Chapter 737 - 135: Three-Game Winning Streak! Unstoppable! Shocking Massacre! Overwhelming Victory! Top Defensive Midfielder and Winter Break Signings!

At this point, the score on the pitch was 0-1, with Manchester City having taken the lead in the first half thanks to a goal from Balotelli. However, it wasn’t long before Anderson committed another foul on a Manchester City player in the penalty area, though no penalty was awarded. This could be seen as cutting Manchester United some slack, evening things out a bit. Unfortunately, Manchester United ultimately couldn’t hold on.

After launching continuous attacks, Manchester City finally scored again in the 60th minute. In the 81st minute, after Fletcher pulled a goal back for Manchester United, the score became 1-3. For a team that had been down a man since half-time, this was still a relatively normal result.

The game took a drastic turn in the closing stages. Beginning in the 89th minute, Manchester City scored a flurry of consecutive goals, ultimately securing a 6-1 away victory over Manchester United.

"My God, Manchester City has gone absolutely crazy this season!"

"Tell me about it! With the strongest lineup in the Premier League, thrashing Manchester United 6-1 away—it’s unbelievable!"

"Manchester City’s overall strength right now is indeed formidable."

"The main reason is that Manchester United completely collapsed. Playing the Champions League mid-week and the derby on the weekend, I can’t believe they lost this badly."

"And the mid-week Champions League away game was also a huge struggle. Vidic even got a red card!"

"Serves them right. I actually think the referee took good enough care of Manchester United already; they were spared a penalty call."

As his teammates chattered animatedly, Wang Shuo’s mind was churning as he watched. What exactly was wrong with Manchester United? He didn’t actually care much about their situation, but he knew one could draw many lessons from the failures of others.

Earlier this season, Manchester United had been an unstoppable force, smooth sailing all the way. The underlying reason was that their attack and midfield had gelled nicely, and their defensive line remained solid. The midfield was particularly outstanding. When they played against Arsenal, Manchester United’s midfielders constantly disrupted Arsenal’s passing and cutting plays.

But what about now? It was the same group of players, so why were they faltering now?

The answer was simple: stamina! Early in the league campaign, their style of play was highly effective when everyone had abundant energy. However, as the season progressed and players competed on multiple fronts, their physical fitness declined, severely compromising their tactical effectiveness. It simply wasn’t working anymore!

Under these circumstances, Manchester United’s flaws were completely exposed.

"In this match, Manchester City bypassed the midfield far too easily. Given the individual prowess of Manchester City’s forwards, it would be a miracle if Manchester United’s defensive line could hold them off!" Wang Shuo hit the nail on the head, pointing straight at the crux of the issue.

Did Evans have issues? Yes! But it was unfair to push all the blame onto him. Manchester United was bound to lose this match; the only difference was those last three goals. And it was precisely those three goals that exposed Manchester United’s stamina problems.

Then there was the issue of the holding midfielder. Despite Fletcher scoring a goal, the midfield duo he formed with Anderson just didn’t cut it!

Why did Vidic get a red card during the mid-week Champions League match? It was also because the opposition passed through the midfield, and Vidic was forced to commit a foul out of sheer desperation. Manchester United lacked a true holding midfielder!

Owen Hargreaves? No, no, no. Even at his peak, the England midfielder was never a holding midfielder.

Thinking of this, Wang Shuo suddenly recalled Wenger approaching him earlier to discuss Alexandre Song. The Cameroon midfielder was a perfectly capable holding midfielder! Looking again at Manchester United’s crushing defeat, Wang Shuo realized just how crucial Alexandre Song truly was! Furthermore, if they sold him, who could they possibly buy in the transfer market with that money?

Alexandre Song’s current market valuation was around 24 million euros. Leaving everything else aside, could they even buy a holding midfielder of comparable caliber with that amount? What a joke! Not to mention, if Arsenal really were to sell Alexandre Song, exactly how much of the transfer fee would actually be made available to spend remained a complete unknown.

Realizing this and looking at Manchester United’s disastrous defeat, Wang Shuo deeply understood that Alexandre Song had to stay. Otherwise, what would the Gunners rely on to achieve results in the coming years? Strictly speaking, neither Matuidi nor Arteta was a holding midfielder. This must have been why Wenger valued Alexandre Song so highly! By getting involved this time, Wang Shuo could also further elevate his authority in the locker room.

During their post-match analysis, Sky Sports specifically highlighted a statistic. Including this match, Manchester United had only conceded 14 goals, yet they were the team that had faced the most shots in the Premier League this season. Bar none! The implication of this was self-evident.

Wang Shuo knew perfectly well that Arsenal was currently getting on the right track. Everything was developing in a positive direction, and their confidence was steadily returning. As long as they kept this up, he believed they could still achieve something significant this season. Even when it came to the Premier League title, the ultimate victor was still up in the air. At the very least, the Gunners were now sitting second in the Premier League.

Their next away game against Chelsea would be another major test for Arsenal. Many people hadn’t realized that, having played nine rounds so far this season, the Gunners had already faced all the top-seven teams in the league, with the exception of Manchester City and Chelsea. And apart from Liverpool, all of them had been away games!