After two years in the wilderness – at least by their usual standards – Manchester United finally clawed their way back to the top of the Premier League last weekend. While that lofty position will obviously have given the club’s fans cause to celebrate, the debate now is whether or not they will be able to stay there.

I’ve heard a few people over the past few days suggest it won’t last and that United will slip back down again by Christmas. A top four finish is plausible, they suggest, but not the title. But why not?

While the rest of their rivals have been displaying frightening levels of inconsistency, United have been plugging away, grinding out results and quietly going about the business of racking up points.

Manchester City range between looking invincible and vincible, which isn’t a word but it should be. Arsenal are once again flattering to deceive. Chelsea are embroiled in a mini-crisis which has shocked football. And Liverpool, well, the less said about them the better.

That’s not to say United are perfect. Far from it. Not even their most passionate and dedicated fan would suggest this is the dominant United of old. Whereas some United sides in the past have won through flair and flamboyance, this one is more about organisation and efficiency.

Van Gaal’s boys are getting the job done

But the simple fact is that Louis van Gaal’s boys are getting the job done. And I personally don’t see any reason why they can’t keep on doing just that for the rest of the season.

Of course, the counter argument to all this is that out of the other big boys, United have only faced Liverpool so far. The true test of their title credentials will come when they start to play the other contenders.

Luckily we don’t have to wait long for that because this afternoon they take on Arsenal at the Emirates in what could be a season defining moment for both teams. Van Gaal will be desperate to maintain momentum and come away with a result that will drive fear into the hearts of other teams with title aspirations. Meanwhile, an increasingly nervous and delusional Arsene Wenger knows the only way he can justify his impending failure in Eu­rope this season is to ensure his team mount a proper title challenge.

Clashes between these two teams are rarely dull. This afternoon’s could be epic.

Karma in Brentford

On a couple of occasions towards the end of last season I wrote about Brentford manager Mark Warburton and the club’s ludicrous decision not to offer him a new contract.

In consecutive seasons Warburton got the team promoted to the Championship then took them to the play-offs and within a whisker of promotion to the Premiership. All while playing attacking and entertaining football that the fans loved.

And his reward for this: to be effectively sacked on the basis that owner Matthew Benham wanted someone with a more European style of management in charge.

So out went Warburton (who was only able to land a job managing little Glasgow Rangers, so he must be bad) and in came Dutchman Marinus Dijkhuizen, who must surely be better because he isn’t British.

Or maybe not. Last week Brentford fired Dijkhuizen, with the team languishing towards the bottom of the Championship with just two wins out of their eight league games.

And taking his place? Lee Carsley. The former Blackburn, Coventry and Everton player, who is hardly what you could describe as a European-style coach. How’s that humble pie tasting, Mr Benham?

A rich vein of form

Sometimes strikers go through periods where they have a Midas touch, where every shot they take nestles in the back of the net. But I don’t think I’ve ever seen a patch quite as purple as the one Robert Lewan­dowski is current immersed in.

His mid-week hat trick for Bayern Munich against Dinamo Zagreb means he has now hit 10 goals in three games. Or, to be fair, two-and-a-half games. Let’s not forget the five goals in nine minutes that thrust him into the limelight came after he was brought on as a second-half substitute against Wolfsburg.

Lewandowski has scored 14 goals for his club in just eight appearances this season, a remarkable run of form. Sadly, given the nature of playing up front, it will inevitably end sooner or later and he will struggle to hit a cow’s arse with a banjo.

Unless you are Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi, form like this always dries up. But even so, I think Lewandowski has already done enough to ensure he gets the respect he deserves in future, something he hasn’t always enjoyed at Bayern.

Clutching at straws

Defeat in their first two group games has left Arsenal’s chances of making it through the Champions League knockout stages hanging by a thread.

Yet despite their precarious state, Wenger insists their hopes are not over. “It leaves us in a bad position but we are still in it. We have to get a result in our next game against Bayern Munich,” he said.

I’m sure there will be a result in their game with German champions. Just not the one Wenger is hoping for. In fact, considering how Arsenal defended against Olympia­kos, there is a reasonable chance Lewandowski might be able to beat them on his own…

sportscolumnist@timesofmalta.com
Twitter: @maltablade