A splendid word, "flabbergasted", which I was told covered two entire pages in one of my sister's books when she was a small child, and which she proclaimed with gusto whenever those pages were turned. Perhaps she and SAF read the same book, being of similar generations. The etymology is unknown, although the word dates back to at least the 18th century; a collision of the roots for "flabby" and "aghast" in a Germanic construction seems the most popular guess.
Because the bus was over an hour late, and I was standing in the pouring rain, I must count myself lucky enough to have missed the first chunk of this match. I hadn't thought to take a radio with me (and anyway I haven't got a portable DAB yet).
So by the time I got home, we were a goal down and obviously playing achieved rubbish. The Sun the next day had a pointless piece about our playing a reserve side (and at the same time forcing the season ticket holders to buy a ticket to watch it), but this wasn't really a side of inexperienced kids. It had six internationals; it had a defence with considerable experience on loan to various clubs; it had a midfield worth a small fortune; it had John O'Shea. It had no strikers to speak of, of course, but that is our current approach. Presumably, if they'd stayed, Rossi and Smudger would have had a game, so you can't really blame them for going.
I can fully understand why SAF thought the side was "good enough to win", and that has more to do with overestimating our own players rather than underestimating the opposition. But it is has happened too often; for SAF to say he "didn't expect it" is surely disingenuous. He should expect it by now, because we have done it so often.
In fact, if we look at the history of SAF's teams, he has never shown himself adept at rotation. Our greatest successes have been achieved with a settled side, most of our blips when that side has been disrupted by injury, suspension, the rules of European competition (in the early days) or managerial meddling.
Although we were the first team to have the brainwave of using the League Cup in its various guises to play our younger reserves, we have never demonstrated notable success at the practice (as distinct from Arsenal, for instance), whether in the League Cup or the early rounds of the FA Cup (0-0 Exeter City, for example) or indeed some dead group ties in Europe. The recent year when we won the League Cup was when injuries virtually forced us to play a stronger side at an early stage.
I really thought he might have given Rooney and Tevez a few more minutes together against Coventry, even from the bench, although bringing on Rooney and Ronaldo last year didn't help. And maybe he should have started with Wesley and Carrick. Even so this is simply the curse of Mickey Mouse again.
Because, generally, this competition has been cursed for United. We were one of the last teams to enter the League Cup when it started and have shown it little affection, enthusiasm or success ever since. Look how long it took us to win it and then only in a fairly shoddy performance in a dreadful powder blue shirt.
I wouldn't be surprised if this is the end of Phil Bardsley as a United player. I can well imagine he will be on his way out of the transfer window in December. "Defenestration" is another splendid word. You must have a word for throwing someone out of the window.
It certainly shows us that the quality of our reserve strength is lacking en masse. A number of them may be capable of slotting into an established and settled side and doing a job, but we only seem to grow squad players these days, not players with any touch of greatness. Who was the last great player we produced through our own youth set-up? Scholes, I would suggest. And Giggs before that.
Anyway, as I was saying, I missed the first goal. Apparently "Best's crossfield pass picked out Michael Doyle inside the United penalty area and Doyle hit the ball to the far post, where Mifsud was lurking to turn the ball past the stranded Tomasz Kuszczak". Who would have thought we'd ever hear of Best and Michael Doyle playing on the same side? From the highlights, it didn't appear startling defending, particularly by Johnny Evans. And not long after that, Mifsud hit the post.
Overall, we matched them for goal attempts, apparently, but I suspect many of those were Nani having a blaze from nowhere in particular. It may likely take a season or so to harness his talent, but I suspect we are always going to suffer from the occasional spectacular goal in the middle of rather too many dreadful efforts. Ronnie was wasteful in the early days, but Nani is older and should already have learned better.
The changes for the second half seemed to give us a bit more shape, and it looked as if we might even get away with this sort of thing again, and at least take it to extra time.
There was the one moment when Coventry keeper Andy Marshall produced an outstanding fingertip save to deny Dong after 69 minutes, when a header was floating into the top corner. But within a minute they were down the other end, Mifsud doubled his tally and that was it.
Later, Mifsud should probably have had a hat-trick when Tomasz pushed the ball into his path, but he somehow failed to find the goal.
Manchester United 0 Coventry 2
Goals: Mifsud 27, 70.
Manchester Utd: Kuszczak, Bardsley (Brown 45), Evans (Carrick 56), Pique, Simpson, Nani, Martin (Campbell 45), O'Shea, Eagles, Dong, Anderson.
Subs Not Used: Heaton, Eckersley.
Booked: Pique.
Red shirts, white shorts, black stockings.
Coventry: Marshall, Osbourne (McNamee 88), Ward, Turner, Borrowdale, Simpson, Stephen Hughes, Doyle, Tabb, Mifsud, Best (Adebola 90).
Subs Not Used: Konstantopoulos, De Zeeuw, Thornton.
Attendance: 74,055 Referee: Mark Halsey (Lancashire).
Anyway, so much for the Glazers' latest attempt to squeeze the fans. No more home cup-ties here for them. And the atmosphere of fans who were there only begrudgingly, and well outsung by the visitors, went some way towards that.
The attendance figure is largely a myth, of course. United have long counted the number of tickets paid for (which includes all season ticket holders whether or not they - or indeed anyone else - are actually in the seats), rather than the number of bodies through the turnstiles. In theory you could have an attendance of 75,000 with less than 20,000 in the stadium.
Wednesday 26.09.2007 : 5Live Extra Radio
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