Blackburn Rovers v Manchester United: Title Number 10 All But There for United?
Manchester United fans - methinks you owe Emile Heskey rather a large drink. There must have been a few wry smiles from the Red camp on Monday evening when the Wigan striker netted that injury time equaliser thus severely denting Chelsea’s rampant title chase.
Now five points clear in the race for the Premiership, United travel to Ewood Park with the knowledge an away win would see them have one hand firmly on the trophy. A nice thought yes, but Blackburn’s Stephen Warnock thinks such a pressure could actually cause United to buckle.
Under Pressure
The Rovers defender believes the reigning Champions could be prone to the odd attack of the butterflies leading up to the game, causing them to approach it with some level of caution. The Ormskirk-born player also claims it’s not the end of the world that Blackburn suffered defeat to Liverpool a week prior and says, “We were disappointed with ourselves but usually bounce back stronger.” If only that were true.
Out of the four defeats Blackburn have suffered at home this season - matches against Portsmouth, Villa, West Ham and Chelsea - only once have they come out in their next match and won the game (lost 0-4 to Villa and then beat Newcastle 3-1 at the beginning of December). And the current stretch of bad form just keeps coming.
It’s been just the one win from the last six games for Blackburn and they have only managed 2 points from the last nine available. United on the other hand have very little error to comment on; their draw with Middlesbrough two weeks ago the only blip on their radar in the past 8 games.
All is not lost
Despite nicking the crucial win against Arsenal last Sunday, United were not overly convincing in their execution. In fact had Arsenal had the confidence they possessed at the start of the season, I would expect the title race to be far more open than it stands currently.
So yes, Blackburn can take something from that. They can also take encouragement from events of the 2005/06 season where they enjoyed an impressive league double over United including a thrilling 4-3 win at Ewood Park with a young David Bentley nabbing the match ball for his 21-minute hat trick.
Prior to that win though, the head to head history clearly favours United including this season’s earlier encounter in November which finished 2-0. One guess who got the goals - that man Ronaldo alright!
Pundit’s Pick: Cool, calm United don’t do pressure (away win) Do you agree with this result for your Premier 10 prediction? Play Now>>
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Tags: Blackburn, Manchester United, Premier 10 Match Previews, Premier League football, Premiership Champions, reds, Rovers
