Bravo! Bravo to the lads for thrashing out a sensational away victory at Highbury, despite having Mikael Silvestre sent off with 20 minutes to go. To have done the double over these bitter rivals as well as knocking them out of the Carling Cup gives us the consolation we've been seeking. Chelsea visit Blackburn tonight, with the opportunity to go 11 points clear, the same lead that Arsenal at one time (October) held over United. To say that the 2-0 win at Old Trafford on October 24 - the one that ended Arse's unbeaten streak at 49 league matches - derailed Arsenal's season is a massive understatement. Since that loss in Manchester, they have gone 7 wins, 5 draws, and 3 losses in the league for 26 points in 15 matches, dropping 19 points in the process. United, by comparison, have gone 11-3-1 for 36 points in 15. With 13 matches left on the league schedule, who's to say that the 11-point gap cannot be closed between United and Chelsea? It would require Chelsea to drop a few points (hopefully starting with tonight's fixture), but still alive on all four fronts with 18 matches already scheduled between now and May 14, and possibly more depending on their progress in the FA Cup and the Champions League, a dip in form remains likely. Jose Mourinho tends to stay with the same first-XI match-in, match-out, meaning that the deeper they get in cup competitions, the higher the risks of burnouts to his top players. On the other hand, a first-round knockout by Barcelona or an FA Cup upset at Newcastle might also do the trick, the same way the night of Pizzagate sent Arsenal on a journey of self-doubt. And with Chelsea slated to play United and Arsenal in a span of five days mid-April, we could see yet another late run at the Premiership crowd by United.
Enough on the league front; let's turn the clock back to the weekend FA Cup clash between United and Middlesbrough. Steve McClaren's side currently sit 6th in the Premiership, but they were thoroughly outclassed Saturday by Wayne Rooney, who celebrated his 19th birthday back in October with a goal against Arsenal. I will be downloading the match video tonight, and I cannot wait to see what the Soccernet coined "The Wonder of Roo". Two sublime goals from Rooney on top of John O'Shea's opener helped United through to the next round date with Everton, Rooney's former club, on February 19. I will report further when I've seen Rooney's goals with my own eyes. In the meantime, good luck to Blackburn tonight; they will need it against Chelsea, especially without skipper Barry Ferguson, who had his request granted and has returned to the Rangers.
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