Football,

Putting the band back together

MAN UTD VS LIVERPOOL


Man Utd @ 13/5
Liverpool @ 10/11
Draw @ 16/5
view odds


A large chunk of the nation has been buzzing all week following news of the forthcoming Oasis reunion.  People have once again begun swaggering expansively down the street, arms hanging loosely by their sides like rubber pendulums; boxes of bucket hats have been brought down from the loft; and the word ‘sunshine’ has suddenly acquired a few extra syllables.

But Oasis isn’t the only vast Mancunian institution hoping to initiate a return to the heady days of the mid-1990s – a time when they were riding high in the charts, and confidence was up in the sky.

Manchester United have also been mourning glory.  Shedding maudlin tears for the distant days when comfortable victories – one after the other – were effortlessly racked-up like gold records.  And, mirroring the Gallagher brothers, Erik ten Hag – in an effort to try and re-capture that special, elusive, lost feeling – has decided to get his old band back together.

The trio of Lisandro Martinez, Antony, and André Onana were joined in the summer by Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui to form a versatile quintet of former Ajax talents; all of whom played in Amsterdam with Ten Hag as their respected bandleader.

Some might say this is a sound, sensible strategy.  Others might label it an alarming sign; highlighting a profound lack of creativity and imagination.  Because, while those famous five stars certainly did enjoy success in The Netherlands, as many players have discovered over the years, the Eredivisie is not the Premier League.  It could well be another case of the infamous ‘difficult second album’ syndrome for this reassembled outfit.

There isn’t enough evidence to form a robust conclusion yet: a scraped win over Fulham on the opening weekend begat ignominious defeat away at Brighton last weekend – a result which bore all the hallmarks of the clown car collapses that characterised last season’s ramshackle campaign.

They will need to find a familiar, crowd-pleasing rhythm very soon, though, because Manchester United v Liverpool is a 4pm kick-off on Sunday.

The hosts won’t want to go into the international break with two damaging defeats already banked.  If they do, the atmosphere at Old Trafford could quickly turn hostile, old grievances will re-emerge like bruises, and a messy coda of further bum notes will ring out across the packed stadium.

Let’s just hope, for all those who get hold of tickets this weekend, that the Oasis reunion concerts don’t follow a similar pattern!

Replacing an established, iconic, charismatic frontman can be an impossible job; but Arne Slot has taken hold of Jürgen Klopp’s microphone stand with a firm grip and an air of quiet confidence.  He has shown an ability to make decisive tactical tweaks, and a lack of fear over substituting established players.

But wins over Ipswich Town and Brentford would be expected from Liverpool under almost any circumstances.  This Sunday is a different kind of test.  For all their recent calamities, Manchester United have been able to raise their level against Liverpool, avoiding defeat in their last three encounters.  Who will successfully get their fans singing together in euphoric unison come the final whistle?

The closing bell of the summer transfer window is about to ring out too.  And there are still several big names yet to land a footballing home for the coming months.  Will the likes of Raheem Sterling and Jadon Sancho find themselves a part of another manager’s masterplan?

Ivan Toney’s future also undetermined, at the time of writing, so it’s a bit of a shame that Eddie Howe has not attempted to bring the striker to Newcastle.  With Sandro Tonali returning in midweek – another player who spent much of last season plying his trade for Suspended FC – this would have been a good opportunity to get the banned back together…


For all your bets on the Premier League, visit our dedicated football betting page.

Please play responsibly