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MOTD: Manchester United 4-0 Queens Park Rangers

By on September 14, 2014

The last time Manchester United won just two points from their first three Premier League games, was in the 2007/2008 season. They then went on to win the league title and their second Champions League title in the modern era. Their season is far from over. Today, they showed that they still know how to win. There was no better time for all of their galacticos to play together for the first time – against Queens Park Rangers, a side manager by Harry Redknapp, who has now played United fifteen times in his managerial career and lost all fifteen of those matches, at home, but United showed a fluidity, stability, and creativity that had been lacking even against the still winless Burnley and Sunderland, not to mention MK Dons, whom they were kept goalless by, in the Capital One Cup.

It could have been attributed to multiple things. Daley Blind made his debut and completed 107 of his 112 attempted passes. It could have been that Marcos Rojo also debuted in the defense. It probably had something to do with the fact that all their major signings except for Luke Shaw, who was kept on the bench, finally all played together in the same side. Or, it might have been Louis Van Gaal finally accepting that a 3-5-2 formation was not working and switched to a, while unconventional, 4-4-2. Everything was going United’s way.

They started strongly, and just six minutes in Juan Mata whipped Ander Herrera’s cut-back from the right inches over the crossbar. United were very dominant – by the end of the first half they would come away with two goals and nearly 70% possession. On paper United lacked really width in their 4-4-2, but when he was not tucking into the whole alongside Daley Blind, turning, and providing the creativity United previously lack, Di Maria kept out on the left while United had parked the bus in QPR’s half. Blind and Herrera largely controlled the game, and it was Herrera who won the free-kick that would give United the lead just over twenty minutes in. Di Maria stepped up to take the
uncentered forty yard free-kick, and sent in a perfect ball. Perfect is the only word that can describe the free-kick. Di Maria curled it into the far post, and when it evaded everyone’s head, bounced, making it only harder for the QPR goalkeeper Robert Green to handle, and then finding its way into the back of the net off the post. Green couldn’t move until it evaded everyone, and by then it was too late for him to stop the goal bound free-kick. That is what United are paying Di Maria to do.

Well, that, and the kind of cross that he fed Robin Van Persie from the left a half hour in. It was slightly to high for Van Persie and he headed it over, but had the Dutchman left it for Wayne Rooney behind him it would surely have been a goal. Six minutes later, Di Maria demonstrated another reason, perhaps the one thing United previously missed the most. After dispossessing QPR, Di Maria got on the ball, and ran. And ran, and ran, and ran. After he took the ball nearly box-to-box – in total seventy-five yards – he sucked one of QPR’s center-backs up, then dinked a brilliant reverse ball into the run of Rooney. Rooney had a shot blocked, but pounced on the rebound and laid it off to Herrera, who dragged a low daisy-cutter into the bottom left corner from the edge of the box.

Right befit the end of the half, Rooney out the icing on the cake with a brilliant third. Mata and Herrera played a neat one-two and the former played it into Rooney, who fooled Green with a low effort into the bottom corner of the near post.

Bar a few defensive mishaps (if Matthew Phillips had capitalized on a mis-communication between David De Gea and Marcos Rojo, QPR could have been level at one point), United’s first half was a promising one. The sun came out on United’s attacking half just before halftime.

QPR started the second half more energized, and Niko Kranjcar forced De Gea into a kick save early on in the half. Armand Traore was QPR’s one bright spot on the break. However, United’s sheer class put it past QPR. Mata had been in a very advanced position the whole came, heading United’s midfield diamond, (while pressing he was the furthest man forward for The Red Devils as Rooney and Van Persie dropped wide), and when Di Maria slid an attempted effort right into the middle of the box Mata was there to tap it home.

Robin Van Persie was a bit invisible for the majority of the first half but finally came out of his shell with more than a few wonderful reverse runs – one of which Di Maria found with an incredible clipped ball with the outside of his boot. On the turn RVP hit it straight at Green, but it served as yet another reminder of his ability to mark a game out of nowhere and Di Maria’s brilliance. Finally, though, with the game all but over Van Gaal brought on Falcao for his debut in United colors. Mata came out and Rooney dropped into the No10 role, while Falcao went up front with RVP. He did not score, but the Colombian looked a promising finisher and nearly scored with a poked effort after being out through down the right side of the box. But in the end Van Gaal should definitely have been happy with what he had already seen. United played like, well, the United of old.
Man of the Match: Angel Di Maria

About Alex Morgan

Alex Morgan, founder of Football Every Day, lives and breaths football from the West Coast of the United States in California. Aside from founding Football Every Day in January of 2013, Alex has also launched his own journalism career and hopes to help others do the same with FBED. He covers the San Jose Earthquakes as a beat reporter for QuakesTalk.com and his work has also been featured in the BBC's Match of the Day Magazine.