man u vs real m

Defensive Sir Alex charms Jose.

Like a Laird of the Manor instructing his gamekeepers to secure the grounds after a break-in by poachers, Sir Alex Ferguson has locked down and bolted his Old Trafford estate.

It took some months to repair all the fences but now the areas through which so many goals were stolen have been virtually sealed.

Those defensive leakages cost Manchester United the Premier and Champions Leagues last season. At the onset of this campaign they threatened to pot-hole their restoration as the dominant force in the English game.

Not any longer.

Putting the boot in: David de Gea saves from Fabio Coentrao in the Bernabeu as Manchester United's defence stood up to Real Madrid

The restricting of Real Madrid to Cristiano Ronaldo’s soaring but solitary header in a throbbing Bernabeu on Wednesday night confirmed what Ferguson’s domestic challengers have been discovering of late: once again it is no easier to score against United than it is to stem all their attacks.

If it was their spirited powers of recovery from losing positions which kept them on course through the first half of this season, then it has been the girding of the rearguard which has solidified a 12-point lead in the Premier League and moved them within touching distance of the Champions League quarter-finals at the expense of the old aristocrats of the European game.

The draw in Madrid is another significant notch on Fergie’s gun handle but it was a resolute home win three days earlier which hallmarked his season so far.

A year or so ago Everton drew a 4-4 thriller at Old Trafford to put a skid under United. This Sunday they were beaten 2-0 without fuss or commotion.

Easy dispatch: Manchester United breezed past Everton in dominant fashion to open up a 12-point gap at the summit

Last year, whenever Nemanja Vidic was absent through persistent injuries panic broke out in the United defence. This week Ferguson decided to take the field in Madrid without him, thereby giving Jonny Evans the chance to prove that he is now ready to take over whenever the occasion demands... no matter how big the occasion.

The patient tutoring of the likes of Evans and hitherto maligned goalkeeper David de Gea is typical of Ferguson’s development of latent ability into elite quality.

Even more importantly, when it comes to delivering results, Ferguson utilises those talents to imprint his game plan and to confound his rivals in the dug-out.

While Evans stood impressively firm alongside the rejuvenated Rio Ferdinand another protege, Phil Jones, was deployed to limit the space within which Ronaldo could operate.

Denying space: Phil Jones (left) and Jonny Evans (right) shackle Cristiano Ronaldo

 

Jose Mourinho, the pretender to the Old Trafford throne, also had to fathom why Wayne Rooney was out wide and Shinji Kagawa through the middle.

By the end it was Mourinho’s Madrid who ran out of ideas and Fergie's United who looked more like winning.

The painstaking transformation of United from brittle back to imposing has been achieved without compromise of the footballing principles of both club and manager.

They remain committed to romance and adventure going forward, while making sure the back door is not left too wide open. Trust the canniest of Scots to balance the tactical budget.

Scowling on the sidelines: Jose Mourinho (right) saw his side run out of puff in the second half, while Sir Alex Ferguson's United could have nicked it

Be unsurprised, also, that Fergie can turn on the charm as readily as the hair dryer.

If, one day, the uncrowned king of Manchester decides to turn king-maker, Mourinho may well be one of the candidates for anointing. But what Ferguson is giving him right now is a good old soft-soaping.

Mourinho functions at his best when he is fired up and stroppy. It is hard to be angry when a revered god-head figure is showering compliments upon you.

Ferguson does genuinely respect the Portuguese man o’war but for the moment he is an opponent to be defeated.

As for Sir Alex retiring and opening the gilded doors for Mourinho’s self-advertised return to English football, sorry Jose. Not for some time yet.

England's World Cup-win seems a long, long time ago

It was raining like the Guinness in Dublin and blowing like the Blarney, making the oval ball as elusive as a leprechaun in an enchanted glen.

But the atrocious weather does not entirely excuse the appalling standard of the rugby.

It was a relief to see the English win there after all those losing years but the Irish connived at their own defeat by making more mistakes than Napoleon at Waterloo.

If battles of attrition are to your taste, Dublin was the place to be on Sunday. But there was more fun to be had shovelling snow out of the driveway back home.

Battle of atrition: Chris Robshaw leads England's celebrations at the final whistle after a gutsy victory in the Emerald Isle

Ireland 6, England 12 was the 15-man game’s equivalent of Stoke 0 Fulham 0 on a cold, wet night in the Potteries.

Winning is one thing. Driving us close to slitting our wrists is another altogether.

Let us pray that England’s win becomes the platform for some real rugby en route to a Six Nations Slam that is truly Grand, not simply gutsy.

If not the World Cup will remain a pipe-dream as distant as we are now from Sir Clive Woodward’s glory.

Pitch battle: The turf at the Aviva Stadium did not assist the players odf either side

Beckham warms up for Paris jaunt

David Beckham finally turned up for his first day’s training in Paris, via a comfortable seat in the stands in Valencia where he watched his new team win a Champions League game.

Prior to that, in the week or more since joining Saint-Germain, he saw fit to fly to New York to see his wife’s contribution to fashion week there.

This, despite Arsene Wenger letting it slip that dear old Golden Balls had done nothing seriously physical between leaving Los Angeles Galaxy and doing some light training at Arsenal.

So tell me again. Why did PSG sign him?

Warming up: David Beckham learns the ropes with his new team-mats in Paris

Giggs and Best are United in greatness

The evergreen Ryan Giggs has now scored in 23 consecutive seasons in the top flight of English league football.

At the start of this phenomenal run he pronounced himself flattered at being compared with the genius he succeeded on the Manchester United wing.

George Best shrugged self-effacingly and invited him to a game of pool.

Great as they will both be remembered in the annals of the bigger ball game, neither was handicapped by a heavyweight ego.

Best remains the most gifted British footballer of all time. Giggs is the longest-running star in that firmament.

Rest in peace, George. Don’t stop yet, Ryan.

Thank heaven for both of them.

Right on cue: George Best (left) and Ryan Giggs, pictured in 1993