Spared all of us from the chicken dance. Manchester United 2 - 1 West Ham United

 On the 10^th year anniversary of signing for Manchester United, Wayne Rooney chose this match to encapsulate his 10 years at the club. On the 5^th minute of the match, Rafael’s overlapping run found himself with time and space on the right wing and he delivered a perfect pass for the oncoming Rooney to sweep the ball to the far corner, a sweet classy finish in itself. Rooney was really fired up for the match, for you could find him behind the strikers and you could find him in central defense as well. Then with half an hour remaining in the match and United leading 2-1, Rooney made a high kicking challenge on Stewart Downing who was on the break. It was a crude and unnecessary challenge as Downing was still in the United half and there were 4 covering defenders. At first my reaction was it was professional challenge which warranted an yellow card, but when I saw it again it appeared that Lee Mason was spot on to send him off. As usual there are over the top reactions around to suggest that Rooney shouldn’t be captaining United again. I don’t think that is going to be case here. First of all, in the current squad, he is only one (probably De Gea too) who is guaranteed a spot in the starting eleven, which makes him the only probable candidate for captaincy. And he is not the only United captain who was sent off. I can immediately remember Cantona, Keane and Vidic. I can’t remember any hue and cry of this magnitude when it happened with those players. Ofcourse he let his team down, ofcourse it was a bad challenge, but he has already said sorry and he will have his punishment over the next 3 weeks.

Between Rooney’s first goal and his red card Robin Van Persie got his customary goal through a neat finish from Falcao’s assist. When the half time dawned De Gea came out for a punch which never happened, for a West Ham corner, which then allowed Sakho to head in to an empty net. After United were reduced to 10 men, the tension was unbearable on the ground. The crowd went quiet, Hammers put numbers forward and United had everyone defending except Van Persie. Considering United’s luck this season, there was inevitability about West Ham finding an equalizer. With 4 minutes remaining Kevin Nolan poked the ball into the United Net but the linesman’s flag spared all of us from the chicken dance. The relief around the ground was there for everyone to see when the flag went up. The moment of the match came when United’s debutant Paddy McNair craned his neck and headed backwards to clear an incoming cross which looked like it will end in the goal. He was solid throughout the match and had the audacity to take the ball forward a couple of times. It was the worst kind of a match any debutant defender would have wanted, to have a man down and had to battle for the dear life for the last half an hour of the match. But the fact that the kid had come through it unscathed will bode him well in future.

The one concern from United’s point of view after the match was Ander Herrera’s back injury which forced him to get substituted on 74^th minute. Further reports suggested that he has suffered a broken rib and he would spend some considerable time on the sidelines. Fortunately, the latest news is that the injury is not as bad as it was feared initially. He is definitely out of this weekend’s clash with Everton, and further assessment will be carried out only after the forthcoming international break. Get well soon Ander!