"At least, we are creating them and today I thought we deserved something It is frustrating and disappointing But if we go on playing like that it will happen for us We just need a lucky break."Or a player like Sheringham. "All week, our fans had been saying it was vital we won this one and we did it. That's what the good teams do."Albion's failure to score meant they extended their time without a goal to 290 minutes, and it was the wasted chances that worried Robson most. Diomansy Kamara had two chances and if he had been more composed it might have been a different story."Sheringham had been recalled to start in place of David Bellion and his intelligent and vibrant display was an example to his team-mates as West Ham won for only the second time in seven outings. "Yes, it was a big game for us, very important," Pardew said. A long diagonal cross from the right by Tomas Repka was headed down, with the aid of a deflection, by Christian Dailly, a second-half substitute for the injured Reo-Coker in midfield, and Sheringham controlled the ball before shooting with unerring accuracy beyond Tomasz Kuszczak.Even Bryan Robson, the West Bromwich Albion manager, admired the cool finish "Teddy did what we couldn't do," he said "His composure was what we lacked in front of goal.
"I told him that I was making Nigel [Reo-Coker] captain above him, for this game, before the start and he understood me and just got on with it and he was really up for the battle at the end when we were hanging on."Sheringham struck, with typical composed accuracy, after 57 minutes. But, on this evidence, he remains one of the cleverest strikers in the country, blessed by an intuition and technique that should leave younger imitators crimson with embarrassment. No wonder that his current manager, Alan Pardew, who this week signed a new five-year contract, was extolling his old lieutenant's virtues after the 175th Premiership goal of his career won a tight contest against a spirited and dangerous Albion. "It is honestly marvellous that he can put on a performance like that at his age," said Pardew after his team rose to eighth in the table. It's doubtful if the Glazer take-over will have a similar impact.. Teddy Sheringham for England? Given that he will turn 40 in April, probably not again He has been there and collected the shirts, after all. Rio has since riled United fans with protracted contract negotiations and failing to justify extravagant claims by his advocates that he is the world's best defender.6: ROMAN'S ARRIVALAbramovich and Jose Mourinho at Chelsea created a behemoth in opposition Suddenly Old Trafford was not a magnet for world talent. The Scot's volte-face, having announced his retirement, was not the wisest of moves.4: ROYAL DAVID'S CITYDeparture of David Beckham (above) deprived United of one of the world's best crossers and dead-ball executioners, not to mention a talismanic figure who contributed hugely to the financial clout of the brand.5: FORGETFUL RIOFerdinand's drug- test fiasco and the lengthy ban that followed proved costly.
Rearguard seriously weakened by the loss of Gabriel Heinze and Gary Neville.3: UNCERTAINTY OVER FERGIEIt's that familiar we-know-he's-going-but-when-will-he-quit question, as potentially destabilising in football as it is in politics. As he would presumably emphasise to today's younger rival: every which way, Jose.FALL OF UNITEDSix landmark factors in a spiral of decline1: FAILURE TO REGENERATEThere is no evidence that the venerated midfield of Beckham, Scholes, Keane and Giggs, a magnificent blend of pace, vision, physique and desire, is being effectively replenished, either through the academy or lavish purchase.2: IMPACT OF INJURIESParticularly to captain Roy Keane, the conscience of United Not the force he was, but still a huge motivating influence. "Every player has to be encouraged along when they have bad spells; that is what management is."But will his own management style be sufficient to arrest this decline? Ferguson is unabashed. All potential Old Trafford captures know that United's manager, for all his stature, has a limited "use-by" date. And then who succeeds him? Uncertainty, not aided by the departure of Steve McClaren and the installation of Carlos Queiroz as Ferguson's assistant, will not inspire confidence in prospective newcomers such as Bayern Munich's Michael Ballack, who could be a charismatic successor to Keane, a resource so surely a priority for United.There are those of us who warned way back in February 2002, when Ferguson, having the previous year turned out his his demob suit, then volunteered for continuation of duty, about the potential consequences of such action. But those who spurned United in favour of Chelsea include Arjen Robben, Damien Duff and Michael Essien.The football landscape has altered significantly since the start of the century, and United could be accused of not res-ponding to a new star appearing from the East in Abramovich The Russian got his man, Mourinho; he tends to get his men. "I heard last week that somebody said Wayne Rooney has got to be the leader of the team," he says "That's all very well.