Johan Cruyff 1947-2016

Perhaps it's odd to find a humble obituary for Johan Cruyff appearing on a Manchester United blog. Or perhaps it isn't.  Cruyff was one of those few footballing greats whose significance went well beyond footballing loyalties.  You didn't have to be Dutch or a Barcelona fan to appreciate his legendary status in the game or his importance.

Cruyff and the Ajax and Dutch national teams of the early seventies were a body of people who changed football very much for the better.   Before them, there were only stark or dreary alternatives: the dull, spirit over style of the English game modified only slightly by the more successful Germans or the dreary, stifling tactics of the Italians, poorly imitated by the Spanish.   Only the Brazilians had lifted us beyond all that and now, post-Pele, they were only a pale shadow of themselves.

When I saw Cruyff and Holland in the 1974 World Cup was when I became a true football fan.   I was nine and, until then, my general interest in the game hadn't yet morphed into support for a particular team.  It was in Tommy Docherty's young United team that I found in England something that bore resemblance to the flair and style I'd seen displayed by Holland in that tournament.   In Buchan and Greenhoff, United possessed two ball-playing central defenders when such a thing was still pretty much unknown in England at the time; Lou Macari and Sammy McIlroy would both be transformed from forwards to form the central midfield.  We were different and we were experimental.

Aside from the second division championship and one glorious day at Wembley against Liverpool, we weren't successful, of course.  The attacking flair and the adaptability were there but, of course, we had no Cruyff.  No one did.  After Best, he was the second real rock star footballer, enigmatic and undefinable.  Had Best been born a few years later or had Willie Morgan been as good as he and his mum thought he was, you wonder what heights the Doc's Reds might have scaled.

But that's missing the point.  Holland showed us a path that, at the time, no one else seemed truly equipped to follow. Sometimes I think the remarkable fluency and flair they showed is exaggerated by those of us who witnessed it, then I look at an old youtube clip and see that it really was that good, that different and that special.

There were other great players in that side: Neeskens and Krol deserve their own places in the pantheon of footballing greats.  But there was only one Johan Cruyff.   And what he gave to football will never be truly matched and never forgotten.

city 0 United 1

The Reds produced a performance full of guts and determination to revive their hopes of Champions League qualification at city.  In the end Rashford's first half goal was enough to bring the Reds the points, but that was only half the story: a determined second half defensive display kept the home side at bay to bring victory in this crucial derby encounter.

United started the game looking edgy but the best way of curing that is always to score a goal and the Reds did that with their first meaningful attack. Marcus Rashford capitalised on a half-hearted challenge from Demechelis to go through and beat Hart with a calm finish.

United immediately looked more composed and coped easily with city's fitful response to going behind, with only a couple of efforts from Toure that went wide posing any danger.  As the half went on there were a series of skirmishes between Aguero and Blind but potentially the most significant coming-together occurred when a blatant foul by Demechelis on Rashford in the area went unpunished in the closing moments of the half.

The hapless Argentine defender continued in the same vein in the second half, a hospital ball back to Joe Hart result in the city keeper's rushed clearance against the oncoming Anthony Martial leading to an injury that forced him out of the game.  Soon afterwards, Demechelis followed him off the pitch, city changing their formation and introducing Bony to the attack.

From there it was largely a story of the home side attacking and United defending, but such was the quality of the Reds' rearguard action, superbly marshalled by Chris Smalling, that few open chances were carved out.  Aguero hit the post and, late on, really should have done better when he took the ball inside only to screw his shot wide of De Gea's post.

United hung on, however, for a win that puts them only a point behind their rivals in what now looks set to be a hotly contested battle for fourth place.

Europa League: United 1 Liverpool 1 (Agg 1-3)

In the end, it went pretty much as expected.  United gave a far better performance than the one in the first leg at Anfield, but still fell well short of what was needed to rescue the tie.  They raised our hopes ultimately being unable to deliver the required heroics.

The first half was promising, with the Reds building up momentum in a series of meaningful attacks around the Liverpool area.  Martial looked a consistent threat and there was no surprise when he put United in front.  Tripped in the area by Clyne, he calmly stepped up and took the penalty himself.

In truth, Liverpool had always looked a threat on the break, however, and Sturridge hit the bar from a free kick to give notice that they certainly had a goal in them.  In the end it came from the impressive Coutinho just before half-time.  The Brazilian left Varela for dead on United's right side before entering the box and coolly chipping De Gea from a tight angle.

It effectively killed the tie.  The worry before this game is that the Reds struggle to keep clean sheets these days and any goal conceded would mean an uphill struggle involving the kind of multiple goal-fest we so rarely see at Old Trafford these days.

Indeed, Liverpool grew as the second half went on and it was only some fine saves from De Gea that kept the scores level on the night.  The damage had all been done in the first leg and there was a feeling at the final whistle of being put out of our misery, as well as relief that Van Gaal will no longer be able to claim we're active in three competitions in order to embellish his lame duck status at the club.  We were, after all, only in this competition because we failed to progress in the Champions League.  The reasons for that failure were all too evident throughout this tie.

FA Cup Quarter-Final: United 1 West Ham 1

United lived to fight at least another day in the FA Cup after an absorbing, and at times nervy, game against West Ham, whose goal via a free kick from the talented Payet was cancelled out by an Anthony Martial equaliser with seven minutes left.

The league table suggests there isn't much between these sides and that was certainly borne out in this game.  In the first half, both teams carried a threat but lacked an end product. Herrera had United's best opportunities, steering a shot wide before ballooning a shot over the bar following an excellent cross from Rojo.  

The Reds looked more productive from the left, with Martial asking questions of Antonio, though service to the French youngster might have been better and United's passing in general lacked incisiveness.  The West Ham right back was heavily involved in a goalmouth scramble that was gave his team their best opportunity of the half, but the United defence managed to clear the danger.

The Reds picked up the tempo in the second half and West Ham's goal came after arguably United's best period of play.  Herrera and Martial had both seen chances go begging when a foul by Blind on Payet saw the West Ham player step up and curl an unstoppable free kick in off the post.

Memphis and Schweinsteiger came on for United in an effort to rescue the game and the German was particularly impressive, orchestrating play after his long absence through injury.  Martial was easily United's best player, however, and there was no surprise when he was involved in both the build-up and execution of the goal that kept the Reds in the FA Cup.  He spread the ball out wide to Herrera then made his way to the far post when got on the end of the Basque's deep cross to head past Randolph.

There were some nervy moments for the Reds at the end and De Gea made a superb save from an Antonio shot that was seen late by the keeper as it was drilled through the legs of Carrick.  The two sides will now meet at the Boleyn Ground for what promises to be a competitive and difficult replay.

U21s: Liverpool 1 United 1

The Under 21s showed plenty of the spirit lacking in the senior team the previous evening when they came from behind to grab an important point at Liverpool.

United made a bright start and Januzaj came close to opening the scoring for the Reds in the twelfth minute when his shot hit the post after rebounding back to him from his free kick.  Liverpool came into the game more as the first half went on, Ojo coming closest for the home team when his shot went just wide of the post, but the Reds looked tight at the back and kept chances to a minimum, with McNair and Williams looking a solid partnership in central defence.

It was a surprise, then, that a mistake from the normally dependable Williams led to Liverpool taking the lead early in the second half.  His attempted clearance led to the ball finding Sinclair, who finished calmly.  The game began to open up as the second half went on and United capitalised to equalise with eighteen minutes left: sustained pressure around the Liverpool area ended with James Weir applying the decisive touch to El Fitouri's ball across the goal.

Weir then came close to giving United the lead, his shot following a surging run through the middle drawing a fine save from the home keeper.  At the other end, Pereira made a couple of important saves as both sides pushed for a winner.

Ultimately, however, the Reds were forced to settle for a draw, which leaves United top of the league on goal difference with a game in hand.

Europa League: Liverpool 2 United 0

Even the most hardened Van Gaal supporter will have found this difficult to accept. United produced a woefully disjointed performance and were outplayed at Anfield by Liverpool, with only David De Gea standing between United and a hammering.

The first half was basically De Gea v Liverpool.  The home side took the lead through Sturridge's twentieth minute penalty, given after Memphis was adjudged to have held Clyne in the area.  Even here the United keeper even got a hand to the resultant spot kick.  For the rest of a half dominated by Liverpool, he kept United in the contest, making four superb saves including a point black stop from Lallana that few keepers in the world would have got to.

At the other end, United offered little.  It wouldn't be exaggerating to say that we could easily have been four goals adrift at the break.  Understandably, Van Gaal changed things at half-time, taking off Rashford and bringing on Carrick, who moved into a back three.  

It seemed a strange formation but for a time United looked more fluent and able at least to carry some attacking threat.  When Allen was introduced for Sturridge, however, it nullified the influence of Mata and Liverpool assumed control again.

Their second, when it came, resulted from a disastrous piece of defending from Carrick, who failed to clear the ball when in a position to do so, instead tapping the ball back into the path of Lallana who put in Firmino to score.

It was, in truth, no more than Liverpool deserved and the result gives United a huge mountain to climb at Old Trafford next week.  Unless they can produce something far better than this, it's hard to be optimistic that they'll do so.

Manchester Senior Cup: United 4 Oldham 0

Once again a disappointing weekend for the senior team was followed by a triumph for the Under 21s, who strolled to victory against Oldham Athletic.

United fielded a strong side including Januzaj, Pereira and McNair and there was little to stop them cruising to a 3-0 lead by half-time.  Pereira seized on Oldham keeper Cornell's attempted clearance to give the Reds an early lead.  

Januzaj doubled that only four minutes later, hammering a shot past the busy keeper, who did well to keep down the United tally until he was beaten just before half-time.  Again it was Januzaj who scored, latching on to a pass from Donald Love, who was playing in the unfamiliar position of central midfield.

Oldham offered more in the second half but it was United who added to their tally.  A corner from Januzaj eventually found Poole in the area and, although his shot initially seemed to have been kept out, the referee ruled it had crossed the line.

United now face Bury in the semi-finals.

Varela - Now United's First Choice Right Back?

If there were any doubts about Guillermo Varela's potential to make the United right back slot his own, surely they were dispelled yesterday.

With Darmian back in the side, United clearly lacked the penetration on the right Varela has been giving us in the last four games.  Seasoned watchers of United's Under 21s won't have been surprised at this, but his ability to combine this with an increasingly astute defensive sense has been a revelation to many. 

Although Marcus Rashford deservedly grabbed the headlines in the win over Arsenal, Varela's contribution wasn't far behind.  He largely kept Sanchez out of the game while still providing a hugely important attacking threat that saw him involved in the build-up for both of Rashford's goals.

Varela has since had a first call up to the Uruguay senior team.  On his recent form it's richly deserved.  If we're looking for a right back who can combine the attacking prowess of Rafael but provide the defensive maturity the Brazilian lacks - and I hope we are - then on recent evidence Varela would seem to be it.

West Bromwich Albion 1 United 0

United's winning run came to an end at The Hawthorns when the Reds failed to hold out against West Brom, a single Rondon goal giving Albion victory after Juan Mata had been sent off in the first half.

Mata was the hero in midweek, but he gave his side an enormous problem here when he was sent off after receiving a second yellow card.  Both offences were completely unnecessary, a failure to retreat at a free kick followed by a silly challenge on Darren Fletcher when his team were in no serious danger on either occasion.  There will be some who claim the second yellow was harsh, but there was really no reason for the Spaniard to give the referee a decision to make.

The Reds were forced to reorganise to withstand the inevitable pressure from the home side.  Chris Smalling, back in the side following his recent injury, looked solid at the back and made some vital challenges as the Baggies sought to push home their advantage.

United looked to have weathered this early storm and appeared fairly comfortable before West Brom took the lead in the second half.  For the first time in the half, the Reds were stretched defensively and, when Rondon was given time to control a dangerous cross from the left before shooting, the result was sadly predictable.

Before the goal Anthony Martial, now pushed into a long striker position, had looked capable of exploiting gaps that the home side left.  Following the goal, however, these gaps were no longer evident, and the Reds never looked likely to get back on terms.

It was a disappointing three points dropped and a huge setback as United look to make up ground on the top four.  With the two legs of the Europa Cup game and the FA Cup Quarter-Final to come before the next league game away at city, the Reds face a crucial two weeks.  What better place to bounce back from this than Anfield on Thursday?

United 1 Watford 0

A touch of class from Juan Mata was enough to secure three points from a tight game against Watford.

With a chilly wind swirling around Old Trafford, the Reds often struggled to come to terms with the conditions, while Watford's tough pressing game often threatened to bring the visitors at least a share of the points.  They certainly carved out the best chances in the first half, De Gea twice saving smartly from Ighalo, who also saw another effort go wide.

United were enjoying much of the possession but our attacking play was fitful until midway through the second half when a sustained period of pressure almost brought results.  Mata drew a fine save from Gomes and Rashford's cross failed agonisingly to find a colleague in the area.

Admittedly, Watford still carried a threat and might still have grabbed a vital goal themselves when Prodl's header went narrowly wide of the United post.  However, it was the Reds who secured victory with only seven minutes left.  After Martial had been fouled just outside the area, captain for the night Mata stepped up and curled a sublime free kick past Gomes.

It was, in truth, more of a hard-fought victory than United at their attacking best.  Few players performed at the peak, although Varela had another fine game at right back.  Fosu-Mensah had his first start in central defence and, although he made some errors, he made several timely interventions.  Given that it was one of those games in which the long-term viability of Blind as a central defender was once again called into question, he frequently had to.

With Arsenal, Spurs and city all losing, this was a vital three points for the Reds, however, who suddenly look again capable of mounting a challenge for Champions League qualification.