Portsmouth 1-1 Manchester United
I honestly believe that a little bit too much has been made of the importance of a flawless start in pre-season. There is just far too much quality in the league, even if you only look ata the managers, for it to be a race to perfection this season. Points will be dropped everywhere and games will be hard. I think 75 points will take the title this year. That said, only getting two from your first two games and then facing a Manchester derby next ain’t great. I never feel confident playing against Redknapp’s teams, I’ve always thought he is a wily old bugger that we should be extra wary of. His half-time substitutions and the second half turn around did little to alter my opinion.We have played some lovely stuff in both games but I was beginning to worry where our steel was with no Rooney no Neville and no Hargreaves. Well there is nothing like a full team brawl to allay any fears you have about your team’s fighting spirit. Now it is no Ronaldo too.On the plus side Nani looks very useful indeed. Over the next few weeks he will need to be.