Manchester United legend Gary Neville feels that his former club haven’t yet faced the tougher tests of the season despite being level with City for 1st place.
Class of 92 graduate Neville has claimed that although he expects the title to end up in Manchester, that both clubs still have big questions that need to be answered. Mourinho’s Manchester United have managed to score 16 goals and concede just twice this season but will face sterner opposition.
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Speaking to the Class of ’92 blog on Sky Sports he said, “I did say at the start of the season that the title would end up in Manchester and the evidence so far supports that, but it’s far too early for either club to get carried away. You would have said, from the fixtures, United should have been at the top at this stage, but I think the table will start to even out once we see them against tougher sides.”.
“There are still big questions about both United and City. Can United break down sides? Can Manchester City handle it against more physical sides? If you look at United, you saw them make mistakes at Stoke and there were chances for Everton, but ultimately the weaknesses they have shown at the back are covered by a goalkeeper in David de Gea who is absolutely world-class.” said Neville.
The former Manchester United captain continued, “Jose Mourinho has always been a good manager at home and he is happy to sit in and let teams expose themselves, and United’s record at Old Trafford is now no defeats in 12 months since City won there. To me they are looking a lot better than before in terms of breaking sides down and killing off games.”.
The tougher games Neville is possibly referring to are the other top teams in the country expected to challenge for the Champions League spots if not the Premier League title- the likes of Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham and Manchester City. The Red Devils’ next match against one of those teams is against the Reds on the 14th of October with 2 other Premier League fixtures to be played beforehand.
A relatively easy start for Manchester United has helped them climb high up the table but it was against the bottom half of the table that Mourinho’s men struggled against last season. With those blues apparently put behind them, there should be no real concerns should they continue their form against England’s bigger clubs.
Jose has been known for being the ultimate big game manager and rarely gets his tactics wrong for such games. If his players execute his tactical plan well then they should be able to dismiss Neville’s questions with relative ease. Perhaps no one would be happier than Gary himself should United prove themselves this season.
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There certainly are going to be tougher tests to come for Manchester United but should they face them with the same energy and determination as these few opening games of the season then they should be fine. Neville shouldn’t worry about his former club breaking them down either as they’re likely to attack more than so called smaller clubs. Time will tell.