The Sports Lowdown For All Your News and OpinionsIt’s difficult to judge Manchester United so far this season. The Premier League table suggests United fans can be happy with their start to the season; sitting third with only two points separating them from top spot, occupied by bitter rivals Manchester City.
Looking beyond this, United have hardly been convincing this season, with their displays often devoid of creativity relying on sole moments to win them matches. And despite briefly holding number one status domestically, a heavy 3-0 defeat to Arsenal at the Emirates brought the doubters back out in force.
Louis Van Gaal will be looking for a reaction from his team when red meets blue and Lancashire meets Merseyside at Goodison Park on Saturday. Previous meetings between the two suggest a very even affair, indeed the last five meetings has seen three Everton victories and two United victories with no draws. Whilst, United under Van Gaal has seen the competition between Everton manager Roberto Martinez so far end one a piece.
The omens don’t bode well for Van Gaal as United have lost their last 3 away games at Goodison Park, their last victory coming in 2011, when United resided under Sir Alex Ferguson.
Everton fans can take pleasure with their start to the season so far, a commodity rarely offered to them in the early stages of a season. Martinez’s side come on the back of a battling 1-1 draw in the Merseyside derby and have also boasted impressive results against defending champions Chelsea defeating them 3-1.
There only league defeat has come at the hands of Manchester City, hardly a terrible team to lose to and their overall performances have been good. The emergence of Ross Barkley as a focal point of the team only adds to their decent start as does the resurgence of striker Romelu Lukaku.
