Studs Up

Instant hero to United fans, possible league winner, and Ferguson again shows everyone the correct way to blood young talent while still winning trophies. Arsene Wenger should probably try to learn a thing or two from Sir Alex, as opposed to hoping the entire sport is changed for his benefit.

Macheda was impressive, his goal a masterful combination of awareness and execution. Of course there’s a long road of development ahead of him, but he’s probably at the right place for that.

For a while, the United gravy train of young talent seemed to have dried up with few players looking anywhere near the quality of the Beckham/Scholes/Nevilles generation. But with the da Silvas, Gibson, Evans, Welbeck, Anderson, Nani and now Macheda it looks like Ferguson could well leave United set for another decade before he retires. He’s smartly created a squad that is evenly divided between talented teenagers, mid-20s in their peak, and experienced 30+ legends, all of whom can learn/teach/benefit from each other. It’s as close to a footballer factory as you can get.

So while Wenger struggles with how to build a squad from youth and no experience, and Benitez and whoever manages Chelsea at the time struggle with how to constantly buy-and-sell without ruining squad balance and harmony, Ferguson makes it look all too simple. It’s getting harder and harder for me to hold anything against he or United these days. There gets to be a point where you have to sit back and just admire a job well done.

Oh, and Macheda’s goal is below.