Uganda: Oh Yes, Premiership Race Still On

Mark Ssali

23 April 2011

These are acts of defiance that would draw all manner of reactions, from pitiful looks through veiled chuckles to uncontrolled hysterics, but Arsene Wenger and Carlo Ancelotti have every right to insist they will not give up the fight.

Arsenal and Chelsea have done all they can to surrender the English Premiership title, but in an act akin to counter-conspiracy Man United have ‘refused’ to run away with it.

Alex Ferguson claims United have made a habit of making things difficult for themselves over the years, but there is nothing premeditated and deliberate about a scoreless draw at a previously good hunting ground that opens the door ever so slightly, with five games left.

Ideally, the old man would have wanted an unassailable lead on the domestic front to allow him a focused pursuit of his other beloved but elusive prey, the one with the Big Ears.

It doesn’t matter that Chelsea (in mid season) and Arsenal (lately) have not looked liked the stuff of champions. That they remain within touching distance is all that they should care about.

The two London clubs do not have to look further than the team ahead of them for the perfect reminder that it pays to hang in there; it is sometimes laughable but always admirable that Man United do not give up on a cause until the mathematics dictate so.

Only last season, Ferguson’s troops stormed the pitch on the final day buoyed by the belief that Wigan would do them a favour at Stamford Bridge and determined to meet their end of the bargain; they beat Stoke 4-0, but Chelsea blew out any flicker of hope with eight goals against the Latics.

United had chased more hopeless causes prior to this, pursuing Wenger’s invincibles and Jose Mourinho’s machine to the bitter end, stubbornly refusing to accept their fate until the Fat Lady confirmed what the rest of us had known for months.

Why then should either pursuant quit now, when United are clearly not the force that the invincibles or the machines were, and when they are not that far away? If that is not enough to inspire one final push from Arsenal and Chelsea, here a few other reasons why surrender would be premature.

The obsession

When Ferguson talked about Chelsea’s obsession with winning the Champions League before the two teams met in the quarters, I couldn’t help but think kettles and pots.

It is true that delivering Big Ears to Roman Abramovich has been a fixation of the current Blues team, so much so that they looked momentarily distracted and uninspired against West Brom last weekend after their CL exit, but Fergie’s longing for European dominance has been an open secret for much longer.

Presented with a great opportunity to nail United’s 19th title and knock Liverpool off their perch last season, the old man could not resist the allure of a CL final at the Santiago Bernabeu and forced Wayne Rooney into a quarterfinal second leg against Bayern that the Englishman had no business playing in. Rooney aggravated an injury that day, missed the last few Premiership games and United were usurped by Didier Drogba and Chelsea.

One year later an even better opening has presented itself, with United only a couple of games away from a CL final at Wembley, and Fergie must be in a fit of pique. So, even though Everton at Old Trafford is not a traditionally daunting fixture for United, Fergie will not hesitate to take the risks which could make it very tricky.

Without Arteta, Cahill, Fellaini and Saha they come across as easy prey, but like Rooney and Jack Rodewell earlier, David Moyes’ latest bunch of rookies will fancy their chance to make a name for themselves if they come face to face with Michael Owen and Darron Gibson instead of Chicarito and Giggs.

Fergie never seems to need a serious reason to rotate and experiment, but Schalke in midweek present him with a plausible one.

The vindictiveness

I could have totally misread him and this might be the case of a bothersome niggle, fatigue or simply a tactical move, but I have a strong feeling that Dimitar Berbatov’s omission from the squad that faced Newcastle on Tuesday night had everything to do with the striker’s glaring misses that had led to the death of the treble dream at Wembley last Saturday. The list of players that have faced Fergie’s wrath in this manner is long, but the one which springs to mind for obvious comparisons is that of Ruud van Nistelrooy in 2006.

Van Nistelrooy had a training ground spat with Cristiano Ronaldo and Fergie apparently took the emerging Portuguese starlet’s side, banishing the Dutchman to the bench.

With Chelsea dominant and United playing desperate catch-up, van Nistelrooy was left out of games including a crucial one at Blackburn when Fergie was obliged to relent somewhat as his team trailed 3-1. Ruud boy belatedly stepped off the bench to score twice in a failed comeback bid as United lost 4-3, and was exiled to the bench again as he lost his top scorer’s boot to Thierry Henry and suffered the humiliation of being left out of the Carling Cup final against Wigan, before being sold to Real Madrid.

If that could happen to the Dutchman, who had singlehandedly driven United past Arsenal to the 2003 title and who had re-written the club’s scoring records, how about Berbatov who until this season had not scaled any such heights?

Yet this potentially record-setting season kicked off with a Berbatov goal against Newcastle on day one, and the Bulgarian has put that kind of opposition to the sword so often as to suggest that he could have had a say at St James’ Park, even as a substitute.

Everton were one of his earlier victims as he scored and stirred United into a 3-1 lead before the Toffees pegged them back with a late flurry at Goodison Park, and should he be left out against them at Old Trafford today then the writing will be on the wall.

Rooney and Chicarito missed sitters at Newcastle and if they can be excused then surely so should the team’s top scorer, but that rationale doesn’t always sit with Fergie; he has got away with the ruthless streak more often than not, but there have been times when it has backfired too.

The run-in

Wenger doesn’t have to point to Fergie’s obsessions and vindictiveness in his team talks though, but to Arsenal’s last fixtures as a source of hope.

The Gunners have been so unpredictable as to slip up without warning no matter the opposition, but motivational talk from their manager can still point to the fact that, the showdown with United apart, the other four games are against teams with little to fight for.

Bolton today, Stoke, Aston Villa and Fulham whom they face on the final day have all steered clear of relegation and yet have little chance of getting into Europe, except Stoke who can make it there by winning the FA Cup, which should be their priority.

It is much tougher for Chelsea who have a derby against a West Ham side clutching onto straws, a Spurs team hot after a CL spot, United for a fourth time this season, Newcastle and then a trip to Everton which they have never quite enjoyed. But at least the Blues have shown in the past that they can reel off consecutive wins to end a season, including at Old Trafford.

Sneer and laugh all you want, but I would be defiant too in Wenger or Ancelotti’s shoes.

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