David Moyes believes Manchester United are still feared throughout Europe, as he looks ahead to the vital Champions League clash against Olympiakos.
The comments came after United got back to winning ways against Crystal Palace, beating the home side 2-0 with a Robin Van Persie penalty and classy volley from man of the moment Wayne Rooney.
Hopes were high for a positive result against the visitors, despite Tony Pulis’ poor record against United, as Palace had taken 16 points from a possible 21 prior to United’s arrival.
Moyes’ boys were under massive pressure following three games without a win – a defeat at Stoke followed by the calamitous 2-2 draw against Fulham and 0-0 draw against Arsenal – and it looked like it might be another one of those days for United.
United poked and probed for much of the game, but as has been a common trait this season, many of these lacked any real quality.
There were some encouraging signs however, particularly with the link-up play between Robin Van Persie, Wayne Rooney and new-boy Juan Mata.
Add Adnan Januzaj into that mix, who played much of the game playing a disciplined role on the left wing, and you can see why Moyes insists that teams don’t want to play the English champions.
While still looking a tad out of place out-wide, Mata did display some quality passes, particularly a defence-splitting pass to put Van Persie clean through in the first half, only to be thwarted by the linesman.
Rooney was also at the heart of much of United’s attacks, dropping deep and linking up well with Mata.
Moyes no-doubt breathed a sigh of relief when Van Persie smashed home a penalty to put the visitors ahead on the 62 minute, but it was Rooney’s sublime volley six years later which effectively killed off the game.
The wonderful strike also went some way to silence the critics who have questioned the wisdom of United reportedly paying the English striker £300,000 per week in his newly signed four-year contract.
Moyes is clearly beaming that Rooney, whose career looked all but over last summer, has committed his future to United.
“He’s a really important player and you think about the amount of clubs who wanted to sign him,” Moyes said in the post-match press conference.
“He would have been too difficult to replace. There aren’t enough top players out there that you can get cheaply or easily.
“Wayne’s one of them, one of the top players. He shows it week in, week out for us and you can see the change in him – his leadership, what he’s trying to bring to the team.”
The former Everton boss praised Rooney’s “exquisite” strike, which silence the Selhurst Park crowd, who had been giving Rooney stick all afternoon.
Moyes said Rooney isn’t one to let the stick get to him. He said: “I don’t think it will bother Wayne at all. I’m sure all those people will be cheering him on in Brazil in three months.”
£27million-man Marouane Fellaini’s return to a struggling United midfield was another plus point for David Moyes, who made first appearance since December 4 after being side-lined with a calf injury.
The Belgium midfielder has had far more trouble than Rooney in proving he has the ability to show why United splashed the cash on him.
Despite missing a glorious chance in the first-half, this was by and large a much-improved display from the mediocre start to his Old Trafford career, and caught the eye of Rooney as well as his boss.
Former Everton star Rooney said: “He’s a good player and different to anything we’ve got. He did really well against Palace, especially with it being his first start in a while.”
His ex-Everton chief Moyes agreed: “I’m pleased with how he played. He’s come in and given us something different which we hoped he would.
“He made a chance for himself and should have scored, but it was only his first game for nearly three months, so he needs a bit of time to settle. Everyone needs that at times.”
Moyes indicated that his target is now the fourth-place spot that would bring Champions League football back to Old Trafford next season but, for now, attentions turn to this season’s competition as the side travel to Greece to take on Olympiakos.
The Greek champions, who sold top scorer Konstantinos Mitroglou to Fulham for £11m last month, are seen by many as a straightforward second round draw for United but the Scot is not taking them lightly.
The United boss was in Greece to watch Olympiakos beat Panionios on Feb 5 and knows how hard the challenge will be as his side chase a final chance at a trophy.
“We now have to try to beat Olympiakos over two legs and that will be no mean feat because they are undoubtedly the best team in Greece and a lot of their players will be going to the World Cup as part of the Greek squad,” he said.
“Everyone in this competition wants to win it and we will try to do that,” Moyes said. “Teams don’t want to play Manchester United. They know what it stands for as they have been successful.”
While United’s forward line is back to full strength, Moyes will have to manage without their record-signing Mata, who is cup-tied.
Whether Moyes’ comments are true or not, there were signs against Palace that United still possess the quality that can hurt any team.
And with Wayne Rooney showing the kind of glimpses of class that he shown on Saturday, United may well still prove they are still a force to be reckoned with.
Picture courtesy of Action Images / Carl Recine, with thanks.
