IN THE 7 WE BELIEVE: Di Maria kickstarts Van Gaal era
You can’t put a price on how pace, direct running and committing defenders can transform a side. Real Madrid chose to when it came to Angel Di Maria, and their loss is very much Manchester United’s gain, for his performance against QPR was a sublime illustration of those abilities.It’s important to get the unavoidable caveat out of the way; QPR were dreadful at Old Trafford. Harry Redknapp set out his formation to contain and frustrate, but his team was 3-0 down at half-time, which suggests he is fundamentally incapable of making a team difficult to beat.
They were an abomination, but United have been sterile against equally poor outfits in Sunderland and Burnley, and both of those performances were a far cry from the confident and ruthless nature of this display.
At the heart of everything was Di Maria. United’s attacking options these days distinctly lack an injection of pure pace; Juan Mata, Robin van Persie and Wayne Rooney, for various reasons, aren’t going to run at defenders with any kind of regularity.
Enter Angel of the north. A tangible gasp of anticipation accompanied his possession of the football, irrespective of where he was on the pitch. A cheeky backheel at the edge of his own area was met with rapturous applause from an audience that have been starved of this kind of impudence and ingenuity arguably since Cristiano Ronaldo departed in 2009.
They were an abomination, but United have been sterile against equally poor outfits in Sunderland and Burnley, and both of those performances were a far cry from the confident and ruthless nature of this display.
At the heart of everything was Di Maria. United’s attacking options these days distinctly lack an injection of pure pace; Juan Mata, Robin van Persie and Wayne Rooney, for various reasons, aren’t going to run at defenders with any kind of regularity.
Enter Angel of the north. A tangible gasp of anticipation accompanied his possession of the football, irrespective of where he was on the pitch. A cheeky backheel at the edge of his own area was met with rapturous applause from an audience that have been starved of this kind of impudence and ingenuity arguably since Cristiano Ronaldo departed in 2009.
But it’s where it matters that better teams than QPR will similarly struggle to contain him. His energy and perpetual movement, drifting across from the left to demand the ball, makes him permanently available and United will do well to let him have it whenever he wants it.
His free-kick commenced this procession, sweeping a delivery across the goal and evading everyone to nestle into the corner for his first goal. It’s his contribution for Ander Herrera’s second goal that is lasting, however.
Di Maria carried the ball from well inside his own half until the edge of the area, before sliding a clever pass into Rooney. No-one can gain ground so quickly and effortlessly in this United team, and not many in Europe can, either.
His cross-shot that found Mata to drive home in the second half meant that he had a hand in all four goals, and there’s a feeling that he’s just getting started. Once he gets used to the movement of his colleagues, a truly exciting prospect awaits.
Because for Louis van Gaal, what will be as pleasing as Di Maria’s dominance of the match is the way that the likes of Rooney and Mata raised their game to meet the Argentine’s level.
Rooney needs to improve more but he looked hungrier here than in previous outings, while Mata, no doubt acutely aware that Radamel Falcao’s arrival means someone must drop out of the attack, scored his eighth goal in 10 Premier League matches – far from an inferior return.
Falcao made a cameo here and should have grabbed a debut goal, only to be denied by Robert Green. How they all fit in when available remains somewhat a mystery.
Indeed, Van Gaal still has much work to do. His decision to switch to 4-4-2 – Rafael, Evans, Blackett and Rojo was his defensive unit here – may not be a permanent one but irrespective of the formation employed United remain brittle and susceptible to pace of any kind. How he addresses this only he will know with the personnel at his disposal. Better teams than QPR will give them difficult days to come.
But it was about as positive an afternoon’s work as the Dutchman could have expected. A swagger and style has sprouted from the despair. Di Maria has restored the poise.
Culled from Goal
His free-kick commenced this procession, sweeping a delivery across the goal and evading everyone to nestle into the corner for his first goal. It’s his contribution for Ander Herrera’s second goal that is lasting, however.
Di Maria carried the ball from well inside his own half until the edge of the area, before sliding a clever pass into Rooney. No-one can gain ground so quickly and effortlessly in this United team, and not many in Europe can, either.
His cross-shot that found Mata to drive home in the second half meant that he had a hand in all four goals, and there’s a feeling that he’s just getting started. Once he gets used to the movement of his colleagues, a truly exciting prospect awaits.
Because for Louis van Gaal, what will be as pleasing as Di Maria’s dominance of the match is the way that the likes of Rooney and Mata raised their game to meet the Argentine’s level.
Rooney needs to improve more but he looked hungrier here than in previous outings, while Mata, no doubt acutely aware that Radamel Falcao’s arrival means someone must drop out of the attack, scored his eighth goal in 10 Premier League matches – far from an inferior return.
Falcao made a cameo here and should have grabbed a debut goal, only to be denied by Robert Green. How they all fit in when available remains somewhat a mystery.
Indeed, Van Gaal still has much work to do. His decision to switch to 4-4-2 – Rafael, Evans, Blackett and Rojo was his defensive unit here – may not be a permanent one but irrespective of the formation employed United remain brittle and susceptible to pace of any kind. How he addresses this only he will know with the personnel at his disposal. Better teams than QPR will give them difficult days to come.
But it was about as positive an afternoon’s work as the Dutchman could have expected. A swagger and style has sprouted from the despair. Di Maria has restored the poise.
Culled from Goal
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