I dont want to keep harping on the Moyes comparisons, but with that personnel, hed have gone at the Emirates and gotten thrashed. Lets put this in perspective, we had a back five of Valencia (winger), McNair (19yrs & 4 apps), Smalling (25), Blackett (20 & 5 apps), Young (wrong footed & winger), and if it hadnt been for Dein inexplicably adding 8 minutes of injury time and Giroud thrashing in a wonder strike, theyd had kept a clean sheet. This for me is testament to the extraordinary preparation and hard work that goes on, on the training field. The players who didnt play today (or who came off early): Rafael, Jones, Evans, Rojo, Shaw, Blind, Herrera, Januzaj, Falcao, Mata. Some by choice, most by injury. Weve had our ups and downs. There have been frustrating moments, but he took over a team bereft of confidence, at its lowest ebb in twenty years. Oversaw an exodus of players, has suffered a legendary injury crisis, but still guided us to fourth place after 12 matches. Hes gotten performances out of players like Fellaini that have shocked even his most ardent critics. There are so many positives to Van Gaal. I do think he will guide us to the top four, I think it will be a bumpy ride but to me there seems a belief and unity in the squad that was missing last year. Most importantly, he has made us look really solid in our toughest period despite missing all his senior defenders. Moyes was criticized for wanting to make us hard to beat. Yet the real criticism on that front was that he failed. If wed played dour football but gotten results, fans wouldnt be happy but hed still be in a job. Weve seen the players play multiple systems this season already, somewhat competently too. This is a long term process but one which will serve us well. The tactical fluidity of our continental counterparts has always been a trump card over English sides. There is a lot of work to be done, but for me there is ample evidence that the club is heading in the right direction. I expect many more bumps along the road. #copied
Posted on: Sun, 23 Nov 2014 05:52:32 +0000
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