It could’ve been an almost perfect evening for the club &
the fans at either of the clubs!! (sigh..only if United could steal the 3
points and make it worse for Leicester!! Yes this was any United fan’s ultimate
wish before today’s match).
Brilliant display of classic old time Fergi era football in
the first half with countless dangerous passes by the wingers cutting through the
Leicester defense right into their box creating ample goal scoring
opportunities, thanks to Rashford, Martial & Lingard! Leicester was at
their nearly very best in the 1st half of the match but United
seemed to be on top post the first 45 minutes of play at Old Trafford.
With the 1st goal coming within 8 minutes from
Martial (great awareness by the Frenchman to glide the ball in goal past the
ever aware Kasper Schmeichel) we all thought for a moment that this great club
is back to the old Fergi style football play, which we all are so used to
seeing by now. Yet we keep forgetting the fact that this is the LVG era which
is really a combination of (like it or not) the team in a transition mode with
so many new faces coming in, a lot of injuries to take into account and still
required to display the same passionate footballing style (which a lot of
people think has changed to a boring style) week on week in front of massive
crowds.
Leicester had some good performances in the 1st
half by Riyad Mahrez (he almost got a penalty when he was tripped in the box by
Marcus Rojo but the ref had other ideas and didn’t see it as a penalty
challenge), Wes Morgan (with his powerful header in the 17th min
which even the super-human De Gea couldn’t save this time), Robert Huth (some
very gritty defending by the seasoned campaigner denying Valencia and other
United wingers quite a few times from sending the ball in their box), which
might have surely given them the belief to go all out in the 2nd
half and achieve that amazing feat of winning the EPL title today.
The Foxes looked extremely dangerous in the 2nd
half especially from their well thought over set-pieces but super De Gea came
to United’s rescue once again. We then have a few yellow cards combined for
both the teams’ players with the game heating up in the center of the pitch! A
couple of tactical subs from both teams fails to tilt the game in either side’s
favor. Then the crucial moment comes in the 86th when Mr. Drinkwater
decides to bring down the ever agile and alert Memphis Depay right at the edge
of the box (wait a minute…wasn’t that a nudge right in the box and a simple
penalty??) and gets a 2nd yellow card booking which means a red and
sending off by the ref! This was the moment that Leicester surely spilled its
chance to win the title today and give it away rather cheaply to their
opponent. On the other hand if United did get that penalty, and even otherwise would’ve
scored from a Chris Smalling header that hit the bar, it would’ve been a very
different final score line!!!
Eventually it was a calmer 2nd half as compared
to a wild stormy 1st half affair between the two clubs fighting for two
very different objectives. It was indeed a hard grind as both teams tried to
throw their weight around in all parts of the field, but it just looked to be
another stale mate with so much at stake for both clubs.
United deserved to win this one but that’s how the season
has been for them. Excellent performances turning into just good ones and the
good ones not being noticed at all!
I have been a die-hard fan of the club following them and
the game since the past 15 years or so. The current squad is brilliant with a
fine balance of experience + raw young energy, but all it lacks is 3 things at
the moment as I see it - Consistency, Belief & Tenacity! These will come with
time and I believe LVG will stay on for another year and make the club get
close to where it belongs – at the top of the EPL table.
A crucial FA Cup Wembley final with the ever so dangerous
Crystal Palace and a top 4 finish well in sight would mean the club has done
decently well this season despite the inconsistency in doing so. What we should
see here is the transformation of this team, which is in itself a difficult process
to finish in just 2 years’ time after the grand Fergie era!!
Three more games to go and the curtains shall come down on an
eventful, exciting, unpredictable #EPL2016!! Few predictions – Leicester City wins
the league, Manchester United finishing in the Top 4 (which means the noisy neighbors
or Wenger’s men will slip to 5th spot) and Newcastle, Aston Villa
& Norwich getting relegated. Yet again we all have seen predictions go
haywire by the best of football pundits this season and hence my money would
still be in my pocket J
(still believe United finishes top 4)!!
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