How odd.

Going into Tuesday's final Group Stage game against Wolfsburg, Manchester United found themselves in a somewhat odd qualification scenario in Group B. Rarely does United root for teams to challenge their top spot, but faced with the possibility of a loss in Germany, United wanted CSKA to win in Istanbul to set up a three-way tie on 10 points. Such results would have allowed United to still top the group through their better results among the three teams, whereas Wolfsburg would have triumphed on goal differential between just those two teams.

Confused yet? Good. Because events only got weirder once the game began. Much had been made of United's defensive crisis before the game, and still nobody quite expected the announced defense of Patrice Evra, Michael Carrick, Darren Fletcher, and... Ji-Sung Park? The revelation eventually came that Park was actually a part of the 5-man midfield, reducing the number of scratched heads watching Fox Soccer Channel. Yet still fewer expected the remaining 3 defenders to perform so admirably. Though Wolfsburg's striking talents had made them the favorites in the press, Evra's performance was even more imperious than usual. Moreover, Carrick and Fletcher transferred their harrying presences perfectly into central defense, and Carrick's poor marking on Dzeko's goal was the defense's single hiccup. This near-flawlessness was what gave United a thoroughly unexpected but highly useful authority over this match.

Stranger still, as I remarked on my Twitter feed, an injury crisis didn't involve Michael Owen for the first time in recent memory. (It isn't a cheap shot, I swear. If it was, Owen would be out for 4-6 months.) What's more, in blinding contrast to his past 3 seasons, Owen undoubtedly defined the game with his hat-trick. In the absence of today's more established players, the superstar of yesterday provided United with a sorely needed striking instinct. Two of his goals came from a perfectly directed header and a deft chip of the goalie, and on such evidence, Owen still has the pace and skill that made him an English icon in the first place. While the media's overtures for an England recall may still be premature for a man who has struggled with consistency, he is showing that this elusive rhythm is all he currently lacks. Players like Darron Gibson are beginning to get more games and may have a brighter future, but at crucial moments like this, Michael Owen is proving his worth and justifying Sir Alex's continued faith.

United owe the first and third goals to Owen's finishing, but you might as well credit Gabriel Obertan with the winner. The young Frenchmen made about 3 Wolfsburg players look positively silly as he jerked his way through the German defense, before playing an effortless square ball to Owen for the finish. Personally, I can't help but think about Ronaldo when I see Obertan like this. As I've written before, Obertan was seemingly bought as the latest successor to United's #7, and his almost awkward way of jilting defenders positions him to rise to the heights of Best, Cantona, Beckham and Ronaldo in the shirt's history of misdirection. Ronaldo had more searing pace, but that was his trademark, just as Beckham's was his masterful passing, and Cantona's was, well, a unique mixture of traits. At least right now, Obertan is already distinguishing himself similarly, with a dribbling style that echoes Cantona but glides more and overpowers less. Stories such as Nani's teach us that we can't know just how a player will develop, but I will say one thing right now: I already love Gabriel Obertan, and I think he's going to become a world superstar.

By the way for those following at home, the madness in Group B didn't end even with the final whistle. Reports surfaced in injury time that two CSKA players had tested positive in random drug tests, prompting legitimate suggestions that CSKA could be thrown out of Europe altogether. Wouldn't this have shaken things up: CSKA would have been ejected from the competition immediately after qualifying for the group stage, and in all likelihood Wolfsburg would have been promoted from their Europa League slot to take their place. Hell, Besiktas would have found their way into the Europa League, despite having just blown their astronomically small shot at getting there! Unfortunately, UEFA ruined all my fun by letting CSKA stay in the Champions League. Thanks for nothing Platini, I guess it's back to the real world.

Finally, let me be the first to recognize that The Searching Cross has been barren lately, apart from the occasional tumbleweed. (Which have all originated in Manchester anyway.) Expect regular content to start up again next week, as I tackle a couple important themes of the last 2 months or so. If you check it out, in return I'll try my hardest to leave a certain Premier League champion unmentioned. No promises though.

"An extraordinary night of football at Old Trafford"

Wednesday afternoon, I avoided all Champions League news until after the FSC replay of Manchester United-CSKA Moscow, and I hope some of you did the same. The match was easily the most refreshing European tie I've seen recently, because any preconceived notion of a "stale" Champions League was thrown out the window from the opening whistle. CSKA ran the show offensively while an under-strength United side struggled to break down a tight defense, yet the Red Devils dominated the end of the game to produce a signature stirring comeback.

You can read a more detailed summary of the game here, but I had four observations that you might not see anywhere else.

**

That 3-1 lead was CSKA's to lose, and make no mistake, they lost it more than United overcame it. Nothing exemplifies this better than one clearance around the 80th minute: the ball fell near 3 CSKA attackers and 3 United defenders at midfield, yet no CSKA player made any pretense of going for the neutral ball. At the time, FSC's commentators lightly mentioned that CSKA refused to go forward for fear of being caught out, and that mentality was exactly what killed them. If you sit back and let an elite team like United take their chances, they will make you pay, as they've demonstrated ad nauseam to the point that "stirring comebacks" have become United's media-hyped habit. As CSKA had demonstrated for the first 75 minutes, the best way to shut United down is to put them on the back foot, and the Russians accomplished that in spades for the majority of the game. But as soon as they abandoned their offense for the last 15 minutes, you could just tell that United would pull it back, and I wasn't particularly flabbergasted when it happened.

**

No telling if it swung the game's outcome, but Olégario Benquerença put in a pretty poor officiating performance, for two reasons. First, he seemed to make some calls based on distinct preconceptions of players' styles. Darren Fletcher was the major victim of this policy, as he was booked early in the 2nd half for diving on a clear penalty decision, and later was mystifyingly whistled on a perfect tackle near the touchline. Second, Benquerença's yellow-card bark was never followed up with any real red-card bite. Yevgeny Aldonin abused the practical no-red-card policy as he went unpunished for multiple studs-up knee-high tackles, despite being on a yellow for the game's last 35 minutes. As a result, the game devolved into chippy skirmishes towards its heated conclusion, and when Benquerença finally did send off Deividas Samberas for a relatively benign skirmish with Gabriel Obertan, it was too late to reverse the game's degeneration. Just a very schizophrenic way to officiate a high-profile match.

**

Michael Owen and Gabriel Obertan are exact foils at this point in their careers. Owen contributed a vital goal, an instinctive finish based on years of striking prowess, but otherwise his movement was totally out of synch with the team. Meanwhile, Obertan dazzled with deceptive runs and complete field vision, but he is still learning how to direct that raw ability into a deadly product. The former contributes on the field via his vast experience in the game, while the latter contributes by progressively harnessing his great promise. The important similarity is that both found a way to contribute, and that the team looks most dangerous when everybody contributes in whatever way possible. Many pundits have noted that this United team is characterized by a

worrying dichotomy of young and old players, but judging by the contributions of Owen and Obertan, such a set-up could arguably be United's best way to beat young Arsenal and aging Chelsea to the title.

**

Together with Rubin Kazan's victory over Barcelona last matchday, CSKA's performance cements the Russian Premier League as a viable force on league, club, and individual levels. The League itself is approaching a firework-filled conclusion with Rubin Kazan and Spartak Moscow separated by a single point, a situation that exhibits some parity with traditional powers CSKA and Zenit St. Petersburg. The flagship clubs clearly can succeed in the Champions League, as Rubin and CSKA have earned points at two of the most hallowed grounds in Europe, and both are in control of their European destiny. And as Alan Dzagoev, Milos Krasic, and Igor Akinfeev proved in the CSKA-United game, Andrei Arshavin is far from the last superstar to come through the Russian Premier League. Forget their collective history in the Champions League, the Russian clubs are ready to make waves.

Death, taxes, and sensationalist media

To be honest, I hadn't planned on writing this week, because I've been quite busy lately. Of course, that changed once the Guardian published this story in the wake of the Manchester derby, about Manchester United receiving more stoppage time "when they need it". I'm sure you've guessed, I'm indignant about this deliberately lazy and sensationalist piece of journalism.

I'll start with the misleading accusation that United benefitted from "the referee... allow(ing) almost seven minutes, even though the fourth official had signalled a minimum of four" against Manchester City. In reality, those who read my Twitter feed, or more respectable coverage like that of the BBC, saw the very simple calculation. The official gave 4 minutes minimum stoppage, plus 1 added minute for Bellamy's goal celebration in stoppage, plus 30 seconds for United's substitution in stoppage, all of which equals 5.5 minutes. Michael Owen scored at 95:27, within the appropriate amount. The rest of the "seven minutes" resulted from Owen's extended celebration.

As for the report of United getting additional time when they're not winning, it's a true but totally incomplete statistic. Notice anything missing from the Guardian's story? The article provides overall stoppage time figures for the other 'Big Four' teams, but only to cleverly disguise its complete lack of the "winning/not winning" differential for those teams. In other words, despite conducting a thorough "study", the Guardian is conveniently omitting the fact that in all likelihood, this phenomenon happens for every Big Four team.

Without such an anti-United conspiracy theory, the question remains: why do the better teams get more time? Though we can only speculate, we should remember that stoppage time isn't decided in a vacuum, but rather by the events on the field. For instance, the best teams in England play fluid football, with very infrequent fouls.

If these teams play quickly like this, of course there'd be less stoppage time when they're winning. On the other hand, if other teams resort to slow them down with hard tackles and such, then there will be more stoppage time when they're losing. The fact that physical Chelsea leads the 'Big Four' in stoppage time at home supports this theory.

As I said, I'm only speculating, so I'm not claiming to understand the total cause behind the stoppage time disparity. My point is, I noticed the issue's complexity from looking at the basic facts in my free time, so clearly the experts at the Guardian could too. Instead, the Guardian smelled a sensationalist accusation to be printed, and they proceeded to select spotty and misleading evidence in an attempt to legitimize it, while ignoring facts that clearly disproved their potential scoop. They've created an unneeded commotion, not to mention distracted attention from possibly the greatest ever Manchester derby, and I've lost a tremendous amount of respect for the Guardian as a result.

It infuriates me that much soccer media is driven by "flashy stories" such an this, rather than by rational thought and analysis. One of the reasons I write this blog is because I disapprove of this type of laziness and sensationalism, and I think we should strive for a higher quality of talent. In the meantime, we'll have to trust the public to know the difference.

"My game is more beautiful than yours."

I may be overstating the situation, but Saturday's match between Arsenal and Manchester United had no redeeming value whatsoever. If you saw it, you know what I mean: none of the slick passing both teams are known for, no rhythm, and not even one goal scored without someone else's help. (I'll always maintain that Ben Foster got a hand to Andrei Arshavin's rocket, and should have kept it out.) This wasn't the Arsenal-United semifinal game of last year's Champions League, this was Chelsea-Barcelona.

You can blame most of that on the referee. As every Arsenal fan has pointed out in the last couple days, Mike Dean did a poor job of holding both teams to the same standards of physicality. The disparity in cards was the clearest indication of that, since Arsenal were shown twice as many yellows, despite being whistled for 6 less fouls. The penalty calls were horribly inconsistent as well, as Wayne Rooney received a borderline whistle, even though Arshavin was denied an automatic one earlier. Players usually seek early indications of the referee's standards on such things, but Dean left them in the dark all day.

Until today, I was simply thankful for the 3 points, and otherwise wrote the game off as a poorly officiated performance, as well as an unfortunate missed opportunity for an entertaining match. That, however, was before Arsene Wenger opened his mouth on Monday morning. In a calm press conference, Wenger made unprovoked comments that show the naivety and delusion of "The Professor".

My main reaction to the press conference: who is Arsene to decide what is "anti-football"? Whether or not the strategy was intentional, teams are certainly allowed to use strength to throw their opponents off their rhythm, as long as they aren't fouling players. The referee is the one to control a game's physicality, not the players, but in this case Mike Dean didn't reign it in. Shouldn't that anger be directed at Dean instead of Sir Alex?

No, I think the problem is deeper than that: Wenger has always been unable to admit that his team, or his players, have flaws. Arsenal hasn't succeeded against more physical squads, so he complains every time an opponent doesn't play "beautiful", rather than recognize that they're just tactically exploiting Arsenal's greatest weakness. Wenger is known to amend his perceptions to support his team, and this is just one more attempt to blame somebody else for the fact that his team has a flaw. The differences over time in his stance on diving supports this also. (See: his defense of Eduardo's ridiculous dive.)

I'm inevitably going to get under people's skin here, but this is why I can't stand when Arsenal fans tell me, "We're the best team to root for, because we play the purest football." Yeah, that's probably true, but games aren't won on style points; in the real world, a degree of practicality is necessary. A club might sometimes have to spend money, big money, on experienced imports, because an XI entirely from the academy is often too single-minded and easy to stop. A team might have to play stifling tactical defense, if strength is their only advantage towards winning 3 points. And the result of mixing this practicality with beauty can still be, well, this. Teams shouldn't abandon academies, or only play 5-4-1: the world needs purist beauty in the game. It's just that such purism alone is too easily ruined.

Arsene Wenger has long cemented his status as a genius, a romantic and an idealist who embodies why many people watch the beautiful game. I will always respect him for those qualities. But until he accepts that it's his team that has flaws, rather than the system it plays in, he'll also be forced to accept that being an idealist doesn't necessarily earn you anything.

Sir Alex Ferguson epitomizes the team mentality in Ronaldo's wake

Losing a loved one is hard. You grow and flourish with them, enjoy the best of times with them, and get used to having them in your life, so much so that you can't imagine life without them. Then they're suddenly gone, and for a long time, it seems like nothing can replace them. Though Cristiano Ronaldo likely does not feel this way about Manchester United (or, hopefully, about certain other recent associations of his), many loyal Red Devils surely hold such pangs of abandonment for him. But while the media view his departure in the same replacement-seeking way, Sir Alex Ferguson has shown in the past that he places a much higher value on the chemistry of the team.

When any superstar leaves, the media focuses on finding one player who fills the void. It's the natural response: "Who's going to 

replace all of those goals?" Superstars such as Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Karim Benzema, and Franck Ribery were all linked to perform the same functions as the departed Portuguese. The thought is so prevalent that it creeps into any related story, as the BBC demonstrated in mentioning "Ferguson (trying) to replace Cristiano Ronaldo" in their article on the transfer of Gabriel Obertan. Of course, such wording is mostly used to neatly summarize the issue, but to the public it portrays offseason changes as a player-for-player process, which influences the expectations of supporters.

 

In simplifying this, the media ignores similar precedents. In 2003, David Beckham left for Real Madrid after finally getting sick of Beckham's celebrity status impeding his duties to the team. However, nobody was brought in who was already considered a star at the time, as Sir Alex preferred to leave the scoring load to the increasingly rampant Ruud van Nistlerooy. (Louis Saha would be bought in the winter, but only once Ferguson realized he needed another goalscorer in the short term.) Beckham's successor was indeed bought during that offseason, but he was a prospect who then adjusted to Ferguson's team-first philosophy. Only at that point did he become a superstar, in the United mold. He took the number 7 shirt in Manchester, you may have heard of him. Think he moved to some team in Spain recently.

Likewise, in 2006 Ruud van Nistlerooy demanded a transfer after becoming increasingly frustrated with the dwindling number of playing opportunities on offer, and he got his ticket to Real Madrid. The blame for Ruud's frustration is a whole other matter entirely, but once it was clear that he was gone, Fergie saw the opportunity to liberalize the goalscoring responsiblity. Aware of the fact that United had become too dependent on feeding the ball to Ruud in the box for goals, he bought Michael Carrick to spread opportunities around the team, as well as Patrice Evra to give the backline some offensive tooth. This opened up the field for the likes of Ronaldo and Rooney to unleash their talents, and thus Sir Alex succeeded in molding the free-scoring squad of the last three years.

From these stories among many, we can see one undeniable truth: Ferguson understands the necessity of blooding players into the team over time. Great United teams have always had star players such as Beckham who developed at the club, mainly because on great teams, star players will inevitably emerge and attract more attention than anyone else, for one reason or another. However, Sir Alex knows that such stardom must develop organically at the club in order to serve the team's purposes, rather than players being imported as colorful but ultimately unfit puzzle pieces. His managerial career demonstrates his philosophy that even the greatest players in the world cannot always succeed without the almost telepathic support of the team, forged in the experience of growing up within the club.

 

Just as importantly, Ferguson understands that if a player no longer fits within the team's ethos, it is time for him to leave, no matter his talent. Beckham left because his celebrity got in the way of his duty, a phenomenon that can exist in the Hollywood 2.0 of Madrid, but not in the tunnels of Old Trafford. Van Nistlerooy left because Ferguson decided that his style of play seemed to dictate the team's approach, a situation he may have created but ultimately disposed of, much to Ruud's unhappiness. Games are determined by more than just the sum of individual talents; the players must augment and understand each other, and Fergie's greatest talent may be in mastering this 

conception of 'team'. It is why players such as Juan Sebastian Veron and Dimitar Berbatov have had difficulty at Old Trafford, why Real Madrid's first 'galactico' policy largely failed, and why there is no guarantee of success this year for the new breeds of galacticos at Real Madrid and Manchester City.

Ronaldo's departure is admittedly different than those of Beckham and van Nistlerooy. On their departures, Ferguson expressed that the latter two were hurting the team and benched them accordingly, but Fergie is clearly pained at losing who he calls "easily the best player in the world" and "streets ahead of them all". The other two were pushed out of Old Trafford, while Ronaldo could have stayed in Manchester as long as he liked, but eventually had to drag himself away to chase his "boyhood dream".

Nevertheless, a departure is still a departure no matter the story behind it, and the method of rebuilding remains the same. Once again, Ferguson has opted to develop a long-term successor in Obertan, virtually an unknown before this transfer. In the meantime, he has recruited Antonio Valencia to fill the role of pacy winger. Given the Ecuadorian's goalscoring record however, Ronaldo's goals are now more likely to come from established sources, as Wayne Rooney and Dimitar Berbatov seem likely to pick up some of that slack, with increased opportunity for Danny Welbeck, Federico Macheda, and the rescued Michael Owen. In their preseason in Malaysia, Owen has particularly demonstrated a knack for scoring crucial goals, a role that had previously fallen to Ronaldo and the departed Carlos Tevez. Thus, at least until Obertan is ready, Fergie seems content that Ronaldo's many former roles are now spread throughout the team.

As many of us mourn the loss of CR7 and the rise of CR9, accustomed to focusing on one leading light, we may naturally reach out to find another star for our adulation. While an Ibrahimovic or a Ribery could have potentially fit into the team well, Sir Alex knows that such gambles are pricey, and not as dependable as the method he has used to make Manchester United the best team in England. It seems to be a cold, loveless method, but in avoiding a focus on replacing individuals, Ferguson defines his legacy by constantly working to retain the concept of team, more lasting and loved than any one player has ever been and will ever be.