QPR vs Manchester United Match Review is this the end of the 3-1-4-2 ?

On Saturday we played QPR and won 2-0 and on the way of driving home listening to call Colomore which I usually listen to laugh at the people who think they know football but don’t. But this time there was one caller who said that the tactics this week where the worse he have seen and where worse than they were under David Moyes so after watching the match and watching reruns of the match and important parts I have to say he was right. It was worse I have seen tactically from a Manchester united manager I have seen until the formation was changed and to four at the back with wingers included in the formation. But this does leave a big question is this the end for 3-1-4-2 well in my opinion yes it should be and we should change to a four or five at the back to make us more of a balanced team which would mean we would win more away games like this one. Here are my player ratings for this match.

De Gea: 8

Kept us in the match with some amazing saves from shots that should have seen the back of the net.

Evans: 5

Was poor in the first half of this game but did eventually improve as the game went on.

Rojo: 6

Was good in the game but allowed Zamora to get under his skin which is why he only has a 6.

Jones: 7

Was our best defender on the pitch and did well in getting the ball even though it was wired to see him taking corners.

Blind: 4

Looked good on the ball but looked disconnected from the midfield this is why he only gets a four from me.

Carrick: 7

Saw plenty of the ball and kept it well but did not have enough penetration when going forward.

Valencia: 5

Had a poor game in whole but did well in picking Fellaini for the first goal.

Di Maria: 6

Was a poor in the striker role but when LVG swapped the formation was better in a deeper role.

Rooney: 7

Did well on the ball as he continued in his midfield role but could have had a bigger impact in a more advance position.

Mata: 6

Created United’s best chance in the first half when he played a ball into Falcao but then was replaced by Fellaini.

Falcao: 3

Was disappointing today and should have scored a hat trick.

Subs:

Fellaini: 7

Came on for Mata and gave our midfield a more solid look and did well taking his goal.

Wilson: 7

Gave us pace and made chances for the team also got a good goal from running from the half way line.

Herrera: N/A

Come on too late to score.

Our next match is against Leicester at Old Trafford which we will be hopping for a better performance and another win. If you have enjoyed reading this then you can follow us on Facebook by searching for the united wrap also you can follow us on twitter @theunitedwrap but if you don’t have any of these you can get email updates on the latest stuff on the blog by clicking the follow button. Thanks for reading and supporting the united wrap.

Is Falcao Falgone? Manchester united vs Southampton Review

This Sunday saw the end of our winning streak against a well organised Southampton side but for Manchester united fan the fact that we lost will not be the worrying thing about this loss is not the fact we lost but the reports coming from papers and some online media sports out let about Falcao. Which is that Falcao was seen driving away from Old Trafford at speed saying to his agent on the phone find me a new club and not been seen in the directors box at all has only filled fuel to the speculation what has gone on behind the scenes from Sunday. So what positives can we take out of this match? Well the biggest thing is that we where solid in defence for the majority of the match apart from one player who has just come back from a long injury and the fact we made load of chances in this match. But what are the negatives from this match? Well with all the chances we had we couldn’t put them away and that our players made the wrong decision’s but the biggest negative that we can take from this match is that we have lost against one of our biggest rivals for the champions league places and now looks like we are on the back foot for making them with teams round us winning as well. Here are my player ratings for this match

De Gea: 7

Had nothing to do thanks to a well organised defence

Smalling: 6

Did well to stick to Pelle for most of the match but was at fault for the goal for not sticking tight enough to him to stop the shot going to goal.

Shaw: 6

Did well in getting forward but did not create anything of any note.

Blind: 5

Made his return from injury but could tell that as he was rusty in this made and needs more preparation time before starting again.

Di Maria: 6

Played close to Van Persie in this match and didn’t have any real impact on the game

Carrick: 8

Carrick one of the best performance on the day and did well sitting in front of the defence and then setting up the attack from there.

Valencia: 7

Did well in playing down the right and made a lot of chances from a tight midfield.

Van Persie: 4

Tried hard but didn’t do anything of worth of note before being subbed on the hour mark because of injury.

Rooney: 7

Did well in creating from midfield before being moved up into the attack looks to be growing well in his captain role.

Mata: 5

Struggled in making any real impact on this game and should have scored from chances that were made for him. Would say drop him for the next game.

Subs:

Fellaini: 6 Herrera: 5 Blackett: 6

Man of the match

My man of the match for this match is Carrick for the way he looked calm in controlling midfield from a deep position and providing cover for the back three when in a defending situation.

Our next match is against QPR away which we will be looking to get back to winning ways and look to get a rare away win.

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Brendon Rodgers Footballing Genius Manchester United vs Liverpool Review

Sunday saw the arrival of Liverpool to old Trafford and what follow was a Manchester united fan Christmas perfect by winning 3-0 but it wasn’t just the score line that made it perfect it was the way we did it by making Liverpool look like a team who look like they are more a relegation team than a mid table team but also with an attacking display which was our best of the season and with our 6^th win in a row we are now looking more likely to taking the champions league place every passing week. So what are the positives we can take out of this match? The first one I can take from this game is Rooney’s role in this formation that we played which saw him not drop too deep playing an attacking midfield like he normally does in this role also he was the vocal point of every good thing that we made against their goal the other positive we can take from this game is Van Persie looking like he has come back to his best with keeping the Liverpool defence busy the other positive we can take is De Gea who is showing he is the best goal keeper in world football and with the display he gave on Sunday he proved that even more. What are the negatives we can take from this game? The one and only negative in this game is the defence again which didn’t look solid at all against a Liverpool team who pressed highly and with pace in Sterling pushing against the back three. Here are my player ratings for this match.

De Gea: 9

Had an amazing game and single-handed kept Liverpool from scoring any goals and made a good save from a one on one where he slipped at first.

Phil Jones: 6

Looked like he still was suffering from injury and decision making was poor.

Evans: 7

Looked nervous in the first half but grew into the game and did his job well.

Carrick: 8

Was good in the back three and kept calm in possession and played from the back well.

Valencia: 7

Was poor in his defensive duties but made up for it in his attacking play and did well for creating the first goal for Rooney

Fellaini: 7

Started off slow in this match but after a while looked dominate in midfield and did well in shielding the defence.

Mata: 7

Did well in this match in keeping the ball and finding passes but also took his goal well and set up Van Persie well over all had an improved game compared to the Southampton game.

Young: 5

Didn’t look comfortable in left wing back at all in this game at all but did do well in producing a good cross for the second goal.

Wilson: 6

Worked hard in the game but the game really passed him by but I put this down to not playing big game very much.

Van Persie: 7

Kept the Liverpool defence busy and scored a good and looked back to his best let’s hope he can keep it this way.

Subs:

McNair: N/A

Came on too late to make an impact.

Falcao: 6

Come on late but looked lively.

Herrera: 4

Came on in midfield but struggled to have an impact.

Man of the match:

My man of the match has to be De Gea who is now looking like one of the world’s best goal keepers and had another amazing game yesterday and looks like a good starting point to build a top quality team.

Our next match is away to Aston Villa who are going under a mix bag of results with a loss to West Brom at the weekend which you can see in more detail on the preview to this match in the week.

Do you have an opinion on this match? Well I would love to hear it and how you can do that is by leaving a comment below or tweeting me @theunitedwrap and if you want to see more be sure to click the follow button above or by following me on twitter. Thank you for reading and showing your support for the united wrap.

Southampton vs Manchester United Review

Going into this game spirits where high among the united supporters with having a 4 game winning run and being 4^th in the table and our team looking more solid every week and with Southampton struggling to beat Manchester city and Arsenal midweek it looked like we where playing them at the right time but watching this match it looked the other way round with united looking poor and sloppy in possession and vulnerable at the back but came through to win by taking advantage of Southampton switching off at the back at key moments and RVP taking chances when the ball fell to him. The biggest worry is that we had to make two substitutions in the space of 20 minutes in the first half with Smalling coming off for Evans who made the back look weaker with his arrival and then McNair coming off for Herrera which saw Carrick drop into the middle of the back three which made us look a tiny bit more solid. So what are the negatives to this game ? Well with all the bad performances we saw in this match the biggest to me is that the midfield looked unbalance in this formation that was played. So what where the positives from this game ? Well there are two big positives we can take from this game and the first positive is that we won this game playing very badly which reminds me of the united of old where we use to have a bad day but still come through with a three points. The second positive from this game is that Van Persie looked to be back to his best and scored two well taken goals and looked better in terms of fitness and pace but I will make a word of caution that we should wait and see how he plays in the next game. So here are my player ratings.

De Gea: 7

Had a good game couldn’t be blamed for the goal that went in was more the fault of the defence

McNair: 5

Looked nervy when after Evans came on and looked like he need some one who had better leadership ability next to him to see him through the game.

Smalling: 4

Did well in the time he played but giving him a four because of the time he played.

Rojo: 5

Looked poor after Smalling went off and couldn’t get to grips with a partnership with Evens and made poor decisions through out the game.

Valencia: 6

Looked better than other of his team-mate and looked more solid at the back as well but was poor going forward and looks like he can’t get past a defender like he use to.

Young: 8

Looked comfortable in this match and played well in the back where others around him where crumbling around him also went forward well and was the only player making decent chances.

Carrick: 7

Did well in protecting the back from threat from there forwards and then playing from the back up to the midfield. Really is becoming an unsung hero at the moment.

Fellaini: 5

Was poor and gave the ball away too much and in the end gave the ball away which led to the goal that Southampton scored. He also wanted too much time on the ball and didn’t do anything with it when in possession.

Mata: 4

Was quiet throughout the game in the game and never made any real contribution also didn’t track back to stop the goal from happening and if I am honest if he continues in this form wont be at united next season.

Rooney: 5

Didn’t do much due to being so tightly marked but did find RVP well in taking the free kick and when had the space made good use of the ball.

Van Persie: 7

Did well in taking his two goals and looked a lot sharper in this game than he did against stoke lets hope he can take this in to the next game.

Substitutions:

Evans: 4

Did poor in defence and never looked fully fit and didn’t show the leadership that I would expect of a senior player next to a younger member of the team.

Herrera: 7

Did well in giving the midfield a more solid feel and gave us more of the ball which is what we needed. Should of started.

Fletcher: N/A

Came on too late to make an impact

Man of the match:

My man of the match is Young for being the best player on the pitch in this game and for his improvement of the last couple of games and is starting to look like the player we first brought.

So our next match is Liverpool so lets just hope we can bring our best performance to this match to beat that small time club. Also don’t forget you can see a match preview by checking back to the united wrap during the week.

Do you have an opinion on this match well I would love to hear it and how you can do that is by leaving a comment below or by tweeting me @theunitedwrap and if you have enjoyed this you can keep up to date by clicking the follow button or by following me on twitter @theunitedwrap and thank you for reading once again and thanks for showing your support for the united wrap.

Manchester United vs Hull City Review

So what a result at home and in the way we did it as well was pretty impressive as well with goals from Smalling, Rooney and Van Persie. So what are the positives in this game? Well lets start with Van Persie looking a lot sharper than he did in the game against Arsenal and with a screamer of a goal and looked to link up well with having a strike partner next to him and with the midfield well the other positives are that our defence looked to be solid with three in the back and also another positive we can take from this game is that Mata looked comfortable playing behind Rooney. So what are the negatives to be taken from this well Valencia crossing was poor as it always is also seeing Di Maria injured is a big blow especially for our next game. So can we take how we played in this game as we are now starting to see Van Gaal’s united well in some things we can in how what the players are expected to do and how they are expected to play but in the terms of the opposition we can’t expect this style performance every time we come against an opponent who are in such poor form and are most likely to be in a relegation dog fight. Lets now get on to my player ratings.

De Gea: 6

Had nothing to do with his hands or feet all game.

Rojo: 6

Did well in defence but will never have an easier game than this.

Smalling: 8

Played well and looked solid in defence and did well to react quickly to get the goal he scored could have scored another goal but blasted one over the bar.

Carrick: 7

Missed having his influence in the centre of the pitch and defence and did well in picking out decent passes to the attackers

Di Maria: 5

Did well up until he got injured this is why he got a 5 because he was injured so early on.

Fellaini: 7

Did well in making him self physical and hull couldn’t deal with him any point in the game.

Young: 6

Had a quiet afternoon going backwards but did well in keeping the ball in Hull’s half.

Valencia: 5

Crossing was poor and decision making when to cross was poor but this was typical Valencia style which is smash and hope which is not good enough going forward.

Mata: 7

Did well operating behind Rooney and RVP also played good passes behind Hull’s back four which led to a lot of chances.

Rooney: 7

Did well today and looked really sharp today and with a well taken goal which gave us a clear advantage.

Van Persie: 7

Started off in the first half by losing possession with every touch but put that right by scoring a wonder goal and did well in linking play up with Rooney or Mata.

Subs:

Herrera: 7

Did well in replacing Di maria and did well creating opportunity’s for attackers also set-up Van Persie goal.

Fletcher: 6

Did well but strolled through the game really.

Falcao: 5

Didn’t really see much of the ball and was quiet for the majority of the game he played.

So my man of the match is Smalling for being solid in defence and then having the quick thinking to shoot and get a goal lets hope this can carry on in to the next game.

Our next game is Stoke at home which will be a tough one because they are a well organised side and we have no Di Maria for this match which is our best player for unlocking a defence.

Do you have an opinion on this match well I would love to hear it and how you can do that is by leaving a comment below or tweeting me @theunitedwrap also while on the blog click the follow button or you could follow me on tweeter also please share the united wrap. Thanks for reading the blog and supporting the blog.

Manchester United Vs Crystal Palace Review

So It took a late goal from Mata to get us three points at home to Crystal Palace who looked like from the start to sit back and defend and snatch a win or a point from this tie by scoring on the counter attack. Which to be honest shows there is fear for the so-called lesser clubs coming to Old Trafford which means we are heading in the right way. So how did United play in this match to be honest it was very sluggish by our part considering we had loads of chances and failed to put the ball in the net and had the majority of possession. But what are the positives in this match. Well our defence look solid considering we put together a make shift back four with Valencia and Blind in the defence but also Carrick swapping with Blind at times depending how the play was building or the pace of Palaces attack. McNair also showed composure again and is showing his potential and a case to start matches also Shaw showed more of what he can do in an attacking position and defensively. So what are the negatives in this match. In my opinion it is that we could not put the ball away with all the possession and chances we have and that in one incident there seemed to be a lack of communication with the two centre backs which allowed the opposition a chance on goal only to chip it over. So what about the subs that were made did they have an impact on the game if I am honest no apart from Mata who scored a good goal to get us 3 points Wilson came on for Di Maria and he had as much luck as Van Persie and Fletcher did his job that he was told to do. In my opinion I am happy with the three points which gets us closer to the top four which at the moment looks like it will not have Liverpool and Arsenal in it. But lets not take their recent form for granted because like us we can never count them out because like us they have some world-class player who could come in to our team any day. So let’s get on to the player ratings.

De Gea: 7

Didn’t have much to do really apart from save a couple of shots.

Valencia:6

quiet afternoon for the him because Palace sat back and we dominated possession. Which helped him build a little bit of confidence.

McNair:7

Was strong again and kept his focus with having not much to do against an unambitious Palace team. Should be given a start next match to see what he is really made of.

Blind:6

Was ok but not at his best in this position and got caught out when a long ball came over the back and there was a mix up in defence.

Shaw: 8

Was my man of the match really showed what he is capable of in the future and starting to show why he came with such a huge price tag. Lets hope this continues.

Carrick: 7

Considering this was his first start in three months he did well in his defensive midfield duty’s and at times swapped well with Blind to protect the back four.

Fellaini: 7

Did well for a third game in a row and linked up well with Januzaj. Did well in keeping the game level when he cleared a goal of the line. Would say he with a couple of other players has took LVG’s coaching on board and used it to good advantage.

Januzaj: 6

Had a good start to the match but then went quiet and starting running into trouble this is why he has a six instead of a seven in my opinion.

Di Maria: 7

Just scraps a seven in my opinion because he started well and look good but crossing was patchy at best and would have been better in the middle like he showed when he cut into the middle. Would say Van Gaal needs to change the system to a 4-5-1 attack formation to get the best our of him and Rooney.

Rooney: 5

First touch as normal was poor and didn’t do well in creating much for other player and found himself out of position at times. Also I find that Rooney would be better at top instead of a central midfielder.

Van Persie: 6

Wasn’t at his best again today and seems to be losing his ability to holding the ball up and losing confidence in his ability which is bad news for us because this could be the start of decline for him due to age.

Substitutes:

Mata: 8

Didn’t get my man of the match due to he was a sub. But looked good and linked up well with Di Maria and was due his goal for how much he changed the game.

Wilson: 7

looked good and made some good runs and showed if given a starting chance he could do damage against teams. I think Van Gaal should give him a chance in the starting line up and could do damage with his pace.

Fletcher: N/A

came on too late to have an impact.

So we now go into the international break with a win which helps us build confidence and when we come back we face our rivals for fourth Arsenal which should be a good game.

Do you have an opinion on this game please leave a comet below or tweet me @theunitedwrap and thank you for reading this

Manchester City Vs Manchester United Review

So unfortunately we could not get the late goal we need to get a point against our city rivals but should we be disappointed with the score line ? Well no considering how bad the first half went with Smalling getting sent off which I have to say was stupid because the first yellow card was never a yellow card in a million years. But was stupid to dive in with a challenge like that with a yellow hanging over his head and to say we where luck to have 10 men at half time to say is lucky is an understatement. But I have to say city did play better than us for the first 60 minutes and we where lucky not to be more than two down. So what about our team. Well I have to say that in the last 30 minutes we played very well and showed true grit and determination to try to get a point also I have to say that Rooney had a very good game considering this was his first professional game in a month. Van Persie as well look to be back to his best with the few times he had the ball. I like to mention McNair had a good game when he came on for Rojo who also did well dealing with Aguero one on one. But what about the negatives for our team well there are a lot but I will start with one I mentioned in the preview for this match and that is Smalling not being able to keep his nerve in the derby and started going in for tackles which he knew there was no chance of getting to the ball and picking the up stupid yellow cards. The decision making by the defence was at times was shocking and how we the referee did not give more than one pen is unbelievable. I would like to mention the referee though because Michael Oliver was shocking and no consistency with his decision making and to give Smalling a yellow card for blocking Hart kicking the ball up-filed in open play was stupid when city players where hacking our player out of the game (but I will say we where not all innocent in this as well). So What about the player ratings

De Gea : 7

Did well with stopping a lot of shops and keeping us in the game and made good decision in coming out the box at the right time.

Valencia: 5

Have to say was not impressed with him in the right back position. Made wrong passing decisions and was not impressed with his delivery of crosses which is in true Valencia style is smash it and hope some one get on to it.

Smalling: 3

Well getting sent off is not a good start. But his head was not in the game and the pressure got to him which showed in his sending off and the tackles he was making and his decision making was poor.

Rojo: 5

Have to give Rojo a 5 for decision making which was the reason for why he go injured. But other than that did well in dealing with Aguero.

Shaw: 7

Was one of the best of our defenders today did well getting forward and tracking back also did well in getting the ball forward to our midfield and attacking players.

Blind: 6

Was good when we where dominating the game in the early stages but then was overwhelmed with the strength of city attack.

Fellaini: 7

Had another good game again today when we where in attack he played good passes and then when in defence made a good contribution in getting the ball back and then getting rid of danger.

Januzaj : 4

Didn’t really have an impact on the game at all.

Rooney: 8

Had a Good game today and was my man of the match in a Manchester united shirt. Did well bursting forward and in passing also did well as a captain and did not go shouting and screaming at every one for no reason but did it in the right situation. The only negative I have to say he did give the ball away too easy at the start.

Di Maria: 6

Had a quiet game by his standards and was on the fringes of the game. But did deliver some brilliant free kicks when in dangerous places.

Van Persie: 7

Did well in the times in the rare times he had the ball and looked to be getting back to his best.

Subs:

McNair :7

Had a very good game replacing Rojo and looked comfortable in a high pressure game.

Carrick: 6

Had a good first game back and look to give the defence some needed experience.

Wilson: N/A

Came on to late to give a rating.

So our next game is against Crystal Palace at home who of late are in good form under Neil Warnock

Do you have an opinion on the game then why not leave a comment below or tweet me @theunitedwrap it will be good hearing from you. Also don’t forget to click the follow button on the blog or on twitter @theunitedwrap and thank you for taking the time to read the blog.

Manchester United vs Chelsea Review

So in true Manchester united style we left it late to get a drew against a Chelsea side that is probably going to go on and win the league this year and by some distance by the looks of it. So are there any positives to be taken from this match. Well there is as all the team stepped up to a level which has not been seen this season so far they looked to be a lot closer to the top four as a team than any time before this match and look more solid in defence than any other time this season. Also another big positive is that Van Persie looked more sharper in this match than any time this season and will be helped by his goal today in which he took well. Also id like to give a mention to Fellaini who I thought found space well between the midfield and the defence and then supplied the wingers or attackers well. Also the defence played well today although unsettled at time against an extremely lethal attack. But are there any negatives to take from this performance. Well I am afraid so Mata was quiet in this match which is not good for us as this was his time to shine when Rooney was suspended but it has not worked which in January could be a bad thing for him as he could be sold on to a Spanish team which is a shame because he gets the fans and is when at 100% a world class player. So now onto the player ratings.

De Gea: 7

Had a good game could not be blamed for the goal was wrong man marking by the players.

Rafael: 6

Played a good game but was at fault for the goal should never been marking Drogba this is why he has a six by me instead of a seven.

Smalling: 7

Had a good game probably the best iv seen him play in a United shirt. But did make a couple of mistakes in clearing the ball and choosing the right ball to play but did not lead to anything serious.

Rojo: 6

Played well but to me looked nervy at times to me and could have made a big mistake which could have put us 2 down this is why he got a six instead of a seven.

Shaw: 7

Again another player who’s performance was the best iv seen in a united shirt showed why his transfer cost us so much and showed his true potential today. Would of been my man of the match today if not have being impressed with the turn around of one players a performance.

Blind: 6

Had a good game but did give the ball away a few times which drops his mark in my opinion. I must admit I did think he would not be able to keep up with the fast past of the game but did very well in killing Chelsea’s attack early.

Fellaini: 8

Well what a difference a year makes. Thought he played extremely well and found space well between the midfield and the defence well in which then supplied the wingers or attackers to create a chance on goal. Looks to be growing into the united shirt and to his old self.

Mata: 5

Never really lived up to the billing and was quiet through out the game never really found enough space between midfield and defence to have an effect on the game.

Januzaj: 7

Played well in the game and linked well with Shaw also supplied the attackers with good crosses and also swapped wings well with Di Maria and also cut into Chelsea defence well.

Di Maria: 7

Had a good game but delivery with crosses and free kick was on the poor side by his standards apart from the one that supplied Van Persie with his goal also attacked the Chelsea defence well on the counter attack.

Van Persie: 6

Was good but not up to his best. But did look to be getting sharper and was due a goal for his earlier efforts. Also made good runs past the defence which caused them problems.

Could not rate the subs as they only played the last 20 mins of the game.

So who is next for us ? Well its our city rivals who go into this match desperate for a win after there loss against West ham and the pressure rising on there manager to get things back on track so this is the perfect time to face them low on confidence.

Do you have an opinion on this match please get in touch by leaving a comment below or sending me a tweet @theunitedwrap and don’t forget to follow. Thank you for reading and please share and share your opinion.