Neutrals may have wanted a title decider at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday, but Sir Alex Ferguson and Manchester United won’t mind that their trip to South London has now become as meaningless as a preseason friendly after Chelsea drew 1-1 at Arsenal. Now seven points adrift of the Blues with two games left to play, Man United has reemerged as the best team in England after a three-season draught.
Most critics didn’t give United a chance to take the Premiership title from Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea, especially after Ferguson unloaded and then failed to replace talismanic striker Ruud van Nistelrooy. But the Guardian’s Kevin McCarra says it was the managerial genius of Ferguson that brought once again the title back to Old Trafford.
It’s easy to pin the Red Devils victory on the often dominating performances of Cristiano Ronaldo, but McCarra says equal credit should go to United’s defense. Ferguson’s defensive-minded signings in the past couple years (Edwin van der Sar in goal, Nemanja Vidic, Patrice Evra, and Michael Carrick this year), really helped fortify the Red Devils’ back-line, paving the way for the likes of Ronaldo to express themselves more. McCarra points out that United has only conceded three more goals than Chelsea this season (26), and its goal differential has already equaled and may yet surpass Chelsea’s 2005 record of 57.