Ferguson makes it needlessly hard for United
"We always make it hard for ourselves, it's in the nature of this club." So goes the popular Sir Alex Ferguson refrain and, with his team coming from behind yet again, he will probably consider himself proved right yet again. But there is not a whole lot that Steve Bruce's late headers have in common with the epidemic of rescue missions required almost 20 years later. More likely they reflect compulsive tinkering and inexplicable team selections which are creating unnecessary messes that need clearing up. Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs are exceptional substitutes because both still produce exceptional moments but the moments before and after are of variable quality. Thus, with both starting against Newcastle and Tom Cleverley on the bench, it was no surprise to see United's midfield ignored by the visitors – Tottenham did the same and Liverpool and Norwich, too, in games featuring only Giggs.
In other words it is not the club's nature that's making it hard for United but the stubborn, "I'll show you" nature of the manager – which, paradoxically, inculcated the fabled resilience. As Arsenal and Liverpool discovered between 2006 and 2009, there are only so many deficits a team will retrieve in a season and only so many games salvageable with late flurries. Without doubt the club will be in trouble when Ferguson leaves but increasingly the same is true for as long as he stays; the cohesion and zip which characterises the best teams and his best teams will arise here and there via confluence of circumstance but never with the exhilarating reliability that is achieved only with a settled side. Daniel Harris
Chelsea still need Lampard for now
Contrary to all the speculation Frank Lampard will not be leaving Chelsea in January. With Mikel John Obi away at the Africa Cup of Nations, the transformation of David Luiz into a creative midfielder means Rafael Benítez needs a disciplined and experienced holding player alongside the Brazilian. Lampard is needed at Stamford Bridge until the end of the season. Richard Rae
T-shirts are not offensive
It is not a new complaint but remains one with which practically everyone who follows football agrees – booking a player for taking his shirt off is one of the most ridiculous and humourless laws in sport and should be done away with. What, after all, was wrong with Dimitar Berbatov celebrating his goal against Southampton by revealing a T-shirt bearing the message: "Keep calm and pass me the ball"? The gesture is neither offensive nor provocative. Fulham's manager, Martin Jol, described Berbatov's actions as stupid, but mainly because he knew it would result in a yellow card. The real stupidity lies with the law makers. Sachin Nakrani
Neville offers more than just a number to Everton
Phil Neville became only the seventh player to make 500 appearances in the Premier League on Boxing Day. He joined Ryan Giggs, Sol Campbell, Gary Speed, Emile Heskey, Frank Lampard and David James in passing that impressive milestone and was congratulated by the Wigan supporters at Goodison Park with a rendition of "You're just a shit Gary Neville". His importance to Everton, however, cannot be understated. Right-back has been a weakness in the Everton defence for much of this season, with Tony Hibbert nursing a calf problem, but Neville's return offers the experience, solidity and, as Phil Jagielka's winner showed, the delivery that David Moyes craves from his full-backs. Andy Hunter
West Brom show the way forward for smaller clubs
Forget the sense of injustice that gripped QPR's Harry Redknapp, his grievance understandable that Marc-Antoine Fortuné's rather obvious foul on Robert Green went unpunished as the visitors registered their second goal. Instead admire yet again the campaign of West Bromwich Albion. They were the more assured and impressive side on show at Loftus Road and a second successive win was proof of this team's powers of recovery, after the previous four-game sequence yielded only a point, and thrust them to a giddy 33 points from Steve Clarke's first half-season in management. They have such quality throughout their line-up – Ben Foster in goal, Youssouf Mulumbu's irrepressible energy, the threat of Chris Brunt and James Morrison, and a quartet with industry and bite up front – that they can surely be this term's Newcastle, infiltrating the usual suspects at the top. Certainly those who suspected their bubble had burst can think again. They travel to Old Trafford on Saturday as a blueprint for long-term planning that should inspire rival clubs with aspirations, not least those the size of QPR. Manchester United beware. Dominic Fifield
Liverpool's inconsistency is maddening
The Merseyside club's defeat at Stoke City came hard on the heels of their picture-perfect drubbing of Fulham and had the manager, Brendan Rodgers, lamenting "two or three steps forward", a stumble and then having to go again. His reign has taken on a spluttering quality and this defeat was more painful as his team had scored early only to throw it all away. Luis Suárez stood alone in creative terms, the midfield was passive and the defensive errors were glaring. Now Liverpool must try to go again at QPR on Sunday. David Hytner
What does Villas-Boas do about Rose?
Danny Rose shone again at left-back for Sunderland during their 1-0 win against Manchester City, impressing both defensively and going forward before being withdrawn to a standing ovation late on. He is Sunderland's player of the season so far but could, theoretically, be recalled from loan by his parent club Tottenham. Martin O'Neill wants to sign permanently a player who also looks good in midfield, so what does André Villas-Boas do? Can he risk letting him go? But then, if he recalls Rose, where would he fit him in at Spurs? Louise Taylor
Villa need dash of experience to steady the ship
It was hard to gauge the mood at Aston Villa after a second hammering in the space of four days. When Gareth Bale scored his second and Tottenham Hotspur's third, in the 73rd minute, quite a number of the home supporters headed for home. Yet in the closing stages, with Villa 4-0 down, Paul Lambert's name was being sung with gusto on the Holte End. Come the final whistle, frustration resurfaced and there was a smattering of boos. It was all a little perplexing, which is one way of describing how a team can win 4-1 at Norwich and 3-1 at Liverpool one week and lose 8-0 against Chelsea and 4-0 against Spurs not long afterwards. Lambert was in typically defiant mood after the Spurs result, claiming yet again that his players "will be fine", which has been his message from day one. There are signs, though, that this callow Villa team is in desperate need of leadership and experience. It looks as though Reading and Queens Park Rangers will fill two of the three relegation berths. Lambert, however, may have to change his recruitment policy and invest in a couple of senior players in January to ensure that Villa, who have scored the fewest goals in the Premier League and conceded more than anyone except Reading, avoid being dragged into that final spot. Stuart James
Vidic can stop United's leaks
Manchester United now lead Manchester City by seven points at the halfway mark, although the suspicion remains that a continually leaky defence could cause them problems in the next 19 games. Sir Alex Ferguson, therefore, hopes Nemanja Vidic's soreness in the knee that caused him to be an unused reserve in the helter-skelter 4-3 win over Newcastle United is merely a reaction to a first start – Sunday's draw at Swansea City. United need their captain back and fully fit for the first time in over a year to lead and shore up the defence. Jamie Jackson
Are Swansea asking too much of Michu?
Michael Laudrup will be a worried man as he awaits news on the injury suffered by Michu against Reading but, whatever the outcome of tests on the heavily swollen ankle, the Swansea manager knows he needs a new striker. Michu is the Premier League's joint top scorer this season but he prefers to play off a main target man, rather than in the more advanced position he is being asked to fill. Danny Graham was exceptional last season but has started only one game since the beginning of October. Luke Moore was given a start against Reading but he has never convinced in the Premier League despite being highly regarded as a teenager at Aston Villa, and Laudrup kept Michu as the furthest player forward anyway. Michu's injury may turn out to be little more than bruising but his manager must find a striker in January who can lead the line and allow the Spaniard to drop a little deeper so he can return to doing what he does best: arriving late in the box and hitting the target. Rob Bleaney
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