United vs Spurs - Post Match Post Mortem

The boys are back in town
United kicked off their home Premier League campaign with a 3-0 win against Spurs at Old Trafford. After a quiet first half where neither team shone to any great degree, Fergie's youngsters produced a second half display that echoed much of the verve and vibrancy shown by the same players at Wembley a few weeks ago. Goals from Welbeck, Anderson and Rooney sealed the three points against an injury hit opposition who played some neat football at times but lacked the cutting edge up front to pose too many questions of De Gea in the United goal.

Picture courtesy of The Telegraph.

The pre-match talk was of the faith shown by the management in the younger generation of squad players at the club with the likes of Carrick, Giggs and Berbatov left in reserve on the bench.The average age of the starting eleven was 23. It is also worth noting that six of the side that started were English.

Post match debate:

Welbeck goal - After a difficult first half when it appeared that he was trying just a little too hard to impress, Danny Welbeck had a storming second half, culminating in a goal and a sublime assist. The boss intimated post match that he felt the youngster was dropping too deep early on and leaving the team without a presence in the box which he quickly rectified, emphasised by his contribution in the second 45 minutes.

His goal was a fine header into the far corner of Friedel's goal but owed much to some Hernández like movement that created the space. With Smalling in possession on the right and Cleverley in close proximity, Welbeck was well marshalled in the box by Kaboul. As Cleverley accepted a pass, Welbeck made a move towards the ball before retreating toward goal which left Kaboul flat footed and there was sufficient time and space for Welbeck to angle his header confidently beyond the reach of Friedel.

Anderson goal - We are just a few weeks into the season and the goal of the season contenders are already stacking up. After the intricate passing that created Nani's goal at Wembley, the second goal last night was pure Manchester United at their best. Just 16 seconds elapsed between De Gea releasing the ball to the ever eager Young on the left hand side to the emphatic finish applied by Anderson in front of the Stretford End. This was counter attacking at its most deadly but still sublime at every stage, epitomised by Welbeck's back heel to leave Anderson with the easy finish.

Look at the space left vacant for Rooney and Anderson as Spurs are left 5 vs 5 at the back after the swift break

The speed of the counter attack had left Spurs short in numbers in defence and with a very open midfield. The picture above demonstrates this perfectly. Rooney is able to feed Anderson and allow him to drive at the heart of the Spurs back four. Welbeck creates the space by making a dart to the right which Anderson spots and plays a pass into his path. The space for Anderson to run into is caused by this move and also by Kaboul coming out from defence as he sees a free running Brazilian as the key threat on goal.

Anderson plays the pass to Welbeck and continues his run past the three Spurs defenders (circled) before finishing

What was very impressive was the determination shown by Anderson to get into the box to assist the attack in the knowledge that Welbeck was likely to have a shot on goal. The young Englishman shows vision beyond his tender years by anticipating the Anderson run with a cute back heel directly into his team mate's path. The finish looked routine but the ball was bobbling somewhat but it was finished with ease.

The picture above clearly shows how the move has ripped apart the Spurs back line with the three defenders (circled) trailing in the wake of not only Anderson but the on-rushing Rooney too.

Jones and Evans secure in defence
In years gone by, the loss of both Ferdinand and Vidic for any length of time would have sent shock-waves through the hearts and minds of the Old Trafford faithful. Those fears are no longer quite so intense based on the array of young defenders at the manager's disposal this season. Phil Jones has looked a Manchester United player for a long time before making the short move from Blackburn Rovers. Hugely impressive in all aspects of play, many observers felt that the club had got a bargain bearing in mind his age and undoubted mental and physical talents. Not for the first time, his display brought back memories of a young Paul McGrath for the all round ability he possesses. Some lazy comparisons have been made with John Terry but Jones has pace and a range of passing that the Chelsea skipper can only dream about. What he does not have just yet is Terry's experience and leadership but signs of this developing were in evidence last night as he marshalled the back line with an air of someone who has found their true footballing home.

Jonny Evans was once again secure alongside him in the heart of the defence. He looks to have regained his confidence after a difficult season last year and was sharp in the tackle while accurate with his passing. Chris Smalling continued his education in the right back slot with another composed and classy display, keeping Gareth Bale quiet for long periods while assisting Nani down the flank with regular marauding runs into opposition territory.

The emergence of this trio, all of whom can play in various positions, means that not only can the boss rest the likes of Ferdinand and Vidic from time to time this season when the fixture list allows but he is also safe in the knowledge that if they are injured for a significant length of time, there is no reason that any loss of solidity should be felt.

Corners
New season but same end result - poor delivery at corners. This was a theme that ran through the whole of last season and it looks set to continue into this. United possess such threat at set pieces that it is a shame that more work has not been done on the training ground to improve our effectiveness. Countless times last night, a corner was awarded only to lead to a short one being taken before inevitably breaking down before a cross can be made. In the few times, that a corner was played into the box, it invariably failed to clear the first man and led to a wasted trip up from the back. However, if we are in a position where ability at corners is the only  thing to complain about then we cannot be in too bad a position.

Other notable performances
Tom Cleverley was quiet in the first half (apart from a shot that was well saved by Friedel) before coming to life like a lot of his colleagues in the second half. His telepathic understanding with Welbeck was in evidence for the opener as his cross found his compatriot in the box. There is still a slight worry about his blossoming partnership with Anderson from a defensive viewpoint as at times as, like at The Hawthornes, there were plenty of gaps for Spurs to exploit. For now we will marvel in the confidence and effervescence in his play that could see him cement a place in the starting line up as the season moves on.

De Gea will be greatly relieved to record his first clean sheet of the campaign though it was not without the odd alarm. He looked confident with the shots he had to face and was never really tested in terms of crosses into the box, apart from one that he misjudged in flight and failed to take at its highest point as every goalkeeper manual tells us. His distribution was excellent once again as he often set United on their way with an astute, accurate pass.

Young and Rooney were once more very impressive while Nani seemed to mix moments of class with a careless final ball which can often sum up his contribution during the course of a match.

Player Ratings - Man of the match in bold
De Gea 6, Smalling 7, Jones 8, Evans 7, Evra 6, Nani 6, Cleverley 7, Anderson 8, Young 8, Rooney 7, Welbeck 7.

United are next in action on Sunday as they welcome Arsenal to Old Trafford and will be confident of continuing their impressive start to the season.

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