UFC 168: Rousey vs Tate

LAS VEGAS – UFC women's bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey lived up to her billing on Saturday, finishing Miesha Tate with her patented arm bar, but in the process became perhaps the most disliked fighter in the UFC.

Rousey went past the first round for the first time in eight pro fights, but she pummeled Tate throughout before getting the arm bar submission at 58 seconds of the third round in the co-main event of UFC 168 at the MGM Grand Garden.

The 2008 Olympic bronze medalist in judo threw Tate several times and was clearly physically dominant. She had Tate in bad positions throughout the fight, but Tate was gritty and battled her way out of several precarious situations.

Rousey, though, raised the ire of the sell-out crowd when she snubbed Tate when Tate offered to shake hands after the finish. Seconds after referee Mario Yamasaki broke them up, Tate stood up and extended her right hand to Rousey.

The two have had a long hatred of one another that was heightened during their stint coaching opposite each other on the reality series, "The Ultimate Fighter," earlier this year.

Rousey looked at Tate and walked away, refusing to shake hands. The fans responded with a thunderous series of boos. The booing was so loud that when Rousey was being interviewed by Joe Rogan in the cage after her win, it was virtually impossible to hear her speaking.

It was a classless act, but it was likely calculated to increase her status as the UFC's top heel. She's now the fighter the fans love to hate, and that will sell her a lot of pay-per-views.

So, too, will fighting aggressively throughout the bout, as she did in dominating Tate.

Shocks of The Year

It was a day every Manchester United fan knew had to come, but when the news finally arrived on May 8th it still left football stunned.

Fergie was already a part of the game’s history, a knight of the realm with a bronze statue and a stand named after him – yet even in his 70s he maintained his relevance, his importance and most of all his success.

After 27 years, it was impossible to conceive of a Manchester United dugout without the gum-chewing, puce-faced genius who had led United to the single greatest period of dominance in the history of the English game.

Liverpool under Shankly and Paisley might have scaled greater heights in Europe, but Ferguson’s 13 league titles in 20 years is a feat of sustained brilliance that we may never see repeated.

When you look at how he willed a deeply flawed squad to their last championship under his stewardship, it is hardly surprising David Moyes has found his job beyond impossible. Wayne Rooney moped, defenders dropped down injured and Michael Carrick waged a one-man war in midfield.

But somehow, for Fergie, it didn’t matter. Some of his tactics, team selections and transfers would have caused open mutiny among other fan bases. Think Marouane Fellaini’s bad? How about David Bellion, Eric Djemba-Djemba or the incomparable Bebe?

But winning cures everything, and nobody knew how to win better than Fergie.

Your Job Now Is To Stand By Your New Manager - Sir Alex

Remember these words folks - "Your job now is to stand by your new manager"? A simple reminder by the best football manager of all time, Sir Alex Ferguson during his last game at Old Trafford after securing his 13th Premier League title with Manchester United last May. He knows it will be tough for the new manager, the players and especially the fans this season. United are languishing at 9th approaching the festive period but this is the time when we should stick together and get out of this mess. If any team could do, it's us, Manchester UNITED!!! 

David Moyes will receive the majority of the criticism for a run of form that extinguishes Manchester United's title ambitions before the equinox and leaves the confidence of their fans and players in tatters. While the new manager is performing badly, the blame cannot be laid solely at his door. Those in the directors' box and the boardroom must shoulder some of the blame. United's fall has been a long time coming. Eight years, to be exact.

Two separate polls, one at the Manchester Evening News and one at Stretford-end.com, asked the same question on Saturday night -- can Manchester United finish in the top four? As of Sunday afternoon, the answer was a resounding no (68 percent in the first poll, 78 percent in the latter). The club that asks its fans to "believe" has made them give up.

Moyes is responsible for the same thing that all managers are responsible for; the selection of the team, the tactics they employ and motivating the players. Thus far, he has selected players who are not good enough, and repeatedly. He has persisted with Ashley Young and Marouane Fellaini despite below-par performances.

Why is he doing this? Quite possibly because they are as good as any players he has worked with in the past. He is also not in a position where he can tear into the dressing room for fear of losing it. He is trying to direct traffic with his hands tied behind his back.

"This time last year we were 3-2 up with nine minutes to go," Newcastle's Alan Pardew said after the match. Yet United came back on New Year's Eve 2012. There was never any danger of that in the Magpies' 1-0 win on Saturday.

Moyes has played with tactics that encourage the side to hold on to narrow margins, trying to close games out at 1-0. This policy has seen United concede last-minute equalisers on several occasions -- defending when they should be attacking.

The side lacked edge and desire against Newcastle. It always does when Wayne Rooney is not on the field. It is not Moyes' fault he is not the unique motivational genius Sir Alex Ferguson was. But he patently is not.

On the other hand, Moyes could not have played a more attacking team on Saturday. Robin van Persie, Chicharito, Nani and Adnan Januzaj all started. Additionally, bringing on Antonio Valencia and Wilfried Zaha was a sound decision, as United had no way to gain control of central midfield. Trying to get penetration from the wings seemed sensible considering the circumstances.

Fergie is not without blame here. United have bought only one world-class player in the past eight years. As players have aged, the squad has not been replenished as it should have been. Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic are clinging on past their prime. Previously, greats such as Gary Pallister and Jaap Stam were replaced with a minimum of fuss.

The squad is awash with personnel who have had plenty of chances to make it and failed. Nani, Anderson, Tom Cleverley and even Danny Welbeck are far short of the stardust quality that wins European Cups.

Other than Rooney, van Persie, Michael Carrick and David de Gea, it is hard to see where the top-level players in the United dressing room are. In comparison, Chelsea have brought in Eden Hazard, Juan Mata and Oscar in recent years. City have topped themselves up with Samir Nasri, Sergio Aguero and a host of others. United lag far behind.

The foundations for this week of shame were laid in 2005 when the Glazer family took control of the club. Eight years of underinvestment has come home to roost. Former chief executive David Gill and Fergie, for whatever reason, did not sound the alarm internally when they were running the show. It looks as if they got out just in time.

Hope can be found in the fact this team has beaten the league leaders and the Bundesliga's second-place team in the past month. They are not as bad as the past two results suggest. Nonetheless, the fans are reeling at the moment and this situation is as bad as any that could have been imagined.

The Glazer family must surely realise they must spend big, and now, or the brand will be damaged irreparably. The fans just want their club back. After years of watching money travel quietly into the pockets of hedge-fund managers, the team on the field is starting to suffer. The worst may be yet to come.

Yes, This Is A Crisis

Footballing feast can rapidly fade to famine. Panic, too, can only speed decline, as Manchester United may recall from their own history. But when things are not going well, the knives come out quickly. Many want their judgment that David Moyes is not the man for United to be proved correct, and quickly, too. How long can he last if this continues? 

Results are stacking up as evidence, with five defeats in 15 Premier League games. Everton and Newcastle United used to turn up for a habitual defeat at Old Trafford; both celebrated victories in four days. Everton had not won here for 21 years, and the Toon Army since 1972. Even Ryan Giggs was not born then. The last time United lost two Premier League home games in a row was May 2002, just weeks into Moyes' reign at Everton. 

Yohan Cabaye's deflected goal off the sole of Nemanja Vidic's boot was the type of mishap that now happens regularly. That "Come on, David Moyes" anthem did not get much of an airing. A lack of confidence and belief in the manager has already sapped vocal support, though he was applauded by the Stretford End as he left the field. 

"I think the fans have been great to me," Moyes said after the match. "I think they understand there's a great transition going on here but I don't think they or me expected us to lose five games by this stage of the season." 

For the second match in a row, there was no relentless pursuit of late redemption. United played far better against Everton, too. Robin van Persie had the ball in the net in the 73rd minute, but his goal was correctly disallowed for offside. He and his teammates created little else of note, even if they might have had a penalty before Cabaye's winner when Vurnon Anita handballed following a Patrice Evra header. 

"After Everton's victory it was either going to be a good time to play them or we were going to get a reaction," Alan Pardew said. "But we made a statement that we were here." 

Van Persie handed in a transfer request last week -- or so the story went, from a combination of an anonymous Twitter account, and some second-hand information from former Liverpool defender and current media pundit Mark Lawrenson. Learned observers suggest a disagreement over training methods between manager and star striker. Van Persie, a classically Dutch straight talker, is not one to surrender his corner meekly. In the face of such speculation, Van Persie took his place in United's lineup. "Absolute nonsense," Moyes said dismissively. 

Time for the amateur body language experts to find signs of disaffection though, by the end, most of United's players looked as if they fancied being somewhere else, too. Strikers are often difficult to read. The affectation of diffidence is a means by which to surprise opponents -- Denis Law made that an art form on this very stage. 

Van Persie played as a No. 10 behind Javier Hernandez. Moyes' mainstay has been Wayne Rooney, trouble turned talisman, but suspension ruled him out, and so the Dutchman filled those shoes. In place of gusto was ghosting, although Van Persie did put in a Rooney-esque crunching tackle on Cabaye. It was his most obvious contribution of a listless first half for both teams. Well, that and a pathetic free-kick routine with Nani that set up a Newcastle attack. 

The Pardew plan had been to hold on until halftime and pick off their opponents. It paid off, just as it had against Tottenham and Chelsea. 

Pardew, flush with victory, was able to offer the type of support Moyes probably did not want to have to hear. "The best thing this club can do is stick by him," the Newcastle boss said. "He is the right man for them."

Five wins from six now, and Newcastle, of all clubs, can look down on Manchester United as a panicking outfit whose greatest problem is a lack of fluency. Moyes takes blame for that but a refresher in late-Ferguson era teams would remind that doggedness had become the team's greatest strength. Creativity is hard to locate when a team cannot relax. Meanwhile, a previously iron will to win has departed, feared lost. 

Rio Ferdinand, somewhat indiscreet about his manager's method of team selections, was spotted giggling on the bench as Moyes again shifted around his centre-backs. The last time he fielded the same pairing was back in October against Stoke. 

Moyes is yet to field the same XI in his 15 matches, a clear sign of a man in a muddle, from a manager previously used to fielding the same team every week at Everton. A mark of continuing inconsistency was the Premier League bow of Wilfried Zaha as a sub. The erstwhile mystery man had his team's best effort in open play when dipping a shot wide from long range -- potshots had become the best hope of an undeserved equaliser. United's midfield in the closing minutes was Adnan Januzaj, Phil Jones, Anderson and Zaha. It was not a combination capable of restoring parity or faith in the manager. 

Arguments that Moyes took over a title-winning team should be balanced against the fact United have needed a redux for some time. Few could suggest that the 2013 title winners were of the vintage of 2008's European champions. 

"I haven't changed anything. It's the same players," Moyes said, defensively. 

Rebuilding takes time and is usually painful, but a transfer window has already been, gone and was never properly engaged. Marouane Fellaini was absent with a bruised back, and absence might do him some good. The Belgian had become an unfortunate symbol of a sinking season. 

Moyes must now take that role alone. Supportive evidence for any future success is dwindling in the face of poor performances and even worse results. This is not Everton. He now is at Manchester United, and their current position points to a crisis of confidence in him.