Man Utd Midfielders

Anderson’s exit from Manchester United has long been on the cards, but the midfielder’s recent admission that he could return to his ‘roots’ could see the Premier League leaders step up their interest in Porto midfielder James Rodriguez.

A possible loan deal back to Porto has been mooted, but both player and club will be keen for any move to be permanent.

Anderson has suffered a succession of injuries during his time at Old Trafford, but a collection of poor form, lack of goals and inability to keep the ball has seen the early appreciation of the Brazilian midfielder’s energy and drive quickly dry up.

The player himself has publicly admitted that he has “tried to leave [the club] several times but never managed it”, whilst rumours of a move to Brazil are also steadily increasing.

Anderson has been quoted in Portuguese paper A Bola, as saying that “Porto are the only club I would consider moving back to Portugal for… my past is there” and a return to the Estadio do Dragao could provide the hard-working midfielder with an outside chance of making the Brazil squad for the 2014 World Cup, should he be able to stay clear of injuries.

Manchester United are likely to recoup less than half of the £20 million fee that the Red Devils paid for the Brazilian midfielder back in 2007, but Anderson’s impending departure could help improve Sir Alex Ferguson’s long term pursuit of Colombian midfielder James Rodriguez who has once again excelled in the Liga Sagres.

Rodriguez followed up his title-winning performance of 13 goals in 20 games last season, with eight goals in 17 appearances this time around, as the Dragons once again battle Benfica for the Primeira Liga championship.

Nicknamed ‘El Nuevo Pibe’ by former Colombian great Carlos Valderrama, Rodriguez has been likened to former Manchester United player Cristiano Ronaldo with the player’s dribbling ability, ball control, shot power, creativity and overall speed drawing comparisons.

Rodriguez won the Primeira Liga Breakthrough Player of the Year award last year and the 21-year old is thought to be open to a move to the Premier League leaders.

Sir Alex Ferguson is keen to reengineer his attacking line for next season following the January acquisition of Crystal Palace prodigy Wilfried Zaha and Portuguese winger Nani is another who could leave Manchester United in the summer.

After being priced out of a move for Gareth Bale last season, Sir Alex Ferguson may use the extra Premier League television money to secure a deal for long-term target James Rodriguez, whether Anderson can facilitate a move back to Porto or not.

A strange sort of consensus seemed to have spread through the media amid the fallout from last week’s red card against Real Madrid. Judging by the scores marked down in a number of post-match player-rating articles, Nani appeared to have failed to justify his selection.

That was hardly the case however, with the winger offering Manchester United a tricky outlet and an unpredictable threat that seemed to spook Real’s defensive line. With van Persie hovering at the team’s apex, and Welbeck making use of his prodigious industry to both mark out Alonso and constantly break forward, the Portugese winger was a key third in the triple-threat set-up that had kept Madrid on their toes at the back and unable to fully enact their own game plan. Although the winger’s contribution to United’s defensive tactics was minimal, his ability to retain the ball high up the pitch and beat his man – the opposition’s weak point Alvaro Arbeloa – prevented the likes of Ramos and Varane from properly pushing up to support their nullified midfield.

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‘He’s an incredible human being. It’s as simple as that’ – the words used by Sir Alex Ferguson to describe a player who might just get a statue or an Old Trafford stand named in his honour in similar fashion to the wily old Scot. Many within the game have even tipped him to replace the man who has managed him throughout his professional career.

As Ryan Giggs is on the verge of bringing up his millennium of senior matches, we pay tribute to a man who will go down as one of the greatest to ever grace the pitch. The 39-year-old is a one-off and it is unlikely that his combination of footballing excellence and longevity will ever be replicated.

The summer of 2006. The balance of power in English seemingly shifting to London as Chelsea had secured their first back-to-back league titles in their history, while Arsenal had come within twenty minutes of their first Champions League trophy. Shevchenko and Ballack – both in their pomp – agreed moves to Stamford Bridge.

Manchester United appeared to be on the verge of turmoil as a solitary League Cup success was mere sticking plaster to cover the gaping wounds of no league title in three years – United’s longest barren spell since the Premiership was created. They had been eliminated in the group stages of the Champions League too. Ruud van Nistelrooy had become the latest high profile name to depart the club. Rumours were rife that Cristiano Ronaldo wanted out following the English media’s brutal and relentless witch-hunt of the teenage prodigy. Football pundits across the land were relishing in United’s apparent downfall and many predicted them to finish outside the top four, with Ferguson bowing out of the game.

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Every time Manchester United come back and win a game in which they looked no better than the opposition, it can be difficult to go back and criticize anything the team did.

In the end, the three points are all that matter and the three earned against a lively Newcastle United are especially important. Manchester City lost at Sunderland and United now lie 7 points off the Premier League summit. Manchester United had to win today, and win they did, after a persistent Javier Hernandez poked home Michael Carrick’s brilliantly weighted pass over the Newcastle rearguard in the 90^th minute.

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In some quarters, Shinji Kagawa arrived at Manchester United as a second-choice signing to Eden Hazard.

United fans defiantly protected their signing as only passionate fans can, fending off any suggestions that Kagawa was going to struggle to adapt to the Premier League given his slight frame and the fact that he’s most adept at playing in the same role as the one in which Wayne Rooney excels.

But a quite superb pre-season with the squad turned a few heads back in England, the former Borussia Dortmund star showing his worth playing in behind a lone striker and starring in ‘the hole’.

Those who have been following the Bundesliga closely in the last couple of season would tell you that there was no doubt about Kagawa’s ability and adaptability. He had 2 fantastic seasons at Dortmund, the second of which was his best given Dortmund were without Mario Gotze for most of the season. Manager Jurgen Klopp admitted they hadn’t missed Gotze too badly – a bigger compliment could not have been made to Kagawa’s talent.

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When the teamsheets ahead of the Manchester-derby were unveiled, both managers delivered a few surprises. The biggest of them all was not the selection of the explosive Mario Balotelli or the last minute clearance for David Silva. The biggest surprise, and what may have won Man United the match, was the return of Antonio Valencia.

Manchester United’s bizarre victory at Reading, on Saturday, was very much in keeping with the clichéd script they have been writing this season but another sub-plot followed a far too familiar story. Anderson, United’s go-to man in recent games, scored a belter before hobbling off in agony clutching his hamstring.

It’s a sight United fans have become frustratingly accustomed to. Anderson has blown hot and cold since his arrival in 2007 from Porto, and frustratingly for United, it’s often been the latter.

His highest number of appearances in a season have been in his first two – 38. It has been a downhill path from there. He made just 23 appearances in the 09-10 season followed by 30 in 10-11 and a measly 16 last season (thankfully no United fan wants to recall that..).

He has been burdened, not encouraged  by the expectations placed on him at Old Trafford. United have been crying out loud for a midfield enforcer since Roy Keane’s unceremonious departure and Anderson was pencilled in as the perfect replacement. Never a player of the Keane mould,  Anderson was nonetheless a player who could assert his authority in midfield as he showed during his two seasons with Porto where he had a free reign in midfield- a role he cherished. Hard-work has always been part of his game but it has been very difficult for to sustain a place in United’s ailing midfield.

It took him an incredible 78 games to register his maiden United strike (a left-foot cannonball at White Hart Lane), perhaps an indication of how things have gone for him since his move. He has 157 appearances to date for United, 3 Premier League titles, 1 European Cup and 1 League Cup, but how many of those games can he lay claim to have influenced?

Injuries have put the handbrake on his career, striking just when his form was about to reach its crescendo. He has been unable to turn that ripple into a wave, all hopes cut short before they could even begin to build. An early return from a serious knee injury last season was swiftly followed by a series of niggling injuries that sidelined him for the rest of the season.

Where players redouble their efforts in training to regain the sharpness lost after a prolonged period on the sidelines, Anderson seems to relish the time off. That Ryan Giggs completed the full 120 minutes at Stamford Bridge in the Capital One Cup while Anderson huffed and puffed before being replaced in the 2nd half was an indication of how far the buck as fallen for the Brazilian.

And just when performances (and consequently expectations) started to gather momentum, Anderson finds himself on the treatment table again. With a gigantic Manchester derby, one of the biggest in recent times, looming on the horizon, United could have done with their Samba star as the fulcrum of their midfield. Instead he’ll watch on from his now all-too familiar position in the stands on Sunday as United head into the lion’s den.

Dear Anderson,

I would like to start off this letter by saying “I knew it”. “Knew what?” I hear you ask. The answer is simple: I knew all along that you had it in you. That you had it in you to turn critics around (so far) and show the world what you are capable of. Your last few performances at the club have been nothing short of wonderful. People said you had lost it, that you should be sold, that you were a waste of space. Those people are now very quickly changing their minds. It shows how fickle human beings can be.

I cannot even start imagining how difficult it must have been for you to keep faith in your own ability after such a long time on the sidelines. Your luck with injuries has been dreadful and the fact that you put on weight can only be linked to those months of desolation away from the training ground. However, it seems that last summer did you a world of good. During pre-season, people, including your own manager, noticed how hard you worked to shed the “injury” weight. People started to notice that your ability to move around the pitch had improved compared to last season. I’m sure you heard the childish jokes about your weight. Forget about those. They seem to have stopped.

One element of your game that still appears criticisable since your comeback is your inability to physically complete 90 minutes. People seem to be unaware that match fitness comes only with playing football week in, week out. Starting once every 2 weeks or so can only hinder one’s fitness. Training hard does not compare to the hardships of a full match. Training is there to hone your technical abilities and help you on your way to gaining that precious match fitness, but the latter can only truly be obtained through playing competitively. This is not your fault. If anyone’s, it’s Sir Alex Ferguson’s.

On the positive side, the manager seems to have realised that your best and favoured position is not as a tenacious central midfielder. I remember seeing your performance against Manchester United for FC Porto where you managed to impress football’s greatest manager. I remember you running past our midfield with such ease. I remember that you played as an attacking midfielder. Why Ferguson chose to deploy you as a more defensive player remains a mystery. Perhaps it was because at the time, Manchester United did not play with an attacking midfielder or was it because Ferguson simply thought that he would be able to re-train you in a different role? I must say that you adapted pretty well. Remember those performances against Gerrard and Fabregas? The display against the latter even earned you a song that you must be familiar with. It goes something like: “Anderson, son, son, son, he’s better than Kleberson…” If not, listen out for it next time. It’s incredibly catchy. Nevertheless, it is good to see you relishing the opportunity given to you in that favoured free roaming, attacking role of yours. Make the most of it!

May I also say how impressed we all have been with your improvement in the shooting department? No longer do you seem to sky every single shot. You actually seem to hit the target more often than not. Perhaps a bit more work may be needed, but that goal against Newcastle in the Capital One Cup (who thought of that name, seriously?) is proof that certain aspects of a player’s game can be improved. Did you work hard at it over the summer? I remember a few of your goals in the U-17 World Cup for Brazil. They were majestic.

In the passing department, you do not fail to deliver either; 3 assists vs. a fairly strong Chelsea side? Who would have guessed that before the game? However, I feel that your 91% pass completion rate this season is more impressive. It shows consistency, an element that many have criticised you for over the years. Carry on like that and who knows, maybe you’ll beat Scholes by the end of the year? I doubt it though.

Your English also seems to have improved. That interview with Paddy and Quinton was rather amusing and incredibly enlightening about your past and the hardships you lived through as a child. Your family must be proud.

I think I’ve said all I can for the time being. Let’s hope you read this someday, somehow.

Best wishes for the future,

@sardinetrawler

Wayne Rooney’s selection as a midfielder is nothing new. However for the first time his selection in this role is by choice rather than necessity.

It seems like only yesterday that his fleeting partnership with Rio Ferdinand (!) in the engine room was being analysed by all and sundry. As recently as last season Rooney doggedly served in the middle of the park as frugality replaced creativity after the derby disaster. Those lucky enough to have observed the young Rooney develop at Everton have regularly lauded his ability to play in any role. On the rare occasion when that is the case for a footballer at the highest level of competition, then the logical choice is midfield. The talents of our number 10 point to midfield as a natural home.

A European Debut that justified the hype.

I like many have opined the loss of the 2008 version of Rooney - a fearless ball of energy with explosive pace. Since those exciting early days we have witnessed Wayne the selfless winger, Wayne the penalty box poacher, and latterly Wayne the creator. Whichever of these roles is adopted, clear assets of the young Rooney’s game were sacrificed.  As a wide sentry, industry replaced invention whilst toiling as just another member of Ronaldo’s supporting cast. Tasked with playing as number nine, lung-busting charges back to make tackles provoked reproach from a manager preaching energy conservation for when the time came to strike. A lack of like-minded players in close proximity meant his displays as an enganche underwhelmed despite the mask of goals. It seems a shame that in trying to best meet the needs of our team we have conversely capped Rooney’s potential to affect the game. No disrespect intended but Rooney is no Romario – the whole concept of lying in wait, content to stay on the periphery until scenting an opportunity is anathema to his instincts. It strikes me that in the effort to curb the risky elements of Rooney’s game – temperament and tactical naivety – we have at times lost sight of what made him such a phenomenon in the first place.

Bryan Robson had the drive and determination to dominate.

Everything about Rooney’s style is of a player at his best when at the core of the action. In view of our abundance of options further forward, and steel deficiency in central midfield, it is entirely sensible for Rooney to concentrate his efforts on playing central midfield. One moment on Sunday underlined this for me – Rooney received the ball into feet in a tight space on the edge of the centre circle, as you would expect Tiote was instantly on him niggling away, yet the body strength of one time boxing prospect comfortably held off the Ivorian before laying the ball to Kagawa in space. The comparisons with Keane and Robson were hard to avoid. Not that at this stage Rooney is anywhere near their quality in the centre of the park, but he stands alone as the player in our squad capable of bossing the midfield zone whilst maintaining a potent attacking threat. The complaint remains valid that the club hasn’t invested in a specialist but no amount of moaning will change that fact before January at the earliest. Such is our attacking talent that our goal threat is not dramatically reduced by the redeployment of Rooney.

The Diamond allowed Rooney to sparkle.

Whether this can work in a system other than a diamond is debatable. The security of three other players in the same area allows Rooney to join the attack without fear of compromising our ability to repel any counter. Similarly, the presence of two from Cleverley, Kagawa, Anderson and even Powell means that we have players capable of linking defence to attack should Rooney find himself using his much needed tenacity to aid Carrick in front of our defence. In a 4-4-2, 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3 the likelihood is that either Rooney would find himself regularly too deep to assert his talents in attack, or alternatively in joining the attack our midfield would return to the vulnerable state which has characterised much of the last two years. For long spells in his United career Rooney has cut a forlorn, frustrated figure. Frequent loss of form has left many (myself included) to doubt whether we will ever see our brightest talent perform to his potential on a consistent basis. The diamond provides the elements that Rooney needs to thrive and might just be the system in which he finally establishes himself as a truly world-class performer.