‘Tis April – The Business end of the Premier League – MANCHESTER UNITED (2)

Today we shall take a look at the fore runner and table topper Manchester United; their journey to the big month of April and what it takes to win the
trebledouble!

Rewind
- 8/8: Wins first silverware of the season – Community Shield beating Chelsea 3-1
- First 5 games: Set the pattern to consistently drawing games away from home.
- 9/14: Champions League fixture vs Rangers proves costly – Valencia stretchered off with a fractured ankle – out for 6 months.
- 9/19: Berbatov‘s hat trick helps beat Liverpool at home – marked the start of Goal scoring spurts for the Bulgarian.
- 11/27: 7-1 mauling of Blackburn Rovers and Berbatov‘s Five goes into the history books.
- 11/30: Hands off the Carling Cup after holding it dear for the last two years; by an emphatic 0-4 win for West Ham. Ended United’s unbeaten run of 29 games in all competitions
- January: Loses in form Park to Asia Cup; SAF doesn’t indulge in the market; Rooney scores first goal of the season from Open play.
- 1/22: 5-0 drubbing of Birmingham.. the nemesis is once again the Bulgarian joining an elite group of 3 or more hat tricks in a single season.
- 2/12: United clinch the Manchester derby with a STUNNER GOAL from Wayne Rooney
- March: 2 consecutive league defeats is a rarity. Controversial loss to Chelsea followed by a convincing defeat at Anfield.
April so far..
- 4/2: Anti-climax when your highest paid forward returns to form with a hat-trick only to be banned for the subsequent two games for using obscene language.
- 4/12: Removes Chelsea’s hopes of any silverware after advancing through to the semis.
- 4/16:
Trebletalks put to bed after losing the FA Cup Semi final against the noisy neighbours.

Road Ahead
- 4/19: Newcastle United (A)
- 4/23: Everton
- 4/26: Schalke (A) – UCL
- 5/1: Arsenal (A)
- 5/4: Schalke – UCL
- 5/8: Chelsea
- 5/14: Blackburn (A)
- 5/22: Blackpool
Table reads as of now..
Clubs | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goal Difference | Points |
Manchester United | 32 | 20 | 9 | 3 | +38 | 69 |
Arsenal | 32 | 18 | 9 | 5 | +32 | 63 |
Chelsea | 32 | 18 | 7 | 7 | +32 | 61 |
Manchester City | 32 | 16 | 8 | 8 | +20 | 56 |
Tottenham Hotspur | 31 | 14 | 11 | 6 | +8 | 53 |
Inference
- Manchester United need a minimum of 13 points from a possible 18 to ensure they win the title.
- Arsenal have to beat United in London and hope United drop points while taking on the Blues at home. I would rather bet my money on Arsenal slipping tomorrow against Spurs, effectively ending the title race 😛
- United’s track record against German counterparts in Europe is abysmal. Schalke is in brilliant European form and will need some beating, but a final berth is only ours to lose.
Game No. 33 – Newcastle (A) 0015 IST 4|20
on the back of an FA cup defeat against City, United will mount a response against Pardew’s men, watch out for a rout.
Suspended: Kevin Nolan and Paul Scholes will miss the clash.
Injury update: Evans and Rafael return to action; Rooney returns after his 2 match ban.
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