Dec 17
Tevez Nets One As Another False Dawn Envelopes Anfield
Liverpool 0-1 Man Utd
United continue their dominance over Liverpool as another 1-0 win pushed the ‘dippers further away from the title race. A joyful day for us reds, which would have been better had it not been for some toothless display from Chelsea, it was — in the words of Fergie — “a typical encounter” against our traditional rivals. But it was also a display that brought another facet of our team to the fore.
For a team like ours, known for free-flowing attacking football, the only way we win is by outscoring our opposition. We kill off teams by scoring a couple or more. That is the United way; our first instinct being to attack, unlike Mourinho’s Chelsea or Rafa’s Liverpool — which are built on defence. This game however showed how well our team can cope with pressure and absorb it well.
True, there were some extremely iffy moments. Three blunders by EVDS went unpunished, and for that we were lucky. We also scored late in the first half off our second shot on goal, while the ‘dippers had nine.
Our victories have always been courtesy of our attackers: Ronaldo, Rooney, Tevez, Giggs have always been at the heart of our wins. But today, our heroes were from entirely different quarters. Rio and Vidic were rock solid in defence, which is something we’ve become accustomed to, but it was the central midfield pair of Anderson and Hargreaves that were outstanding.
They haven’t played too many games together, but it looks like they been playing there for years. I mean, how fuckin’ brilliant is Anderson?! We’ve seen youtube clips of him running at defences but he has the vision of Scholes, and is million times better than him in the tackle. Moreover, he isn’t overawed by the big occasion, something I mentioned in the preview and, something he showed even against Arsenal. And he also had the confidence yesterday to run at the Liverpool defence before getting scythed down by Stevie G.
With Hargreaves, we had the bite in midfield to only leave scraps to our defence, who had little trouble maintaining calm in our area. We soaked up the pressure and our most nervous moments were only because of some bad goal keeping. (We sincerely hope that it is just a one off from Edwin.)
Patrice Evra was again outstanding, and yesterday it were his defensive qualities. The crucial tackle he made on Kuyt following EVDS’s blunder stood out. And he did cut out countless other crosses.
It certainly wasn’t exhilarating stuff as a match. But it sure was extremely nervy. But Ferdinand, especially, showed yet another instance of how important he is to the team. The bollocking he gave to EVDS was one moment of how badly he wanted this win. The way he completely took Fernando Torres out of the game, such that the Spaniard had to resort to diving, was another. And he was generally barking out instructions and words of wisdom to players all around.
It was a measure of our defensive quality that I haven’t yet mentioned our attack. Ronaldo again had a very quiet game against stronger opposition. He did send one excellent ball to Rooney, which he scuffed wide, but other than that there wasn’t anything of note. Rooney did his job of being a nuisance to the Liverpool defenders but there wasn’t much noteworthy again. Tevez, however, proved that he can deliver in the big games, just as he did for West Ham, and won everyone with his constant running, and by just being a menace — winning tackles and scoring the goal.
The title aspirations of Liverpool hinges on us, the Arse and Chelsea imploding. And that looks highly unlikely. The blues would miss their African contingent, while the Gooners would only miss Toure and Eboue. The Gooners remain our main rivals this season. They do have a challenging fixture list in the festive period, it will go a long way determining which way the race is headed.
Here’s to a productive December.
Related items from Red Rants:
- Hop-On the Title Express Today – Before It’s Too Late!
- Update on Red Rants
- 5 reasons why Tevez needs Manchester United
- A Simple Guide To Kicking Liverpool Ass
- Some More Thoughts Ahead of the Scouse Trip
Tags: Match Reports
Opti (541)
Stephen (485)
RedDevilEddy (459)
Craig Mc (345)
Moscow is my heaven (272)
funny to see the lads play like shit and still beat that pile of crap from Anfied.
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is it just me or does the score read
liverpool 1 – 0 man utd
that certainly isn’t how the cookie crumbled
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RR, change the heading it says scousers 1-0 Man U
. Not a pretty game to watch but wat the heck we got the three points.
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Rio was my man of the match. He seems to have a lot of bones to pick with Liverpool. Every time he plays against them in the recent past he has stood out from the rest. Yesterday was no different. You need to watch the entire match to recount the number of blockades and aerial clearances that he made. And with John Terry looking awful before he went off with an injury at the Emirates, new England coach Capello needs to reason out which of these two guys deserves the armband…..
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EL NINO – THE STORM (IN A TEACUP)
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Anderson anderson anderson…my God.nothing more to say about him but what really disappointed me was ronaldo starting to dive again.
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RR,some correction, after the first half the dippers had 2 shots on target(torres and gerrard) and united to had 2 shots on target(ronaldo and tevez)
We played crap stuff but i mean we were away and against a sturbon team.We had few chances overall but against big teams, you never get those many chances so u got to utilise the few you get, and that’s what we did.
In fact it should have been two nil but sorry for rooney, not at his
peak yet.
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i must say Ronaldo hasnt leant his lesson about diving has he .But then again im surprised Gerrard didnt dive either….
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Ronaldo as much as we love him just does not step up in the big occasions
He can do it for Portugal but has yet to really do it in a United shirt. (bar Roma)
All hail ANDERSON!!!!!
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I don’t think anyone is noticing but Rooney’s scoring abilities have always been nervy in my eyes. I’m not taking him down or anything but Rooney’s scoring always reminds me of a winger or attacking midfielder rather than a striker, like Paul Scholes rather than Ruud or Cole. I’m not questioning his talent or capabilities but Fergie needs to develop that killer instinct in front of goal out of him. However his partnership with Tevez–incredible. If Rooney is on Tevez is more likely to score.
Yesterday was very scrapy, I finally got a stream and got to watch the second half and what I saw scared me. We were losing the ball way too often in our half of the field and just waiting for the Liverpool onslaught. We need a striker up front so that we can dump the ball into him, he holds up and lets our strike team (Rooney, Tevez, Ronaldo) come in, yet exist fluidly with the team (thinking of Ruud here). Someone like Anelka or if Saha ever becomes available, he has that. He can hold up the ball, he can poach AND he can play with Rooney and Ronaldo. Something Ruud failed to accomplish. That’s all for now, Grognard eat your heart out.
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The whole defense (except Van Der Sar who hopefully had an off day) was brilliant. A prime example was that awesome clearance off the line by Evra. Anderson and Hargo are looking like our answer to European success, with the pair in midfield Milan won’t happen again hopefully.
Ronaldo showed yesterday why he missed on the several player of the year awards to Kaka. While Ronaldo put on another invisible performance against a big team, Kaka was destroying Boca at the FIFA club world cup. Ronny is good, but needs to put his hands up on big occasions.
Tevez again showed why he has become a fan favorite. Excellent work ethic coupled with unbelievable dribbling flair. I mean, the number of times he dribbled through 2-3 defenders was just amazing.
Overall a stout performance, and the biggest victory of the “Grandslam” weekend, since Arsenal victory was a home win.
United look strong to successfully retain the title, and with some luck the treble may not be as impossible as its made out to be.
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i think Ronaldo is quiet on most of the big games, but that might be down to the fact that he always has three players on him, I would rather have him on the field than anyone else because even when hes not playing well he has the ability to take two or three players out of the game
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Hey Red Ranter
Arsenal also gona lose Adebayor to the Nations Cup isn’t… Coupled with Toure and Eboue, I’d say that’s a pretty substantial loss… Their replacements don’t seem up to scratch.
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Just can’t wait to see more of those Anderson runs in the future!!!
What a magnificent player he’s gonna be.
Also I think United should buy Karim Benzema… This guy looks superb and still only 19…
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Moya – Adebayor isn’t going to ANC, because his national team, Togo, didn’t qualify.
There are so many things to talk about with the game yesterday.
EVDS. I don’t see why he had such a poor game. Yes he made the mistake of running into Vidic, but that’s it… other than that he played a great game. I know, there was another incident, where he ended up on the surface, but he was clearly pushed in the back by Torres (I think it was Torres) and should have had a freekick. He dominated the area, when the crosses were within his range, and if they weren’t, Vidic and Rio cleared.
Evra was unbelievable. He cleared off the line (or very close to it) and got to the ball first because of his explosive pace. Other than that he broke up the play on several occasions and even managed to get some good stuff done going forward. He almost assisted Rooney in the first half, but Rooney missed the ball (which wasn’t that easy I have to mention).
Hargo wins every tackle he gets into.To me, he looks like the perfect man to have in front of our defence. He moves quickly across the pitch to close down players and assist if someone else misses a tackle. And lastly, he rarely gives the ball away and passes it quite well.
Tevez was fantastic in the first half especially. The number of times he battled his way to possession… well I lost track. His quick feet were too much, and I have to say that our attacking players in general showed, why they are so dangerous. At the same time, Liverpool showed, why they are so difficult to beat. They work extremely hard, and they move across the pitch as a team. People are saying that Ronaldo didn’t show up for another big game… but come on guys. Did any of you notice how many Liverpool players he had around him, when he received the ball. Often within 2 seconds there were 3 players closing him down. Imo you can’t fault Ronaldo for not showing up… he simply didn’t have the room to make his few possessions count. But as soon as he was left with only one player marking him, he showed, that Benitez had done wisely to keep him off the ball. The touch and accelleration around Hyypia was incredible, and it wasn’t his fauly that Rooney didn’t burry the sitter.
Anderson… what a gem. Just wait until next season at this time of season, and you’ll see what he’s capable of. Yes he was one of our best players yesterday, but I think there’s much more to come from this guy. And what I like the most about this team is the pace it has on almost every position.
I could go on and on, but I have the feeling, my contribution is already long enough. Congrats to all the fans out there on winning and removing Liverpool from the title race.
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Hugo.believe it or not i was also thinking about benzema.
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the beauty of united is that each player needs around 2 covering him. With one or two gems, the other team can manage. We need 11 players to mark our attacking 3/4 alone.
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andersons run, wow, i said this before, anderson at porto and gremo was a better dribbler than McDive and when he’s fully settled(yes, he’s much better than what he’s doing now) he will be the key member of our squad, and unfortunatly scholes will be on the bench.
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[Moya]
Togo didn’t qualify for the ANC
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i have to say, tevez is in good form now, im wondering if it will last tho, his premier league stats are 16 aps and 7 goals with overall stats of 19 aps aned 8 goals, both stasts just under 2:1(2 aps to 1 goal), does anyone know his assists for this season.
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dan(U-O.L)
a goal every other game is a pretty good stat.
not many of the best strikers in the world have a scoring ratio like that.
i’m wondering what to do with my fantasy team. i replaced rooney with tevez when rooney was injured and have kept faith with carlos so far. however, i think rooney’s going to hit form soon.
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but before his injury rooney was scoring in every game!
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Andeson, WOW. Did anyone even notice that Steven Gerrard played yesterday?
Imagine, to keep Stevie G quiet at Anfield???
Rio had a brilliant game. So brilliant that my wife now decided to change her favourite playe from Ronaldo to Rio??? Imagine that?
What amazed me most however was Tevez’ ability to hold the ball up. I’ve been noticing this for quite some time now and yesterday confirmed it for me. He is MUCH better than most strikers in holding the ball up. He simply almost never gives the ball away, now matter how many poeple surronds him…
Ronaldo…pity about the diving acts. Other than that, I won’t say he didn’thow up, its just that the Liverpool tactics were spot on. I think Benitez kept him out of the game.
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Dan: Over a sustained length of time anything better than a goal every other game is a truly exceptional effort, normally only provided by top level predators (RVN). If Tevez and Rooney were to end the season with a record of a goal every 2 games then I would be delighted and we would probably have another league title in the bag.
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true say but im only talking about their current form and how its good.
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just looked at our 2 matches after everton, both not english televised, i really dont see the point of playing a match on boxing day then 3 days later on the 29th, so im guessing saf will pick a team that played against with a few exceptions like evans ans saha, for ireland fc then we play the hammer heads where tevez will be unleashed!!!
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Well Dan to tell you the truth playing this many games around christmas does seem stupid but I’m not complaining
I’d watch football every day of the week if it was on. Plus why change tradition? It puts the teams with small squads under pressure, but we’re not one of them so we’re at a slight advantage 
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crappy performance but three great
points… and a win at anfield. woo
hoo! great stuff from anderson, but
what the hell was wrong with van der
sar? to say that he was a shadow of himself would be an understatement
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Well… kaka gets the award,he deserves it though
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Ronaldo was third!wtf.big balls up here
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The award has lost its honour,what did messi do?
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Evra was also marvellous in his attack on sunday
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What do people make of this: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/premier_league/manchester_united/article3066015.ece
It’s by Oliver Kay who is a pretty respected sports writer. Philipp Lahm, the right footed left back who can cover both flanks.
Could he be the player to sign in January?
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Agree with you thomas on the ronaldo point about rooney missing the sitter…
But if your going to proclaim that you want to be the best in the world as he has, you have to deal with the second or third defender. as Marodona or even Michael Jordan have done. Don’t get me wrong i love the bloke and rate him second only to rooney.
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This rant post is riddled with grammatical errors. I am a loyal reader of this blog, and for the past year and a half it has been consistently of good quality. But recently, it seems as if you’ve been slacking a little. Please try to keep up the standards that I know you are capable of. Thanx.
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I can’t deny the fact that ronnie disapears in the big fixture. I think at this point in his career he only knows how to impact the game with the ball constantly at his feet. So in games like Sunday when he is marked by multiple defenders at a time, he is taken out of the game. I think that when he knows how to play with out the ball at his feet then he will be truly unstoppable.
All I have to say about Anderson is wow. He is a scary talent, I love scholes but he might find it harder to get his place back. Anderson plays like he was made for the epl, and I’m gonna enjoy watching him grow under saf.
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Philipp Lahm is the best full back in world according to me. He is actually a right back, but apparently because of his special skill: running with the ball from the left flank and then dribbling towards the centre over his strong right foot (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philipp_Lahm) he plays at leftback for Bayern. I very much doubt if Bayern will let him go. What say Grognard, for how much Bayern will let him go?
And also, what the hell did Messi do last year?
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Don’t undermine Messi, he’s a football genius. He will be unstoppable when he grows. Ronaldo however out performed the both of them. I guess its he Fergie curse I’ve never come across any of his players recieving the award. Beckham came closest in my time.
Phillip Lahm. I think I feel precum…(no homo!) That Lokomotiv guy if he has the potential to be of Lahm quality (around that level) I say lets go for it. Cheaper and provides cover for both flanks. Are we going to get a striker in the window? I seem to remember Owen Hargreaves last summer at the RB position? Is he cover? I always thought of him since as capable emergency cover.
God please send us Lahm….or Lokomotiv and Striker.
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Redrunner5 RR is wrapped up in his personal life at the moment, everything should be fine after New Years.
And I also agree that I doubt we’ll be able to get lahm for anything less than 15m. goodidea but highly unlikely. We’re more likely to just get Sagnol. And shreyas he started off as a left back but he now plays as a right back for Bayern. And I totally disagree about everyone talking about what Messi did, he did what Ronaldo could not, still make good contributions even when he is being marked by 2 or 3 players. Winning trophies should not have anything to do with who wins the award. And the person from Lokomtiv Moscow isn’t meant to be anywhere near as good, he’s meant to be along the same lines as a Johm O’Shea-providing over for wnywhere across the back four but with bettter attacking qualities.
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