Posted on Tuesday, 12th March 2013 by Jay
Time to give the Dutchman the rest he needs?
24 goals, eights assists, United sitting 12 points clear of the Noisy Neighbours, to say the signing of Robin Van Persie has been a success is akin to stating Ryan Giggs has a bit of experience. The Dutch striker has grabbed the title race by the throat and all but strangled the life out of it.
Yet the past few weeks it’s been obvious that all is not quite as rosy as it once was for the player who’s become as essential to United’s team as a certain Scouse striker used to be.
In the past nine games Van Persie has one goal, a record nowhere near what a player of his quality should be enjoying. Now before you all start defending him let me add this isn’t a criticism of our star striker, merely a ‘fact’ that simply highlights the point I’m slowly bumbling towards, a point many Reds have noticed. Van Persie needs a rest, both physically and dare I say mentally of having to be relied upon even when he’s on the bench to ALWAYS come on if things aren’t going United’s way- Braga anyone?
Take the games previous to the last nine, where Van Persie’s record was nine goals in as many games- there’s the rub as the Bard would say, we know what he’s capable of and we do need him but he needs a rest. Looking at some of his recent performances you can see how vital RVP is to the side, his control, his link up play with those around him, his skill, but not recently his goals and dare I say “swagger” which seems to have deserted him a little of late.
The game at the Bernabeu was a case in point, I have no doubt that without Van Persie United would not have left their on equal terms as his contribution was fundamental to the Red cause. Yet let’s not sugar coat it, a fully firing RVP would have buried at least two of the three chances he had and all but ended the entire tie.
The Chelsea game on Sunday highlighted the problem United face with RVP- he needs a rest but we need him. One of the most disappointing aspects of United’s capitulation was the fact that yet again, we couldn’t allow the former Arsenal striker to have a rest, we HAD to bring him on.
Robin Van Persie is enjoying one of the longest runs he’s ever had in his professional career, yet it may just be time to let him have the rest he so obviously needs.
My worry over Van Persie is that his form will continue to suffer at the time when United need him the most, mainly as it seems too much of a risk to drop him from the squad altogether- even for the upcoming game against struggling Reading. Wayne Rooney’s erratic season and Danny Welbeck’s lack of goals mean that other than Chicharito the Reds don’t have a striker we can really rely on for goals if Van Persie is not available. Dare we take the chance and drop him from the squad this weekend? Give him a break from the pressure he’s under at the moment?
Do you agree or is this all completely bonkers? Feel free to comment suggest and abuse below:
For more Red views follow me on twitter @RFFH
Related posts:
Posted in Blogs, Let's hear it for the boy | Comments (34)
Man Utd News
24/7
Loading ...
March 12th, 2013 at 4:25 am
May be you are right but more crucially, SAF is more culpable. By not consistently pairing WR and RVP, he’s preventing the formation and cementing of what was going to be the most formidable and feared attacking pairing in Europe. Instead, SAF is talking , vaguely and meekly, about tactical selection etc. You can see the joy and energy when these 2 play together from start, without inhibition. Of course, the midfield supply line is rather weak too and Cleverley or Welbeck does nothing to show they are Utd-class. Utd need a top CM. Period. Then unleash WR and RVP. Sit back and enjoy.
[Reply]
realist Reply:
March 12th, 2013 at 11:05 am
if only the boss was as good as you eh?!
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 5:05 am
I agree with you he looks tired now when he plays
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 5:46 am
I agreed to what you said that RVP should be rested from his pressure he’s under at the moment
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 6:38 am
Good to have rvp in our team,but i can’t say this what vp need is these cause for the passed nine games we have played so far i don’t know why rvp could’nt find back of net,we should just take a look at luiz suarez one man houtzller is the only man that will houtzlle for ball,one thing i notice about him is that whenever he houtzlle for ball next thing is that you will see him blowing nose,may we need to be at sub couse anytime is on the bench as sub he do perform well,it’s has much strenght to play 90mins,i think sub will be okey for him that’s my owne cotribution we need best of united.
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 7:19 am
Spot on – been saying this for weeks – Fergie should have sent him on hols for 2 weeks after the home tie v Madrid
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 8:12 am
I agree mate. I don’t think there has been many if any game where we have managed to give him a full 90 minutes rest. West Ham, Braga, West Brom… all games where we planned to rest him but he had to come on and save us.
I think our squad should be able to get 3 points against Reading at home without Robin. If not they need to look at themselves or maybe Fergie needs to take a look at them. If Danny boy was a bit more clinical I think we’d be less dependant on RPV.
Give the man a rest, there can’t be many seasons in his career when he has had to play this many games.
GGMU
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 8:15 am
I tink u are saying the truth there,bbt I tink the reason why fergu keep using is bcause of the golden shoe nd thep pfa award
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 8:21 am
I agree, I don’t see RVP’s slump abating if he keeps playing. I think he’s mentally burnt-out, and the fresh, agitated legs of Chicharito should step-in for a few games.
We certainly do want an in-form attacker for the run-in, and RVP would be ideal. He hasn’t been a game-changer in his recent appearances though. He was brought on for his better ‘hold-up’ capability against Chelsea, when anyone could see that the real problem was our inability to press up the field. Fergie made a cheap call, one that rightfully backfired. Did he think RVP would come on and wave a wand? We can win games without Robin, and I think we’d benefit in the long run by having him back fresh for the Derby.
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 10:09 am
I agreed rvp need a rest bt to talk about CM we are 1 of d best side with that, coz when u have carrick :he marks, pass and cools d game whyl cleverly shows he’s energy run tru mldfiders spread passes wit perfect runs!. Now look at d FA cup match against chelsea, as mikel was introduce he did d marking and cooling wy ramirez does d runs which change d game,and clever he’s still young not even nearer to his peak so u will expect him to keep developing.
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 10:26 am
Rvp has looked tired, but our midfield has been total rubbish in recent games, no ball retention, worse culprit being Wayne Rooney, he has given the ball away all the time. Kagawa been played out of position. Cleverley can’t find a telling pass. Rvp has had some chances and the goalkeepers have made unbelievable saves to thwart him. These things happen. Rooney goes 15 games without scoring and no one says anything. Rvp will score and he will help us win the league.
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 11:08 am
he defo looks tired, his grey hairs have spread rapidly over the last few months also!
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 11:31 am
Totally agree. I believe the Chelsea fa cup tie showed we have a similar issue with Carrick. 1st half our midfield dominated the play easily, but both Carrick & Cleverly looked jaded 2nd half. With Fletcher doubtful ever to reach the required performance level again, and Scholes’ slide all too evident we need cover in cm. 2 central midfielders needed. Another issue is the form of our wingers. Valencia has easily been our worst player this season, with the pace and crossing abilities deserting him, and Young’s OT career is reminding me of Hargreaves’ with his injuries. Zaha will be a big bonus, but its a huge step up from Championship to Champions League / Premiership. A top winger or 2 required as well.
Now the bombshell. Sell Rooney. His form over the last 9 months has been patchy at best. Couple that with 250k per week, the value isn’t there. I believe he reached & past his peak 2 seasons ago, and its time to move him on. We already have his replacement in Kagawa who we’ll see the best of next season.
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 12:00 pm
Hold on the mighty danny wellbeck will save the day..for goodness sake ive been slated all year for saying this overated clod is ruining united…he lost us the league last year with his lack of goals…yet everyone eulogises about him as if he is van basten……..then this season…fergie clearly doesnt rate chica despite his prolific scoring…rooney looks less fit than someone off an ocean finance advert…..and the mighty wellbeck has chipped in with a massive 2 goals…yes 2 goals…oh i forgot he has played wide of a front 3 at times…a position virtually impossible to score from apparantly…unlike left back where evras scored 4 which is double wellbecks efforts….hence the entire goal burdens on RVP…and yes ur right he looks knackered…it looks like weve gone back to the ronaldo era where our entire team is based behind one goal winner…which has been better than the previous 3 seasons of just effort and work rate……but the fact remains this united side and in fact the last few seasons isnta very good side…we never play well for 90 minutes…we often get outplayed by decent midfields….and yet with a team ethic and desire we have fended off the self implosions of far better teams in chelsea and city who have been hampered by poor ownership and management..lets cast ahead to next year where wellbeck will start every game…..RVP will be 30…..and surely cant do again what he has done this season……what if he gets an injury for a month??? wellbeck leading the line…all the team praising his effort and workrate and winning throw ins……and come janruary he is on 3 goals…..and again…and i do mean again the same old crap thats held us back for 3 seasons…”dannys a terrific player he just needs a few more goals however his contribution to the team tho is fantastic” god help us if jose gets either city or chelsea.
[Reply]
diego Reply:
March 15th, 2013 at 5:28 pm
Spot on.. i think Welbeck is doing some type of witchcraft.
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 12:34 pm
Absolute truth no dought about it he really need a rest.
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 1:14 pm
Talking Of Midfielders , whatever happened to Ando yet again. Can’t understand Fergie, if Ando is not going to play 10 matches a season I think we should get rid + our midfield is the worst area of our squad even average sides dominate us. Carrick is a water carrier he struggles when the going gets tough and it happened again against Chelsea at the weekend . Honestly United need knew ideas, Welbeck will not get into Chelsea, City, Spurs, Arsenal, Westbrom, Everton and even Villa squad ahead of Benteke, playing wide can’t hamper a striker from scoring it will only reduce goal output ask any decent striker. Two goals in a whole season when Evra and Evans have four each is a shame and to think he still get selected over Javier Hernandez is a bigger shame. We need to clear our house.
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 1:15 pm
The guy has 50 shades of gray in his hair what do you expect
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 1:16 pm
just because ryan giggs does it doesnt mean everyone can
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 1:46 pm
Every striker has a bare patch during a long season. Give a RVP a rest but also realize that United need to provide better play to the strikers. Certainly, the Norwich game is a good example of being consistent and breaking down the bus that parked in fron of the goal. However, United generally are a countering monster, with Nani possibly injured and Valencia so poorly out of form, it’s time to utilize Young a bit more, maybe even move him to the right and move Rooney to the left with Kagawa behind the 2 strikers RVP and Wellbeck/Chicharito. And yes, we need to sign quality midfielders.
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 4:20 pm
Ferguson his consistently boasted of the depth of his squad this season. Now is the time for ferguson to start trusting his squad members. We need to rest van persie for our remaining big games and trust rooney, chicharito, kagawa, nani young and welbeck to perform. Still on the issue of resting players, i was surprised to see cleverly play 90mins against chelsea few days after a very exhausting champions league outing.when we have anderson and powell. Why refuse to send powell on loan if you wont play him? Cleverly was so weary in the second half that he became a liability, giving the ball away cheaply, not tracking back, and leaving carrick to do the bulk of the work. We should know when to rest and protect our key players. Remember we are talking about a player whose career has been blighted by injuries.
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 5:03 pm
With due respect (to SAF and all coaching and non coaching staff members) our midfield tactical approach (or the CM players are) is poor in many games and not really creative enough for United standard, that is why it is so difficult to get enough goals from our strikers who are always over-worked. If you watch us well, you will see that our CM players don’t cover two thirds of the field well so the strikers have to come back to collect the ball, please confirm this with (1)distance covered and assist no (2)ruggedness and physicality. This is explained by the fact that our strikers are too far ahead for no. of assists where they are supposed to be following the CM, also our strikers cover almost same distance (if not more than) with our CM and the 2 major strikers (RVP & Wayne) are the ones that can battle well with their ruggedness and physicality to bring ball out of the mid-field the third in that rank Welbeck lacks finishing or accurate final pass thus his ruggedness & physicality seems useless (sorry to say this). Therefore WE need 2 world class rugged and highly energetic best ball passers (Yahaya Tuore type) to remove stress from our strikers, then you will see that SAF is the best attacking tactician. Thanks
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 5:33 pm
fargie shud tink 2wise,while welbeck all d time knowin fully well dat hanandez is better dan him, was it bcos he was not frm england?
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 7:47 pm
I tink cm is our problm coz we neva play 9mins convincingly
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 11:21 pm
I totally agree with you… I think in terms of the way he was managed in the last few weeks or months wasnt good. He was rested when he shouldnt have been and now he isnt when he should be. I.e Fulham in the F.A. Cup wouldve definately helped him keep his goal scoring form alive, and being rested against Norwich wouldve been more feasible is one of many games i think he wasnt managed well. However as the club adapts and learns how to manage him and his influence we shud see him deliver once more for undoubtedly another 3 more best Cantonna esque influential years
[Reply]
March 12th, 2013 at 11:51 pm
Fergie plays RVP constantly because he can hold up the ball unlike Rooney or Hernandez so that our defense is not under constant pressure. Rooney thinks he is like Scholes and always tries France passes which causes us to lose ball possession.
All this can be avoided and RVP can get a good rest if our midfield is up to man utd standards, Carrick is just EPL standard and not world class, in fact his standard would be truly appreciated by teams stoke, villa or west ham, Cleverly is not not up to the standard but he’ll always play ahead of Anderson cause he is English. Valencia and Young is just rubbish this season. While Giggs and Scholes should belong to the museum.
Fergie should just retire so that a new manager can start utilizing our young talents rather losing them…..e.g. Pogba now a starter for Juventus, Fergie and his coaching staff like the ever useless Phelan should take full responsibility for this mistake.
[Reply]
March 13th, 2013 at 2:30 am
I didn’t read the whole article but I don’t really agree if your talking about him being tired because he’s played too much, in my opinion the guy has lifted too much weight he looks heavy, lately I’ve noticed his body looking slightly awkward, yes maybe he’s tired but I don’t think its the games, its the fact he has to get used to extra muscles he’s added on his body, that happens alot in the epl
[Reply]
March 13th, 2013 at 7:08 am
SAF needs to play the little pea more he clearly knows how to make the ball go in. He should play him as a sub at least and utilize kagawa in his regular position. I feel like the strongest team would be
Rafael Evans vidic evra
Carrick or Anderson in a more defensive role
Nani on the LM
Giggs on the rm or young
Kagawa in a attacking middle position behind the 2 strikers
Rooney Rvp and sub the one who’s doing bad for chicharito. Welbeck can play a wing position. Come on ferguson
[Reply]
Larry Reply:
March 15th, 2013 at 6:04 pm
Sell welbeck for a bag of chips then im with you.
[Reply]
March 13th, 2013 at 7:08 am
SAF needs to play the little pea more he clearly knows how to make the ball go in. He should play him as a sub at least and utilize kagawa in his regular position. I feel like the strongest team would be
Rafael Evans vidic evra Carrick or Anderson in a more defensive role
Nani on the LM
Giggs on the rm or young
Kagawa in a attacking middle position behind the 2 strikers
Rooney Rvp and sub the one who’s doing bad for chicharito. Welbeck can play a wing position. Come on ferguson
[Reply]
March 13th, 2013 at 8:32 am
Spot on fella…..100% agree, great article
[Reply]
March 13th, 2013 at 2:43 pm
RVP really need rest and wayne rooney also need more playing time.
[Reply]
March 13th, 2013 at 11:25 pm
RVP is a normal striker and they all go through goal droughts now and then. The guy has been fantastic for Man Utd. I agree a rest is a good idea, but he has had a break now. He played against Real Madrid last Tuesday, and played 20 min on Sunday.
I suspect that is enough of a break for the guy, and he will be itching to play against Reading. Like I said he is like any striker, and what he wants is to score goals. I tell you know, start him against Reading, and if we play properly then he will have chances to score. I would suspect a couple of goals would completely refresh him.
[Reply]
March 16th, 2013 at 11:09 am
The problem is not with RVP. The midfield paraded by United is to mediocre to provide the necessary arsenal for RVP to unleash on opposing teams. How many assists has your Carrick the chairman of the United midfield provided with all the matches he has played? Can you compare Carrick with Yaya Toure, Lampard, Gerrard etc? The United midfield isn’t just good enough. Parading the likes of Valencia, Young, Anderson, Cleverly as United midfielders will take the team nowhere. SAF must put sentiment aside and give Nick Powell enough playing time in addition to bringing in two top midfielders in the summer otherwise we should forget about European football glory and probably remain as local champions in England.
[Reply]