End of Season Review
Manchester United’s season has
undoubtedly been a success in that the Premier League trophy was reclaimed.
There were disappointments in the cup competitions, but this was not to
overshadow the achievement of United’s 20th league title.
The first half of the season consisted of a series of
thrilling comebacks. United secured themselves defensively from thereon as they
went on to win the title. The season ended with sadness as Sir Alex Ferguson
and Paul Scholes retired, but there is plenty to look forward to in the future.
Below are the iThinkUnited
end of season awards:
Players
These awards are based on the iThinkUnited player ratings system (see below).
BEST PLAYER:
Rio Ferdinand
A model of consistency and excellence, Rio Ferdinand wins the
player of the season award. David de Gea, Rafael, Michael Carrick, Jonny Evans
and Robin van Persie all follow him very closely.
WORST PLAYER:
Alex Büttner
Appears harsh on the surface, but mainly average
performances combined with a small amount of appearances mean Büttner’s average
rating is the worst of any United player with over 10 appearances. Antonio
Valencia and Nani are very close behind.
BEST TEAM:
De Gea, Rafael,
Ferdinand, Evans, Evra, Carrick, Cleverley, Welbeck, Rooney, van Persie,
Hernandez
Matches
BEST MATCH:
Manchester City 2
Manchester United 3
There were some extraordinary matches over the course of the
season, but this Manchester derby win clinched in the final minute has to go as
the most dramatic and fantastic match of the season. Had United beaten Real
Madrid then perhaps that would’ve topped it for sheer atmosphere and occasion.
Oh what could’ve been.
WORST MATCH:
Manchester United 0
CFR Cluj 1
In the context of the season, United have performed worse
than this game, but if you had to miss one United game this year, it would be
this. A dead-rubber as far as United were concerned, they never got going, and
eventually lost to the Romanians. As boring as they come.
Goals
BEST GOAL SCORED:
Robin van Persie v
Aston Villa
This goal was truly magnificent. On a night that United
sealed the Premier League title, Robin van Persie’s hat-trick felt almost like
he intended to remind the Reds who they had to thank for the title win. A
sumptuous lofted pass from Wayne Rooney was hit first time by Van Persie’s
left-foot, and into the back of the net. Wonderful.
WORST GOAL CONCEDED:
Adam le Fondre for
Reading
There are unfortunately many contenders for this award, but
after weeks of lessons not learnt, calamitous defending at the Madejski stadium
was hard to believe. Lost at a set-piece, Le Fondre will rarely score an easier
goal.
Moments
MOST ENTHRALLING MOMENT:
Ferguson’s crowd rouser
Old Trafford was rocking on March 5th. United
were heading for the Champions League quarter-finals at the expense of European
heavyweights Real Madrid. It was a truly special night. Until Nani was then
sent off. We all know what happened next, but the moment of exhilaration
experienced when Sir Alex Ferguson attempted to rouse the crowd in order to
lift the team was an extraordinary moment. Old Trafford has never been louder.
Possibly.
MOST DISAPPOINTING MOMENT:
Nani’s red card
With every high comes a low. United were set to beat Real
Madrid and everything felt like it was meant to be; it was one of those special
nights. It was probably all down to Nani’s red card that the script wasn’t
obeyed that night. A heart-breaker for any United fan, and a final lost chance
for Ferguson in Europe.
TOP MISCALLENOUS MOMENT:
Sir Alex Ferguson’s
retirement
Hardly a ‘best’ moment for anyone, but this has to be top in
terms of pure magnitude and reaction to an event. Tears were privately shed by
many as Ferguson announced his retirement. The country reacted and applauded to
a magnificent man and manager, the likes of which will never be seen again.
iThinkUnited Player Ratings 2012/2013
This table is calculated using the average ratings for each
Manchester United player this season. The ratings were given after each match.
Players to have achieved less than ten appearances have been
left out in order to provide more
accurate ratings for the season (i.e. Federico Macheda’s average of 5.6 is
irrelevant considering he only made three substitute appearances this season.)
It is also important to remember that players with many substitute appearances
will often have had less time on the pitch to make a mark, and therefore will
be nearer to the average ‘6’ rating.
PLAYERS:
Name Position Appearances Average
rating
(Including as substitute. Substitute in
brackets)
Rio Ferdinand DEF 35 (3) 6.914…
David de Gea GK 41 6.902…
Rafael da Silva DEF 40 (2) 6.85
Jonny Evans DEF 29 (2) 6.793…
Michael Carrick MID 46
(4) 6.783…
Robin van Persie ATT 48
(8) 6.771…
Nemanja Vidic DEF 23 (1) 6.739…
Phil Jones DEF 24
(4) 6.667…
Javier Hernandez ATT 36
(13) 6.639…
Patrice Evra DEF 42 6.595…
Tom Cleverley MID 32 (4) 6.594…
Wayne Rooney ATT 37
(6) 6.568…
Chris Smalling DEF 22 (5) 6.5
Anderson MID 26 (9) 6.5
Shinji Kagawa ATT 26 (4) 6.5
Danny Welbeck ATT 40
(17) 6.5
Darren Fletcher MID 10
(3) 6.4
Ryan Giggs MID 32 (13) 6.281…
Ashley Young MID 23 (5) 6.261…
Paul Scholes MID 20 (11) 6.2
Anders Lindegaard GK 13 6.154…
Nani MID 21 (5) 6.048…
Antonio Valencia MID 40
(11) 6.025
Alex Büttner DEF 13 (1) 6
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