Manchester United 0-1 West Brom 15th April

Manchester United 0-1 West Brom (Rodriguez 73)

Fans of every single club in England, without fail, believe that their club love ‘doing it the hard way’. “Typical City” the Berties would bitterly mutter as their shite heroes slipped into the third tier. “Classic West Ham, never making it easy for ourselves” sigh the Green Street veterans after another pathetic performance, now forever condemned to watching football at an athletics stadium (admittedly a world-class one). Mostly, even for the rubbish clubs, this is utter bollocks. Even at United - the most successful team in the country remember – there persists a feeling from a sizable number of supporters that a trophy is only ever won in strife, and some of the recent domestic cup victories prove them right. After watching United lose to a West Brom outfit already essentially down, propping up the table and with a caretaker manager, only a week after the result of the season at the Etihad, you wonder if the cliché does ring true.

Of course, having 8 of the finest selection of young British players of all time lose their life in a plane crash with their potential not even slightly fulfilled would probably qualify for ‘doing it the hard way’. But generally, even the bad times at Old Trafford aren’t too bad. Despite this dreadful 90 minutes, United still could finish 2^nd and lift the FA Cup, which would be a very good season. But it is the inconsistency and the lack of ability to build on wins that so frustrates the crowd when it comes to Mourinho’s Manchester United. How were his team so lethargic after the high of Smalling’s winner at City?

It’s not as if West Brom were any good. They should always be respected – this was incredibly their 3^rd league win at Old Trafford since Ferguson retired – but they were and are rock bottom of the league, desperately low on confidence, sleepwalking to the Championship under temporary boss Darren Moore, after the appointment of Alan Pardew spectacularly failed. Their lack of attacking prowess is almost hilarious, and yet they won at our home, a place where Mourinho has only lost to two other teams – City and Sevilla. In the process leaving us 16 points behind with 5 games to play, meaning the Champions-elect became the Champions. It was their first league win since January for fucks sake.

WBA didn’t need to be special or even average to win, for United were abject. Slow, ponderous, and lacking in ideas, we looked like we were the team who had given up for the season. The contrast with the chest beating after the derby win was stark. Only two changes had been made – Lindelof for Bailly and Mata for Lingard – yet the change in tempo was like a chasm.  It was really hard to recall any moments of dominance or great football. We had the ball, but didn’t do a lot. We had the territory, yet rarely turned the defenders or tested the keeper. It was all very dreary. Lukaku had a chance saved. Herrera had a penalty claim waved away. That was it for the first half.

A familiar issue in all of United’s poor games this season has been lack of width and once again it was on show. Mata and the totally wasteful Sanchez both drifted inside, with Pogba, Herrera and Lukaku already there. The result? A congested mess when we go forward, practically tripping over ourselves in the search for space. With Valencia and Young either unwilling or unable to push high up, United were stale, relying on little bits of quality to open up a stout defence.

Albion were panicking whenever they had the ball, almost terrified that they could actually come away with a result. The golden chance inevitably came on the hour mark and it fell to Lukaku, just who United would’ve wanted it to. Matic picked him out with a fine cross and he did nothing wrong with his header. Nothing. It was powerful and goalbound, but Ben Foster flung himself to his left and pulled off a magnificent save. Rom couldn’t believe it, and the WBA lads probably thought then and there they could nick it.

It was from a corner, obviously. You can take the Tony Pulis out of the team etc. Brunt swung it in, Matic lost his man at the far post and desperately headed it himself back into the six yard box, where Jay Rodriguez had escaped Lukaku to score. Another goal conceded from a set-piece that Lukaku is culpable for then. There really is no point having him in there if he is so shit at marking, just leave the guy up top. You couldn’t blame him too much though, he barely got a kick against the bottom team due to his teammates actions.

There was no onslaught or siege on to the Stretford End goal afterwards. Even the introduction of Lingard, Rashford and Martial didn’t lead to anything tangible, despite all three being renowned for their effectiveness off the bench this season. More urgency, more crosses and Smalling being used as an unorthodox centre-forward, but no real danger for the well organised Baggies. United looked out of ideas, and in the end deserved to slip to a 6^th league defeat of the season, just when you least expected it. It was probably one of the shocks of the season, an incredibly disappointing coupon-buster, but it didn’t feel disastrous in any way. Just that United had been punished for lazily strolling through a game, and given we had been losing to Chelsea, Palace and City recently, you can hardly say a loss wasn’t coming.

The one silver lining was the knowledge that City won the title in a quite pathetic way, watching the TV draped over their Sunday dinner on a wet and miserable evening. Some might ask how City mathematically clinching the league could ever be good, but when you consider at half time last week we were facing the threat of them releasing thousands of fireworks at their stadium in front of us after thrashing their rivals, you begin to understand why this was a bit easier to swallow. They were denied their champagne moment. In any case, they’ve had it wrapped up since late December 2017, so any feelings of despair have long since been dealt with. They can enjoy the last 5 games, whereas United go to Bournemouth as a warm up for an enormous Cup semi with Spurs. It would’ve been beneficial to have been on a run of wins before that crunch game, but United never do it the easy way, do they?

United (4-3-3) De Gea 7; Valencia 5, Smalling 6, Lindelof 6, Young 3.5 (Rashford 75, 5); Herrera 5 (Lingard 46, 5), Matic 5, Pogba 5 (Martial 58, 6); Mata 5, Lukaku 5.5, Sanchez 4.5.