Manchester United 2-0 Otelul Galati

A win is a win, i suppose, but this was one of those games that give the qualifying stages of the champions league a bad name. As poor as United were, they were only ever going to do as much as they had to, and unfortunately for us that were there, they didn't have to do much.
We saw from the game in Romania that Otelul Galati weren't up to much, and they weren't any better over here, god knows what Barca would have done to them. Fortunately for them United are at present so far from that level it's not true. Our game had been steadily slipping from the heady days of the beginning of the season, but after the derby disaster, we are light years away from the kind of form that will see us compete for sliverware come the end of the season.
The main topic of debate before the game was the inclusion of Rooney in central midfield. I have laid down my opinion that he isn't suited to the position, but his performance last night has led me to wonder whether i was wrong . He was comfortably our best performer, but that isn't saying much to be fair, the only other player to emerge with any credit from his display would be Phil Jones. But Rooney did show an awareness to the role that i hadn't anticpated, he generally used the ball well and bar the odd misplaced pass didn't waste the ball.
His performance there put into context just how far away Anderson is from being the player people have kept on thinking he could be. I have read some people that thought Park was cheered when he came on for Anderson, i'm afraid it wasn't for Park and Anderson's look as he came off told me, he knew it was for him being took off. Against a nothing opposition he gave an absolutely nothing performance, how he earned a new contract is totally beyond me. I presume he only played last night because there was nobody else to play with our deepening injury list, i hope so anyway.
The early goal was a mixed blessing, with the way we are playing it was obviously nice to take the lead early on. But as to a spectacle it was probably the last thing the game needed as the vistors stuck with their game plan of getting men behind the ball and the only way they were getting men forward was by pressing our defence when they were trying to play it out from the back.
It was noticeable that the goal came from a Jones cross, all night he was more of an outlet on the right than Valencia. Valencia's game seems to have alarmingly deteriorated, this was a man that tore Ashley Cole a new one in that title decider at Old trafford last season. And yet last night i can barely remember a time where he took his man on or actually got a cross in. I don't know if he is suffering a lack of confidence after Fergie's mistaken idea that he could play right back, but we need the old Valencia back and quick.
As poor as we are in the engine room, at least we have quality in the wide positions, but at the moment that quality has disappeared as they all seem to have suffered a slump in form at the same time. Nani didn't do much to tell us why he was on that Ballon d'or list announced recently either and hasn't really given a decent performance since the Chelsea game. With the lack of creativity from the middle of the park, the last thing we need is to see the supply from the flanks to dry up.
Given the team selected, whilst the first half was pretty dull fare it wasn't as bad as i had feared it might be. But i'm afraid the second half was every bit as bad as i had feared. Though the opposition never really threatened to get an equaliser, i was glad to see Rooney's deflected shot go in as it was one of those nights where you were never really confident that we would see the ninety minutes out.
It's to be hoped we see more of a performance on Saturday, at least hopefully we will have Cleverley and Vidic back and see Rooney back up front which i still believe to be the position he will always be better in.

Fergie was happy with Rooney's performance in his new role, Rooney thinks he can play anywhere on the park and was happy to play there.

Henry Winter profiles Solskjaer after his team Molde deliver him a first title and wonders as do we all, whether he will be back to manage United one day. Fergie tells him to to enjoy his time in Norway and to not rush back to England as he continues to be linked with any managerial vacancies. He would be off his rocker to go to Portsmouth and i'm pretty confident that he isn't off his rocker.

Ahead of last night's game Fergie was asked about Rio Ferdinand's form and Fergie didn't beat about the bush, telling him he would have to adapt his game as his explosive burst of pace has now deserted him. I can't really see him being here next season to be honest, the concern for me is that Fergie seems to have settled on Evans as Vidic's partner when i would be looking to blood Smalling or Jones more often than he has. Of course Smalling's recent injury hasn't helped in that regard, in fact Smalling's season has never really got going. Which is a real pity as he has looked excellent when he has played, the City debacle apart.

As the 25th anniversary of Alex Fergsuon's apponitment approaches Alan Hansen looks at Fergie's achievements. Whilst Samuel Luckhurst talks of Fergie's tainted legacy, there is of course something to that, his praise of the Glazer's will not be forgotten, especially for someone who thinks of himself of the left.
What is it with US owners, they just don't get it do they!

As i type this i'm not sure whether the Greeks are going to have a refrendum or not, if the government still have a majority or whether Papandreu is still prime minister or not. As Paul Mason writes here, a referendum would be in reality on whether the Greeks stay in Europe or not, and we hear this morning that the French and Germans are telling them that is exactly what it will be about. I'm not sure how democratic they think all this ordering about looks, but it stinks to me. Ambrose Evans-Pritchard argues that the referndum is the rervenge of the sovereign nation, well if it happens it may turn out that way, of course it may be much nastier. Faisal Islam agrees that this was the death of last week's bailout plan.
Larry Elliott claims that Papandrea has got a stronger hand than most pundits understand and that his gamble could pay off. Robert Reich argues in the Huffington Post that Greece's choice and ours is :democracy or finance.
Stephen King asks whether sending round the begging bowl will really resolve the Eurozone crisis as Klaus Regling head of the EFSF travelled to china. Looking at this from a German strategic point of view, how could they have ever allowed to get themselves into this position. I have said it before, Merkel is a disaster. Adrian Hamilton looks at the illusions of the west in thinking that China is going to come to the rescue
China's economy isn't looking too rosy itself anyway according to a host of commentators, so it's hard to see the Chinese bailing out the Euro. Of course a Chinese slowdown is not really good news for anynody else either, but how would the Chinese population react to a serious slowdown.

Simon Jenkins is alarmed by the tories spellbound reliance on supply side econmics, arguing they are looking after their own. George Monibot looks at the City of London and doesn't like what he sees, claiming that they are wealth destroyers. I'm reading his book Captive state at the moment, what an eye opener that is, very disturbing but sadly believable. And for all those deluded souls that think Labour will be on their side if they regain power, time to think again.
John Kay looks at the occupy Wall street protestors and the cousins inLondon and agrees that capitalism needn't be about greed and gambling, indeed that's what it shouldn't be.

Polly Toynbee thinks that vindication is the air for Miliband in his decision to tack to the left. Mike Smithson of political betting thinks that she is on to something, claiming that the way things are going if an election were held today, Labour could even win an outright majority. The FT's Westminster blog follows this up as it noticed how Cameron veered to the left himself at PMQ's yesterday. And how will that go down with his distrustful backbench Eurosceptic rebels!
Rafael Behr isn't so sure that Ed Miliband will be heard as he risks being drowned out in a cacophony of populist outrage. Maybe that will turn out to work for him, the electorate might think that Labour aren't split and they are the safe option. Which is of course how Cameron wanted to portray the tories.
Bennedict Brogan thinks Britain needs political audacity and wonders if Cameron is up to it. But what is the audacity he claims that is needed, as usual less regulation, exactly what got the world in this mess, the tories are totally lost.

I thought this was a pretty intersting piece in yesterday's Guardian. A US miltary think tank urges US to cut oil use for national security reasons, that chimes in with what i have thought all along, it should be the way all liberal democracies thinking.