By Myles Palmer
Today’s mind-boggling exhibition by Man United sets up Wednesday night’s game perfectly as a climax to the domestic season.
Jenas scored a fabulous first goal but United were 6-1 up in 58 minutes.
PAUL SCHOLES scored a hat-trick and the final score was 6-2.
United had good shape, good method, good composure, good movement – and FANTASTIC finishing.
Their first half display was the best United have played since beating Juventus 3-2 in Turin.
Scholes and Solskjaer and Giggs made mincemeat of my prediction that Newcastle would not lose.
The Arsenal players, watching in their hotel, will have plenty to ponder after seeing the third team in the Premiership annihilated by United, who were themselves stuffed 3-1 in Madrid on Wednesday night.
If a 6-2 away win is not a fighting comeback, a statement of intent, I don’t know what is.
United are winners who really want it.
They are very resilient and they won 6-2 without Beckham, whose deputy Solskjaer scored the equaliser with a goal Becks could not have scored.
I’m one of United’s biggest critics.
One of their most cruel critics.
BUT THEY WERE HOT STUFF TODAY.
They really turned it on today.They were really hot stuff.
Don’t tell me that Bramble is just a kid, that Newcastle missed Speed, that they had a flimsy midfield- United would have hammered any team in England today.Any team.
ARSENE WENGER has said that Sheffield United are a very good team and that Michael Tonge and Michael Brown could be playing in the Premiership.
We are told that he will not play his strongest side.
But today’s United game might affect his thinking on that.
ARSENAL now need a big FA Cup win to boost morale.
If they beat a Nationwide team 2-1 on the same weekend that Man United hammer Newcastle 6-2, few neutrals will give them much chance of winning in three days time.
Man United are top and three points clear and scoring goals with deadly aplomb.
I don’t think they can put Real Madrid out of the Champions League, but that tie is not over.
United could go through and they might generate the confidence to do it by beating Arsenal at Highbury, as revenge for last May, when Arsenal won at Old Trafford to clinch the Premiership title .
APRIL is always an exciting month full of meaningful matches and the next 16 days should see plenty of twists and turns as trophies are pursued by the big boys.
The remaining five fixtures insist that Arsenal v Man United is NOT a title decider.
But try telling that to the fans of both sides.
12th April 2003.