Football is a results business and United have had enough of them so far this season to be able to approach last night’s game as if it was a Carling Cup third-round tie and to shrug off the rare home defeat that followed for Sir Alex Ferguson’s young team.
They may be struggling to hit anything like top form, but United’s position is a source of envy not only to Liverpool, but to AC Milan, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Inter Milan, Bayern Munich and Juventus, all of whom go into the final round of group matches with their prospects in the balance.
And it's fair to say that the observation that had we not already qualified Sir Alex "would have been more than “agitated”, as he put it, at the French referee’s baffling refusal to award United a penalty with four minutes left" is also very true.
A lot of the reports seem to unfairly criticise Foster for the goal, not that he couldn't have done better perhaps but Rafael has to take the lion's share of the blame for allowing the shot in the first place, another example of the way football journalists seem to like taking the path of least resistance when it comes to writing match reports.
Like the ever ridiculous David McDonnell in The Mirror (although I assume he doesn't write the headlines but the stuff he does write is generally ridiculous...) whose bit of quotes is headlines with a "Surprise, Surprise, Manchester United lose and Sir Alex blames the ref," while in it he says:
Patrice Evra looked to be cynically body-checked in the 86th-minute but French ref Stephane Lannoy refused to be swayed by United's vociferous claims
Back to Foster and this Telegraph report looks at the way Foster looks when he makes a mistake:
When Schmeichel made a mistake, though, he blamed somebody else. Always. No matter whether he was 100 per cent at fault, it was Steve Bruce or Gary Pallister, Jaap Stam or Ronny Johnsen who were subjected to the goalkeeper’s fury.
Foster is the polar opposite. When he commits an error that results in a goal, he just stares blankly into space, his eyes betraying the fear of a dressing down in the changing room.
Perhaps Foster needs to develop the Dane’s nasty streak before he can seriously contemplate becoming first choice for United and England.
Not sure what that means, in the game last night whatever way he reacted to the goal he still played well for the rest of the game, it didn't seem to affect his game, so what is the point of this except to have a go at someone for the sake of it?
Henry Winter's report is good as ever, he sings the praises of Obertan, perhaps overmuch:
Ferguson will take pleasure from the performance of Obertan, whose pace and trickery down the right delighted Old Trafford.
The Frenchman eats up the ground, certainly loves a step-over when faced with a back-pedalling defender and never neglected his defensive duties, helping out Gary Neville. There is also a confidence to the 20-year-old winger, a refusal to be fazed whatever the stage, however distinguished the company, that bodes well for his future at Old Trafford.
Obertan arrived in the summer from Bordeaux, having had English scouts enthusing over the French Under-21 international’s potential when he took apart Stuart Pearce’s tyros at the City Ground last March, even scoring.
Another impressive advertisement for the Clairefontaine finishing school outside Paris, Obertan shone on the right here but has also been used by Ferguson on the left. His ease on either foot inevitably causes problems for defenders unsure which side he will attempt to pass them.
Obertan can largely be exempted from the criticism deservedly directed at United last night for their failure to retain the ball, and their inability to finish.
Yes, he was good, but he was as wasteful as others.
Having said that Daniel Taylor in The Guardian is overcritical:
Gabriel Obertan, the new signing from Bordeaux, can frustrate with his habit of misplacing crosses or running the ball into touch, but the Frenchman did at least provide some width and penetration.
And also from The Guardian some optimism:
The result may have gone against them, but United's next generation seem to have the general idea. "The young players were a bit anxious when we needed more composure in the final third, but that's understandable, it's not the biggest fault in the world," Ferguson concluded. "Playing in that game tells them how highly we regard them as players, and shows the trust we have in them. They have shown they have the speed and the physical prowess to make it, the one thing you can't always give players of 18, 19 and 20 is experience, and that's why it is nice to have the opportunity."
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