Start as you mean to go on – but surely not if you're Sir Alex

Stewart Fisher

Sports Writer

Wednesday 22 August 2012

IT is never the wisest idea to draw sweeping conclusions on the evidence of just one game.

David de Gea of Manchester United punches clear under pressure from Phil Jagielka. Picture: Getty Images

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Stewart Fisher

Just ask the people who wrote off Manchester City's Barclays Premier League ambitions on the strength of last year's Community Shield defeat to their city rivals, for instance, or those who thought Spain had no chance of World Cup glory in 2010 after their early embarrassment against Switzerland. Or, seeing as we are on the subject of Manchester United, how about Alan Hansen and his never-to-be-forgotten opening-day observation after defeat at Aston Villa that you can't win anything with kids.

But a week after disappointing opening-day results for the club on the New York Stock Exchange, there is no denying Monday brought a difficult opening night at Goodison Park. The single-goal loss was the first time since 2008 that Manchester United had failed to win their opening match of the season, and the first time in eight years they had lost at the start of a campaign. Even if you ignore the more excessive reactions – such as calls for David Moyes to immediately replace Sir Alex Ferguson as manager – the result seems worthy of analysis, particularly the questions it raises about the Old Trafford side's attempt to again win the league title after last season letting slip a lead to their city rivals. Ferguson has seen off such critics many times in the past, of course, but on this occasion he has found himself under fire for refusing to strengthen his defensive resources amid an early-season injury crisis which has sidelined Rio Ferdinand, Jonny Evans, Chris Smalling and Phil Jones. Whatever way you look at it this is ill luck, and on Monday night this meant the Scot included midfielder Michael Carrick and right winger Antonio Valencia alongside Nemanja Vidic – just back after eight months out with a cruciate ligament problem – in a back four which found itself outmuscled by a mobile Everton front pairing of Marouane Fellaini and Nikica Jelavic. It was hardly a coincidence then that the club yesterday strengthened its defensive resources by signing left-back Alexander Buttner, a Dutch internationalist from Vitesse Arnhem, who appears to be regarded as a long-term replacement for Patrice Evra. "When you come to places like Everton who will play long balls into the box you need big, strong defenders, but we won't use injuries as an excuse," said Vidic. "The players who came in gave their best and hopefully we'll have a couple of defenders ready for the next game. We played some good football but were not clinical and when you are 1-0 down it is difficult to come back against a side like Everton."The defensive difficulties were only part of the story. The inclusion of talented ball players such as Carrick and Valencia in his back four suggests Ferguson suspected this would be a match in which his team would have plenty of possession, and the onus would be on them to make the most of it. So it turned out, but apart from a Tom Cleverley shot which was hacked off the line, the lack of an attacking threat must have concerned Ferguson, as it was the home side which created the balance of their chances. Shinji Kagawa looked clever in possession but somewhat shellshocked by the pace of the British game, and during the last 22 minutes of play, when signing Robin van Persie was brought on, it seemed like the club had not learned a way to incorporate his strengths into theirs. "We were a wee bit disappointing in terms of finishing off the approach play we had," admitted Ferguson, whose side meet freescoring Fulham this weekend. "We played around him [Van Persie] too much, we didn't show enough penetration."But perhaps the biggest conclusion of all from events on Merseyside on Monday night was simply how effective Everton are becoming under Moyes. When the time finally comes, Ferguson will surely be given the chance to name his successor and it would hardly be a surprise if he went for his close friend, even if he has limited European experience and has never won a trophy. This is the Scot's 12th campaign at Everton, having finished in the league's top eight for six unbroken seasons, no mean feat for a club which is not one of England's big spenders.They finished four points clear of Liverpool last season and the Merseyside rivalry may yet look the same this time, as this appears to be the strongest set of players Moyes has had at his disposal for years. With the likes of Tim Cahill being allowed to move on to Major League Soccer, Monday night's bench included Steven Naismith, Johnny Heitinga and Seamus Coleman, while at the start of the match Belgian striker Kevin Mirallas was introduced to the crowd. "We haven't started seasons well and even this result doesn't tell you you have started the season well," Moyes said. "Just as if we had lost, we wouldn't say we had started the season badly. You probably judge it after 10 games." The English top flight will likely look very different in 10 games' time. Few will be more relieved than Manchester United fans.

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Start as you mean to go on – but surely not if you're Sir Alex

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