First of many for Falcao. Manchester United 2 - 1 Everton

  

On his second ever match for Manchester United, Paddy McNair was given the unenviable task of marking Romelu Lukaku for the entire match. At the end of the match, he had Lukaku well inside his pocket but that was not the only reason that United finished the match with 3 points in their pocket. For that we all have to thank David De Gea who had to make two exceptional saves in the last 5 minutes of the match. In the final minute of the first half, Luke Shaw made a challenge from behind on Tony Hibbert inside the box, and a penalty was given correctly. Until today no goalkeeper in the Premier League has saved a penalty from Leighton Baines, giving him a tally of 14 successful converts from the spot. Today De Gea guessed the direction correctly and promptly palmed away an admittedly weak shot from Baines, which kept the spirits high going into half time.

There is something wrong in Louis Van Gaal’s half time talk, or at least it appears so. United have played poorly in the second half for every match they have played this season. Van Gaal should seriously consider re-modulating whatever he is talking at the break! Everton came back with vigour in the second half and got their reward on 55^th minute, when Baines, making up for his earlier penalty miss, delivered a pinpoint cross, after working out a neat one-two from a freekick, to Naismith who headed the ball in. Then there was a 5 minute period when it appeared that United will implode as Everton put the numbers forward and pressed the United players when possession was lost.

There was news that United could move for a permanent deal for Radamel Falcao as early as this January Transfer window for a reported price of 43M. 43 million quid is an awful lot of money, but Falcao showed today why he is worth every penny of that. Though he was yet to score for United coming into this match, his movement off the ball and his overall play have been impressive. When a goal to restore the supremacy was badly needed, Angel Di Maria tried to unleash a left foot shot towards the goal, only to end up scuffing it. But when the ball found its way between the two centre backs, there was Falcao to poke it past Tim Howard for his first Manchester United goal.  At first it looked like he was offside but when continued his celebrations after having a look at the linesman, it was evident that United had got their advantage back. The replays confirmed that the linesman has got this one absolutely right.

The rest of the match, especially towards the end, was a torture to watch for every United fan as Everton came very close twice to leveling for the second time in the match. With 2 minutes and extra time remaining, Leon Osman was played clear at the edge of the box and his shot flying towards the left corner of the goal was palmed away by De Gea. His second save was an even better one. A short free kick from outside the box ensured a melee in the penalty area, and the ball was partially cleared, only to reach Bryan Oviedo, the same man who scored the winner in the same fixture last season. The collective groan heard around Old Trafford when De Gea flew to his left to turn Oviedo’s shot over the bar was a mixture of both surprise and relief. At the end of the match De Gea thanked the crowd which was singing his name around.

Reds go into the international break as a happy bunch, having broken into the top four for the first time for a year. There is some stat which says that United are above Liverpool for the first time in a year too. It is only safe to assume that the person who came up with that had been in a self imposed sleep for the last 24 years when Liverpool fans looked at the table and found United above them always. United’s next fixture is a Monday night match against West Brom 2 weeks away, before they face Chelsea home and City away. The only positive out of this long break is that it allows some of the injured players to recover fully by that time. Going by the current form, United will include De Gea even if he shows up with only one leg on the morning of the match, though.

New era starts with a defeat. Manchester United 1 - 2 Swansea

Louis Van Gaal started his Old Trafford reign with an unwanted record, United losing the first home match of the season for the first time in 42 years. If ever he needed an indication that this squad needs addition, the 90 minutes at Old Trafford provided that. He had his share of injury problems which forced him to give debut to Jesse Lingard and Tyler Blackett for the first game of the season. While Blackett had a reasonably good game (though he gave away the foul which led to the second goal ) at left back, Lingard had to come off midway through the first half, coming worse off a challenge.

I would like think that it was illusion, but there appeared to be lot off empty seats at Old Trafford, strange for the first game of the season. United started the game at a lively pace and bossed possession at 65-35 by the end of first half, but there was a lack of clear cut chances. Ashley Young appeared to have left his pre-season form back in the United States and Fletcher was largely ineffective in the midfield. Herrera managed to strike an understanding with Mata, who was playing behind Rooney, but Swansea kept their shape and composure. Van Gaal’s first half time talk in a competitive game had to be a morale raising one, as Kim Sung-Yeung gave Swansea lead on 28^th minute, driving to the left of De Gea after he was given too much time and space, as he could literally walk into the position.

Adnan Januzaj who came on for Lingard, and Nani, a half time substitute for Hernandez, showed much needed urgency at the start of the second half. Januzaj had some incisive runs down the right flank, and one of them, resulted in the corner which led to United’s first goal. Swansea failed to deal with the first time ball which Jones could only head back awkwardly. By the time it reached Wayne Rooney, he was past it but his overhead kick was precise and found its way to the goal. Later Rooney’s freekick, from just outside the box, struck the outside of the frame and flew wide after Fabianski had already given up. Though he scored one and almost put in another, his passing was off the mark, resulting in breaking up a lot of attacks in the final third. The wave of attacks at the Stretford End did not arrive at all after Swansea regained their lead and United had to settle for second best at the end.

There is a long way to go before we can judge Van Gaal. Today showed that he is not afraid to make changes and ready to put faith on youth, something United are known for. But there is no doubt that he needs additions at CB and someone in the holding midfield role too. It may turn out to be a blessing in disguise that United are not playing in the Champions League this season. We would have been badly exposed in Europe with this squad and that would have affected the League form and confidence as well. Now it is all the more important that United get hold of some decent players before the transfer window closes, and make strides domestically.

A word on Swansea too. Not many survive a player – manager role in League, especially when it is done midway through the season. Gary Monk had done a good job last season achieving survival, albeit with only 2 games left, and he seems to have grown in the role of a full time manager. There will surely be tougher days and tougher tests to face, but he looks like he has the belief and ability to face them. His players put in some heavy challenges today, high on intent though none of them can be termed as malicious. They seem to be responding to his instructions and absorbed his calmness and composure in their play as well.

It was the first Premier League game since its beginning when Ryan Giggs is not a player! Let that sink in and hope that he will see better days as an Assistant Manager.