Another Black Day In October For United

Newcastle United 5 Manchester United 0, October 1996. Southampton 6 Manchester United 3, October 1996. Chelsea 5 Manchester United 0, October 1999. Manchester United 1 Manchester City 6, October 2011. There is something about October and Manchester United that doesn’t sit right. The latest addition to that list of hammerings, Manchester United 1 Tottenham Hotspur 6, October 2020. If I felt devastated and dejected after watching the defeat in our first game to Crystal Palace, that reached a new low after watching United being humiliated by Tottenham yesterday. I sat like a zombie in disbelief staring at the scene of destruction that unfolded in front of my eyes.

Great Start We got off to a great in the game, we were sharp and incisive in our passing. Bruno Fernandes set Anthony Martial free and he was fouled for a penalty within the first minute of the game. If he was not fouled, Martial stood a great chance to get a shot at goal. Fernandes was impeccable from the spot again. I inferred that the commentators were envious that we got ANOTHER penalty. I don’t understand why because it was a clear foul, clear penalty. Nightmare It was a fantastic start and I felt we would pass the ball around with slickness and confidence to press home the advantage. What transpired was nothing short of a nightmare. The team lost the plot on the pitch, the organisation was all over the place, the defence crumbled and we were making individual mistakes. At 1-2, with the game within reach, Anthony Martial got sent off for lashing out at Erik Lamela before a corner. Typical of a Latin player, Lamela collapsed to the ground in an act of gamesmanship. Martial was deservedly sent off. But the VAR system’s usage in England is flawed. The referee didn’t review the incident at the pitchside monitor and Lamela’s initial elbow into Martial’s chin was leniently punished with a yellow card.

Off-Day For Everyone Harry Maguire has made some mistakes in some games since he joined us. I have not opposed his appointment as captain either since Ashley Young’s sale to Inter. But the performance and leadership from him yesterday was underwhelming. He looks terribly off the pace and perhaps troubled mentally. A football player is a human being so even if we think the events during his summer vacation in Greece wouldn’t affect him, it might just be affecting him sub-consciously now. I was relieved to see Eric Bailly in the starting line-up but sadly he too had an off-day. Everyone had an off-day except maybe Mason Greenwood and Marcus Rashford. I stopped watching at 1-5 preferring instead to get more sleep which has become scarce as a new father.

Familiar Pattern of Underachievement The pattern is too familiar now. Qualify for Champions League, struggle the season after, the manager gets sacked midway through the season or at the end of it, a new manager is appointed and the cycle repeats. Whoever is the manager, the club lets him down through their inefficient recruitment. All of a sudden now, after a strong finish to the 2019-20 season, Ole Gunnar Solksjaer looks clueless and helpless. He looks like a dead man walking. The delayed start to pre-season has left the players looking short on match fitness and sharpness. The quality signings that we hope would give a boost to the squad and players have not arrived yet. It looks like a very long season ahead for all of United persuasion.