Fulham 2-0 Manchester United

Another week, and another disaster, where this calamitous dip in form has come from i have no idea but it is threatening to destroy the season. I thought that a midweek game was just the thing that was needed to get last week's disaster out of our system, even if fatigue may have been a contributing factor to that nightmare performance. After yesterday's dismal 1st half showing who knows. I couldn't believe the team when i saw it, Scholes and Giggs together in midfield and Ronaldo and Berbatov together up front meaning no place for Rooney. I am not really sure you can play both Scholes and Giggs together in midfield nowadays or even if you ever could. But especially as we were away and after last week knowing that almost certainly Fulham would have a go at us to see whether we had got last week's debacle out of the system. I think we can safely say after the attrocious 45 minutes up to half time that we saw yesterday he won't be pairing them up any time soon during the remainder of the campaign. I don't know what Fletcher has done wrong to have been shunted out back on to the right wing where though he does a job he is clearly not that comfortable. And the front two was the most baffling decision of all for me. We all know that both of these are luxury players who aren't really going to get stuck in and get their kit dirty. So who was going to do the work up front.
The peformance in the first half confirmed my worst fears as Fulham went for it and United pefromed as they had finished the game last week. Still i think that United would probably have got something from the game but for Scholes's disastous blunder that led to the penalty and his sending off. It was an instinctive reaction but you can't really argue with the red card. To rub it in just that little bit more that scouse arsehole Murphy was the Fulham player to stick the ball in the net to give them the lead that they probably deserved. After that United just got worse and i was just hoping we could get through to half time without conceding a second. There weren't many players doing their reputations much good yesterday but i thought Evans didn't do his reputation any harm seeing as though everybody around him weren't exactly enhancing their own.
The one thing that seemed certain to me was that Rooney had to come on and he did come on for Berbatov. Berbatov has got some stick for his performance yesterday but to be fair to him he was on the pitch when we were absolutely dire and he had no service whatsoever. Ronaldo faired no better up front though he drifted back out wide after the sending off. When you need your players to stand up and be counted though he is one hell of a frustrating player to have on your side as he goes to ground to easily and harangues the referee.
The second half was a distinct improvement due in no small measure to the introduction of Rooney. The longer the game went on the more United took control, which was no mean feat with one man less. We had chances but Schwarzer was in fine form and United didn't really have their finishing boots on. There was always the chance we would concede a breakaway goal as we took more and more risks and sure enough three inutes from the end it came as the sub Gera neatly finshed one such counter attack off to kill the game off. Most papers seem to think the subsequent sending off of Rooney was justified but i can't agree. Sure he was angry and maybe threw the ball too hard. But he was throwing at his own team mates not the referee, i can't see how that was worth a red card. As for the dissent, that was after he was shown the red card so that can't have contributed to his dismissal. I suppose it just capped off what had been another disastrous 90 minutes. I'm afraid this patch we are going through is more serious that most fans seem to appreciate. We have not had two such poor performances back to back like this over the last two seasons and this really is the wrong time to be going through it. I don't expect it to take on 97-98 proportions but we desperately need to win that next game against Villa.

United have not excersied their option to bring forward the Sunday Aston Villa game before Tuesday's visit of Porto, is that wise?
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/manutd/5026878/Manchester-Uniteds-schedule-could-lead-to-weaker-side-to-face-Aston-Villa.html

The big screen version of the Thick of it, a must see film for me.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2009/mar/22/in-the-loop-iannucci-gandolfini

A Times interview with Vince Cable
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article5949844.ece

I predicted that if the tories do win the next election they will spend half of their time governing squabbling. It's started already,
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2009/mar/22/tax-rich-conservatives-cameron-economy
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7957874.stm

Polly Toynbee on the realities of the recession
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/mar/21/unemployment-government-job-creation-welfare

Red riding reached it's conclusion on thursday, what a brilliant series it has been. A great story, great acting, it's been the best British TV drama for a long time. The new film about Cloughie taken from the Damed United another of David Peace's books looks worth a watch too.