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So after 37 games, 3390 Premier League minutes (+ Fergie time), of a long, hard season it seems United may fall just sort of the magical 19th title. Only the wonderfully inconsistent Wigan Athletic can stop Carlo Ancelotti claiming the League crown in his debut season.
Most of the post mortem may be saved until after the Stoke game next week, but if Chelsea do win the title, it will be thanks to the quality of their supporting cast.
Ronaldo left a match-winner shaped hole when he signed for Madrid which has been filled magnificently by Rooney, the most obvious player of the year since... well probably since Ronaldo in 2008.
But beneath that who is there? Giggs and Scholes have both been impressive for the most part, but have a combined age of 102 and should not have to bear the burden of responsibility. Evra has once again been superb, but never has a left back been the key player in a title winning team. Valencia and Nani have both looked good in places, and... well, I’m struggling.
Whilst Chelsea may be remarkably easy to dislike (particularly their captain), they have had a supporting cast better than any other in the League this season.
Drogba has scored only one less then Rooney, but Anelka, Kalou and Malouda have all pitched in with big goals and big performances when it counts. Lampard has been exceptional and provides a goal and assist rate better than any player in Europe from midfield (barring the masterful Xavi at Barcelona).
This is not a bad United side, and with a tweak here or there, will challenge for the title next season. But no matter how good your leading man is, you need a strong supporting cast to win trophies.
Comments
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Posted by Josh on 05/02/2010
Well said indeed. But I do feel there is a final twist in the plot to arrive. Wigan can be resilient when the pressure is off. Hopefully we do the job against Stoke.
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Posted by Phil Grey on 05/02/2010
Wigan beat Chelsea 3-1 earlier this season. Cech could get sent off again. Anything can happen. It's football!! Save the analysis for next weekend.
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Posted by obafemi on 05/02/2010
it a fantastic season for united no one one taught they would push chelsea so far after sellin key players like ronaldo, teves then put up a strong challenge for the title one thing i knew is not yet over untill it over keep it up united bravo to all united fans we are the best.
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Posted by Linora on 05/03/2010
Good post Mark, all the drama in a nutshell. I'm probably too quick in saying we can kiss the title goodbye (which is may very well is). however i really do hope that we get some players to assist Rooney in all that he's giving for the team right now. But yes lets wait for the Wigan and Stoke match.
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Posted by Eddie G. on 05/03/2010
Linora? From Monash? It has to be right? Your name is unique as names come.
It's been a roller-coaster season, Mark. If Chelsea take this they thoroughly deserve it (or more accurately, United thoroughly deserve to be runners-up). Still, there are some positives to be gleaned from all this. The pundits were not expecting United to retain the title, but neither were they expecting us to put up such a spirited battle. And that's why we're champions. Always are, always will be.
No matter the outcome, I believe that the last match of the season will be one to remember. Lampard is already planning a Stanford Bridge party, but Wigan may just steal all the voul-au-vents.
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Posted by athman on 05/03/2010
It has been a good season for us everybody thought we would capitulate following departures of ronaldo and tevez but i think the lads have done well and even if we don't win the title am still proud of what we have done this season.
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Posted by Raizzen on 05/03/2010
That's what I've been trying to say. With limited resources, and depleted squad - who thought we could push this far ? Pundits earlier in the season even went as far as predicting that United would settle for 4th or 5th place.
And when talking about limited resources, they will draw comparison with other not so major teams.
Well guess what, those teams were that way last season (and still pretty much the same way this season)
while we got ourselves 1 or 2 names who left. And those names aren't exactly a bench warmer in their current respective team either.
All in all who would've thought right ? And I'm still full of praise for the whole squad who actually looked more like a team now than before.
A proud United fan.
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Posted by Kelvin on 05/03/2010
Yeah agree wuth Linora. I think we relied on Roon too much this season. Can see that he is a little worn out and it seems that we have little choice in our striking dept and have to opt for a croaked Rooney than to use a fit Macheda or Biouf ..... I think it will hurt England's chances if Rooney is overstreched.
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Posted by Chuma on 05/03/2010
Hey Mark, was it deliberate or did you overlook the "languid one"? I think he's been right up there with "own goals" chipping in his bit for the club- when he can be persuaded to get off his lazy ass that is! I agree that we really do need some improvements in the squad this summer while some players- yes languid one I'm looking at you- really need to improve their game. Cheers everyone
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Posted by Dewale Muiz,Nigeria on 05/04/2010
Really i still can't believe United could push Chelsea to this extent. Great work from the team,imagine a team so versatile using it's defensive midfielders as centre back during the injuries trials. If i were to be god or angel in charge of sport i'll send the trophy down to Old Trafford on the last day. (CHELSEA 1 - 1 WIGAN, MAN.UTD 2 - 1 STOKE) With the equaliser for Wigan coming around 92 minutes and Man.Utd winning goal coming around the final additional minutes of 92:13 just like what happened against City. I believe in the last day. Up United.
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Posted by dev on 05/04/2010
dnt give up united!!! yeah cheers man u fans.. united still can win 19th premier league title and could be record breaker in the english premier history!! its all in wingan hand at the moment. they can stop the blues. can any miracel happen in stamford bridge next sunday?? its enough if wigan draw againts chelsea. come on wigan u can do it!!
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Posted by patrick on 05/04/2010
Everyone knows that chelsea has really worked hard for this league title, and would have ended it by now if not for a few lapses on the way. They will go in against Wigan with all they've got even if that means carrying the ball with their hands
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Posted by Prophet of Doom on 05/04/2010
Sad to say boys, Wigan will not do Utd a favour :( You honestly couldn't split either team merit wise. Utd have done extremely well without Ronaldo & *cough* Mercenary *cough* Tevez, and came through a bad run of injuries with flying colours. Chelsea on the other hand have scored almost 100 goals and had a much easier run with injuries than they did last season. My point being is that you need luck and a healthy list to win the title. The simple fact is, whoever gets the most points, wins, irrelevant of who beat whom home & away ;) We could all say if Rooney was fit for the Blackburn game, or if the ref paid 2 penalties to Bolton, then Chelsea would be looking for Stoke to do them a favour. A look back on history, and it is eerily similar... Utd win 3 in a row, book-ended by a club from London. At least Liverpool aren't going to win it :)
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Posted by Lawrence on 05/04/2010
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Posted by Cisco Kanuma on 05/04/2010
Despite the results over the weekend , I congratulate Man-U for reliquishing tremendous effort to retain their tittle challenges . With the departure of Chris/Tev many thought it was a great downfall for the club but OT boys fought to the bitter end as it has been seen from their perfomances this season . Proud to be a Man-Utd fan !!!
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Posted by MU fan. on 05/04/2010
Well, there's positive things that happened and negative things that happened, this season. Lets talk about the negative stuff of this season. first. Firstly, I feel that we seriously are like Liverpool this season. We have to rush Rooney back from injury, and that's a very bad sign. Normally, MU never rushes any player back from injury, while this time, we have to rush Rooney back. This shows the over reliance on Rooney. This must not happen, next season. Secondly, of course the most notice-able point, the possibility of ending the season without EPL title or Champion's League title. I guess its because we lack of players that can win a game by its own, and players that can shine, when everyone's performing badly. Also, the lack of goal scorers. Compared to Chelsea, Arsenal, they have consistent goalscorers, not just 1, but few. Lampard and Drogba both scored 20+goals this season already, while only Rooney broke the 20 goals barrier.
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Posted by Justin Roland on 05/04/2010
Well credit to United, we do a great job and SAF is right to release Tevez and Ronaldo. Chelsea got lucky with the 2 matches against United (Offside goal from Drogba @ OT and the foul that never was at standford bidge). If we take that away (+6 points for Chelsea against united) we will be ahead !!!
Totally agree on what was written, 1 or 2 more big signings and we will be overtaking Liverpool on the title count
Cheers people
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Posted by chelsea till i die on 05/04/2010
Please join us for the championship party at stambord bridge after the wigan game, no hatred,you guys r the greatest club ever, but this time we deserve the trophy...
love n peace
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Posted by Aaron on 05/04/2010
I think that Chelsea learned their lesson from their first match with Wigan and can't really see them losing this time. United are a great side and will always challenge for the title. I think that their biggest problem is the other forwards they have. Berbatov, while still a top-class player, has missed so many opportunities to make an impact, and there really hasn't even been a third attacking option for United all season. Leaving all the goal-scoring up to Rooney isn't a recipe for success and that, I think, has cost them the title this year.
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Posted by Andy on 05/04/2010
While Berba did not have a good day, the offensive quality disappeared for the 20 minutes after his substitution. Absolutely right that options were limited, but the three points were collected. Look back at the first 5 losses this season and count the goals. Those points were left on the pitch.
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Posted by steven on 05/04/2010
Great comments everyone...I usually do not post, but I had to submit my take on what has been a tremendous season in many respects, most of all it showed the stuff MANU is made of when faced with the adversity of losing key offensive players such as Ronaldo and Tevez and fight to the last day for the title when many people wrote them off before the first kick of the season...It shows while many rely solely on talent to get results, there is something special about this club and its players...the attitude to go out and win despite the odds...even if fortune smiles upon Chelsea in the title race this season, I think I could not have been prouder than to see the determination and grit the lads have shown this year...of course I wouldn't complain if they did win the title as icing on the cake....GO UNITED!!!
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Posted by urbanhikermc on 05/05/2010
Yeah, good article. Chelsea are remarkably easy to dislike - from Terry to Ballack and Lampard (I think Frank looks good because he has good players around him), all the way up to Prima Donna Drogba.
Not being a United fan, I nevertheless agree that Rooney was a hero who unfortunately bore too much of the burden this season. Not too sure where United go from here ... perhaps another striker and a central defender? Whatever happens, they'll be up there again next season without a doubt. They always are.
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Posted by kindoichi85 on 05/05/2010
I seriously think it's time we offloaded the languid one... We shd've gotten Torres instead when we had the chance to (and he was cheaper as well). We definitely need a big name striker to help out Rooney if we intend to challenge for honours next season. Well anyway, i'm keeping my fingers crossed this Sunday.
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Posted by Grant from Oz on 05/05/2010
I agree with most of the above: it has been a year where we have achieved better results than expected - or have we? Not being one to doubt SAF but, too many times this year we've played the 4-5-1. The better sides know it and play against it well (except Arsenal). If we claim to be one of the very best then playing 2 up front aginst the bigger clubs, sometimes, may have brought us even better results. I feel for Berbatov because he hasn't had enough opportunities to perform and form a partnership with WR10. He's worth perservering with if we don't sign a big name striker in the summer. If we do sign a striker, play them together. Also, no doubt someone from nowhere will shine in this World Cup. Whomever that is, expect him to be in Man U red next year. It happens every 4 years.
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Posted by Dudu Basewa on 05/05/2010
True enough....We ought to have had the trophy done and dusted in the cabinet by now....a whole lot of slip ups when chelsea was slipping up and ill timed injuries to key players ....oh my....ill timed injury to my key player....ROOOOOOONNNNNEEEEYYYYY.
All said and done,we have had a fantastic season as usual....and wont it just be a big laugh if we do pip chelsea to the title....better to hope than despair....neva ova till its truly ova.....
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Posted by Lawrence on 05/05/2010
Sincerely this is one of the best football post I have read in a long time, I totally agree with it. Chelsea should have even wrapped it up a long time ago. Even when drogba, kalou, essien and mikel were away in january, Chelsea practically won all their games and I do not see any twists and should there be any, I beleive the FA and premier league has something to do with it. Join in the party at stamford bridge
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Posted by Bob Johan on 05/05/2010
Regardless what's going to be the outcome after the final game, I'm proud to be one of millions MU fans. Imagine if other team lost their back four key players throughout the season, i'm very sure they can never match what SAF and MU players did. For SAF and MU players, thank you for a superb performance this season and Berba, sorry to say man, even if maybe you're not the one who asked for 30M, maybe your agent did it same as Tevez, well, you're just not up to it.
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Posted by steven79w on 05/06/2010
no matter what happen this season, we should look forward.
sell: carrick, berbatov, &rio(if he is injury prone) to get the cash
buy: a left winger with a left foot(bale swap with carrick or david silva), a central midfield with good skills and speed(i think james milner because i think he is the future scholes), and a striker( do anyone know a great striker that not overpriced???)
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Posted by Wendo on 05/07/2010
It sickens me to read you all content with our mediocre performance this season. The truth is we should all be worried that we witnessed a lot of poor decisions when it came to team selections which casts doubt on the decision making of the team's coaching staff. I think that hurt us the most this season. We've also seen a preference for aged players, in the likes of Scholes, Giggs and Neville, which has had a detrimental effect on the development of our younger more talented players. I have read a lot of comments coming from many of you calling for Nani's head and I'm glad that he has proven you all wrong. The solution isn't buying players but finding the right positions for our current squad and giving players such as Tosic, Anderson, Obertan, da Silva twins, and Macheda a chance!!!!
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Posted by Keegan on 05/08/2010
Hey guys!firstly I'd like to say "GLORY GLORY MAN UNITED!"
Good points made by everyone, and I too think that we still had a great season nonetheless and it was stupid mistakes that put us where we are now!(Tackle by rafael champs semi, just jumps to mind)
However, fergie made the worst mistake in letting tevez go, he wouldve helped united to the title easily!with rooney in the form he is in, all we needed was a bulldog like tevez!The great fergie will never admit this, but he knows it in his heart!
I just hope united get a good quality striker in by the end of transfer window!Some one like David Silva or David Villa would be awesome. Hernandez might be a good signing but only time will tell?
Also, welcome back Owen!
To the rest of the united fans, enjoy the game tomorrow! I feel an upset in the cards for chelsea!
GLORY GLORY MAN UNITED AS THE REDS GO MARCHING ON ON ON!!!!
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Posted by Viper on 05/09/2010
A Man Utd fan here speaking, although reading through the comments it does sound like we're patting ourselves on the back for a good season because we know that we're gonna lose the title on Coronation Sunday today. No offence, I think several players have had a fantastic season - but what counts at the end of today is the title - players like Giggs and Scholes would no doubt tell you that. If they'd patted their backs and said good job after losing the title, they would have never won 11 Premier League titles in 18 seasons. More work to be done, although I agree with Mark that we're not that far off. Kudos to a few players though and I'd expect a much better next season from them - Fletcher and Valencia have had a great season and expect them to be in the team sheet week in week out next season. Evra again dependable as usual. Nani needs to carry on the good form he developed since Jan, and he'll be lighting up the Champions League hopefully. Oh and what the striker's name again? R..?
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Posted by Linora on 05/10/2010
Firstly I'm sorry if my first comment made no sense. I have no idea what happened to my punctuations there.
For what it's worth it was a bittersweet ending I feel. While we may have one against Stoke. On the other end of the stick, we could hear Chelsea winning from a mile away. It's a shame that we had to lose to Chelsea in the match that determined who would be getting the title.
But no point crying over the spilled milk. Here's to a new season. With some new players to look forward too! This shall be an interesting transfer period. :)
Glory Glory Man United! The fight was still a valiant one!
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Posted by Kandrel on 05/20/2010
I agree 100% with everything. The supporting class has to get better or Rooney may become as frustrated with having to carry the team as Gerrard and Torres are at Liverpool.
To me, though, the key to next season's success has little to do with summer signings (barring an unexpected deal for Ribery or David Silva).
The most important factors in our future success are the continued development of Nani, who showed signs of stardom, the recovery of Anderson and Hargreaves to rebuild the midfield (particularly Hargreaves' health so that Anderson can play forward in his natural role), and the development of our young defenders Johnny Evans, Ritchie De Laet and the Da Silva twins. Our defense was incredibly strong even with Vidic, Rio, and Neville all out a lot of games to injury. That shows how well those young lads have developed (as well as the dedication of "play me anywhere" Darren Fletcher).
Fit Fletcher, Hargreaves and defense means the midfield can then push forward.
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About
Mark Payne writes about football for a variety of media outlets. He reported on the 2010 World Cup for Australia’s ABC network and worked at one of the FIFA fan sites. He has been ESPN’s Manchester United correspondent for four years. His writing attracts a worldwide following and in 2011 this blog was nominated for an award. To contact Mark for football discussion e-mail him on markpayne.editor@hotmail.com at any time. He wears lucky socks on match days.
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