1. Rooney a concern for United
WAYNE ROONEY HAS often said his preferred position is as a centre forward in a role where he can lead the line and shoulder the responsibility. Anyone who watched Man United’s win at Aston Villa on Friday would find it hard to agree.
Rooney was woefully off the pace in a game which was devoid of any real quality or cutting edge. The United captain’s touch was non-existent as he played on the periphery of the contest for much of the 90 minutes.
On the rare occasion he did find the space to link the play and create the space for the likes of Juan Mata and Memphis Depay, he was easily dispossessed or carelessly gifted the ball back to the hosts.
Louis van Gaal’s side have now won their opening two games without clicking into gear but Rooney’s form and performances will be of grave concern. It may be early days yet but he never once, as the focal point of the attack and most-likely goal source, threatened Brad Guzan in the Villa goal.
As Eoin O’Callaghan remarked on these pages, there wasn’t even the industrious work-rate where he’d normally close down defenders or strive to get involved.
That his only touch in the opposition box came in the 90th minute tells its own story. For all the headaches and dilemmas he would have anticipated this season, van Gaal could hardly have thought his captain’s form would be one of them.
2. Ireland provides timely reminder of his worth
With the calibre of players Stoke City have recruited this summer, it had looked increasingly likely that Stephen Ireland would be pushed down towards the bottom of Mark Hughes’ pecking order.
But with Xherdan Shaqiri watching on from the stands at White Hart Lane, it was Ireland who made the difference for the Potters as they fought back from 2-0 to salvage their first point of the season.
From the moment he was introduced, Ireland began to find space between the lines and ask serious questions of Tottenham’s rearguard. The 28-year-old has started just 25 league games for Stoke since arriving from Aston Villa two years ago but showed what he can bring to the party on Saturday.
Ireland’s cross was diverted home by Mame Biram Diouf to complete the comeback and on this evidence, he could still have a big role to play this season.
“It’s my job to make an impact on any game we play, whether I start or come on from the bench,” he said afterwards. “I want to get into the team and play week in, week out but I’m a team player, always have been, so when I can chip in then I will always do my best.
“My aim is to play here as much as I can, I’m really enjoying it here and I want to achieve a lot of personal goals at this football club.”
3. Raneiri’s dream start continues
When Leicester City parted ways with Nigel Pearson and brought Claudio Raneiri in as his replacement during the summer, a couple of eyebrows were raised. Not only had Pearson guided the club back to the top-flight but he’d masterminded a remarkable survival comeback last year.
Yet the transition has been seamless for the Foxes as they recorded their second win of the campaign on Saturday, impressively beating West Ham at Upton Park.
The loss of Esteban Cambiasso so soon before the season appeared to be another setback but they’ve played with great spirit and belief in the opening weeks of the campaign – bellying the perennial off-field issues which seemingly appear at every juncture.
The latest involved Jamie Vardy but he put a controversial week to bed with another imposing display as Shinji Okazaki and Riyad Mahrez found the net to leave Leicester top of the pile until Man City won on Sunday.
But Raneiri won’t get carried away. The Foxes started brightly last term before embarking on a barren run only to stay afloat after an incredible winning streak.
For all that’s happened at the King Power Stadium over the last few months, the signs are incredibly positive.
4. New season, same problems for Sunderland
After an abysmal opening-day display at Leicester, Sunderland were arguably even worse in their ignominious defeat to newly-promoted Norwich.
As the hosts sank deeper and deeper, allowing the visitors to dictate proceedings and eventually run out 3-1 winners, many of the 41,379 crowd vented their anger by walking out.
Those that remained directed their ire towards owner Ellis Short at the final whistle. It’s been an all too familiar occurrence at the Stadium of Light.
Dick Advocaat managed to keep the club afloat last season with a late rally but this season has begun in a manner which suggests no lessons have been learned from last season’s failings.
The manager, who said he was ‘shocked’ by the performance, has called a team meeting and is now demanding answers from his players.
“This squad must be good enough to get a result against Norwich with five new players. There’s something wrong. That’s quite simple,” said the 67-year-old. “I’ve an idea about it but on Sunday we will have a meeting and they can talk, and I will talk. Together we have to find out if we can find the solution. Expectation is high, we have to find the reason otherwise we have no chance.”
Seabastian Coates and Younes Kaboul were brought in to add steel to the backline but have been unable to stem the flow while Patrick van Aanholt endured another miserable afternoon at left-back.
The arrivals of Jeremain Lens and Yann M’Vila have added quality to the engine room but as of yet it’s the same old problems for the Black Cats.
5. Arsenal back on track
It seemed excessive to label Arsenal’s visit to Selhurst Park as must win at this stage of proceedings but they couldn’t afford another defeat this afternoon.
There was a renewed sense of optimism around the Emirates in the lead-up to the season with the signing of Petr Cech seemingly the answer to many of their problems.
But West Ham served up a sobering dose of realism last week and all of Arsenal’s shortcomings were accentuated in alarming fashion.
That said, Arsene Wenger’s side got back on a track with a priceless win at Crystal Palace on Sunday and while it was far from vintage Arsenal, they got the job done.
Going forward the Gunners clicked but at the other end, there are still serious question marks over the defence.
Cech is still waiting for his first clean sheet while Laurent Koscienly didn’t cover himself in glory as Joel Ward slammed home a first-half equaliser.
After Francis Coquelin escaped a sending-off, not once but twice, the visitors restored their lead in what was an end-to-end encounter. The Gunners are up and running but Wenger’s failure to bolster his defence appears to be another oversight from the manager.
He consistently maintains that he has enough resources at his disposal but if Arsenal are to seriously challenge for the title, they need to tighten up defensively or else all their brilliance at the other end will be undermined.
6. City sharpen Chelsea’s pain
Nothing was going to be won or lost at the Ethiad Stadium on the second weekend of the season but you get the feeling this afternoon’s result may just have a significant bearing on how Man City and Chelsea will fare this term.
After falling short last season, questions remained over Manuel Pellegrini and City’s credentials to wrestle the title off Chelsea and bring it back to the blue half of Manchester. Already they’ve silenced the critics.
From the outset of this ‘heavyweight’ clash, the hosts were purposeful and attacked with pace and precision to ruthlessly expose the champions and provide Jose Mourinho with a reality check.
City are by no means the finished product and reports today suggest they’re on the verge of adding reinforcements but they are certainly more balanced than last season with Raheem Sterling and Jesus Navas offering natural width and Yaya Toure looking re-energised.
Chelsea were well off the pace. Mourinho claimed his side had the better of the second-half but they were bullied and outplayed from start to finish. A turbulent week for the Blues went from bad to worse and the extent of the fallout remains to be seen.
John Terry was hauled off at half-time and Mourinho confirmed it was a purely tactical decision. On Sky Sports, Niall Quinn believed it was the beginning of the end for Terry as he nears his 35th birthday.
With Chelsea still in hot pursuit of John Stones, further doubts have no been raised over Terry’s future. Another sub-plot at the end of a turbulent week for Chelsea. It was the last thing they needed.
