A formulae that ensures United will always be at the forefront

Football FanCast columnist Lewis Doe looks at the formulae that ensures that United will always be at the forefront in the chase for honours.

Manchester United are possibly the only club in the country that could go through such a rough patch of form and still emerge from it the other side still fighting for success on all fronts. 

With the second leg of their Champions League quarter final in Porto coming up on Wednesday, it seems a fitting moment to look at what defines the resistance and determination of the current European champions. 

Firstly, they have one of the best managers of all time. Sir Alex Ferguson has tackled everything football can produce and very nearly lost his job at United before the seeds of success could be harvested. 

There is no substitute for experience and Sir Alex will know how to handle every single one of his players, whether that be Ryan Giggs or Federico Macheda. The point being that even with a long injury list, Ferguson can get the best out of whoever he puts on the pitch. Vital if United are to continue their campaign for all five trophies. 

To go along with the experience of the manager United also have a number of greatly experienced older players. The likes of Edwin Van Der Sar, Gary Neville and Ryan Giggs among others will be able to pull the younger crop of players along, letting them know what to expect along the way. 

What this means to the side is that they know how to grind out results just to get three points, or just to get through a leg of one tie. There is no price that can be put on this and if United become the first English side to win in Porto on Wednesday night then a lot of it will be down to these gritty and experienced individuals.  

United would be in a much more fragile position than they are at the moment if their squad wasn't as deep and as talented as it is. The huge injury list has exposed the bare bones of this squad but the players being given chances are some of the most talented in Europe. 

Macheda has been called more talented than Ronaldo, which is more than admirable, and the likes of Johnny Evans and Rafael Da Silva have virtually secured a first team regular slot for the next few years at least. 

In recent years the academy products of bigger clubs have been over looked as youngsters generally get a better chance to play when they don't have two or three players before them in a position. Now that injuries have exposed the squad, it can be seen that United's academy is as good as anyone else's.  

Club structure is also important at a time when the team isn't performing as well on the pitch. There are no doubts over who is control at Old Trafford, which allows the manager to centralise his resources and delegate accordingly, providing the most efficient outcomes possible. 

If the manager wasn't the only one pulling the strings then there would be clear knock on signs shown by the players on the field. 

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