United’s Title Challenge Ebbs Away

By Oliver Sparrow

There was no going down in a ball of flames, no temper tantrums, or in fact any discernable drama at all as Manchester United laboured to a dour stalemate with Sam Allardyce’s well organised Blackburn. With that draw, United’s title challenge seems to have petered out with little more than a whimper.

It was a game with very few chances. The only clear-cut sight of goal was in the first half when Antonio Valencia spurned a decent chance by shooting too close to Paul Robinson. From that moment on, United failed to create much at all, despite having the lion’s share of possession. It was a performance which lacked desire when so much was at stake. That being said, Blackburn defended well, and did look dangerous on a couple of occasions – most notably when the promising Kalinić was in possession.

United looked largely devoid of ideas without their talisman Wayne Rooney on the field. Workmanlike performances from Valencia and Giggs did little to hide the fact that they lacked a cutting edge. Nani did his best to spark some life into the game, but turned in another disappointing performance. He has shown glimpses of promise in the latter half of the season, but still not enough to shrug off persistent accusations of being a poor man’s Cristiano Ronaldo.

The other big disappointment was the ever hapless Berbatov. Like Nani, he occasionally provides moments of sheer brilliance, but these are few and far between. He doesn’t seem to suit United’s style of play, which is at its most effective when breaking forward at pace. Berbatov’s play is slow and languid. He can hold the ball up very effectively, but when he doesn’t have a rampaging striker to lay the ball off to, this is a wasted attribute. Only being good when in possession is not good enough for a striker in the top half of the Premier League. He needs to look for the ball more as well as make more intelligent runs. You can see he gets frustrated at United, but whereas Rooney turns his frustration to his benefit, Berbatov simply sulks and moans at other players – which can’t help the confidence of younger team members such as Macheda.

There has been talk in the papers today of United withdrawing their interest in David Villa of Valencia. At £40million, he seems a snip compared to the £35million paid for Berbatov. However, gone seem to be the days when United could financially outmuscle most other teams in the football world. The astronomical fee they received for Ronaldo had to be used simply to service their debt. Berbatov could well be their last big money buy for a few years to come, but unless he has a dramatic change in form, it seems like money down the drain.

Chelsea will have been looking on in joy as United limped to a draw, and with their win over Aston Villa yesterday, it seems the season will end with the wind in their sails whilst United stumble timidly to the wayside.