Manchester United 1 - 0 Real Sociedad: Five Talking Points

Valencia and Kagawa impress, but United lack cutting edge

There times in the match, when it looked as though Moyes’s tactics almost worked to a T. Valencia was arguably United’s most potent attacking threat throughout the game, with his drilled crosses and his pace proving to be a thorn in the Sociedad defense. Kagawa, on the other hand, had a quiet first half and came into the game as it wore on.

Both of them were unlucky not to have been on the score sheet, with Valencia hitting the post in the second half and Kagawa’s efforts twice thwarted at the last minute by the visitor’s defense. Having said that, United, at times, looked as though, they could do with a bit more incision and clarity up front.

Are Evans and Jones the future for United?

For the first games in the season, Moyes experimented with the center half pairing and only since returning from the international break, after getting most of his squad hail and hearty, has he decided on a center half pairing, that will hopefully take United through. Phil Jones and Jonny Evans didn’t have the most difficult of evenings, but they should that when called upon, they were more than capable of doing justice to their roles.

With Vidic and Rio slowly showing signs of aging, it is now time for Moyes to make a choice and stick with it, for a while. And, as he did in the weekend, he started with Evans and Jones in central defense and the pair complemented each other really well and although they have tougher tasks up ahead, both of them looked supremely comfortable on the ball and their distribution was something that would have pleased Moyes to no end.

Bravo impresses, but United were far from clinical in their finishing

Manchester United looked far more comfortable than the score line suggested and could have, and should have scored more. Although some of it was just down to the ineptitude on the part of the strikers, most of it was because the Real Sociedad goalkeeper C Bravo had an absolute blinder of a game and was one of the main reasons why the score line remained 1-0, making United nervous right at the very end.

Rooney in particular, was found guilty of missing more than a few chances, which, on another day, he would have put away. Whilst Kagawa was neat and tidy with the ball, he was a little hesitant in front of goal. Not just him, it looked as though, all the other forwards as well, left their shooting boots at home, because, for the amount of possession that they enjoyed and the chances that they created, they should have won by a few goals at least. But, Moyes will be happy that United held on and now top the group thanks to an own-goal from Iñigo Martínez.

Giggs shows that age is just a number

The man from Wales is fast approaching 40, but shows no signs of age catching up with him. When his name was announced on the starting lineup, more than a few eyebrows would have been raised, but anyone who watched the game will tell you that, his partnership with Carrick was a joy to watch and the Welshman, like a fine wine, is just getting better and better as he enters the twilight of his career.

The presence of the evergreen Welshman meant that United moved the ball a lot quicker than they did at the weekend. And, some of his touches were just simply sublime and his passing and work rate would have put a few young players to shame. Although he was a central midfielder, he still covered over 10 kms in the match and was still back tackling in the very last minute at the edge of his own box. Whilst he might not be able to play every game, Moyes would do well, to use him wisely.

Real Sociedad start slowly and were unable to assert themselves

Real Sociedad started the game with trepidation and fear of what might hit them. They aren’t the first team to do so at Old Trafford and might not be the last, but the opening 15 minutes was just one that they would like to forget in a hurry. After a bad start, losing a goal in just the second minute, Real Sociedad slowly but surely tried to get back into the game.

And there was a spell, early in the second half, when it looked as though, they might just nick a goal and share the spoils, but that just wasn’t to be. And although they played better in the second half, it was still a long way away from the form that brought them to the Champions League this season. They have turned out to be the whipping boys in the group so far and will be looking to erase that tag, before the end of their current campaign and secure at least a victory on their first return to the Champions League in over a decade.