalian Atkinson, George Best and Eric Cantona – for over four hours this collection takes you on a trip through the archives that won’t disappoint.

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Manchester United opened an eight-point gap at the top of the table following a 2-0 win against 10-man QPR, as Manchester City’s title hopes were dealt a huge blow after they were defeated at Arsenal.

United benefited of a good amount of luck as referee Lee Mason awarded a penalty with the game only 14 minutes old as Ashley Young and Shaun Derry collided in the box.

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