Filed under: Manchester United, Premier League, Football
It may well be that we do not hear from Manchester United until they run out against Arsenal on Saturday, determined to make a serious statement about their intentions of the rest of the season.The past couple of weeks have thrown up plenty of indications about what has to change to keep United at the top, as well as how little has changed at Old Trafford.
It has been quite a jump from Gary Pallister to Rafael but Sir Alex Ferguson has the likes of the young Brazilian and Nani feeling just as much as injustice and 'Them against us' feelings as those that permeated United two decades ago.
In some ways, this kind of period has been coming for United all season. Ever since Chelsea started to stumble and Ferguson's side took advantage, their standards have been criticised, with the wider public unimpressed.
Youngsters have been written off, the influence of old-stagers has been questioned and Ferguson has also had to deal with significant injury problems throughout the campaign.
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Wayne Rooney has struggled, Dimitar Berbatov has scored in flurries, they have no star players, vintage performances have been few and far between - it goes on and on.
Since the start of last season, most top managers, including Ferguson, have conceded that the Premier League is becoming more of a level playing field, with some pointing out that this season will have three relatively strong relegated teams, a strong fifth placed team and a weak champion.
That is why all of the criticism United, rightly, received after their humbling 3-1 loss at Anfield, just 24 hours after Arsenal were held to a goalless draw by Sunderland, needs a little context.
At half time at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday, with United 1-0 up and cruising, only the most embittered United hater would have predicted they would be where they are now.
They were swept aside in the second period by Chelsea, with Ferguson getting himself into trouble with his comments about referee Martin Atkinson on MUTV, and then put in a weak display on Merseyside.
It was possibly their most unconvincing performance away to their bitter rivals since their defeat by a similar score-line in 2001.
That day they had a central midfield of Juan Veron and Nicky Butt and a centre-back partnership of Wes Brown - yes, him - and Mikael Silvestre and United fans could have been forgiven for wondering where all of the options and quality had gone.
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