Four games. Four Wins: Just how good is this Manchester United team?

Four games, eighteen goals, twelve points.

That is the story, so far, of Manchester United's season.

It means they are top of the table, level on points and ahead on goal different with their city rivals, Manchester City.

Both teams have set a blistering pace to the start of the season, with the other usual contenders struggling to keep up.

Liverpool stuttered against Sunderland and lost against Stoke.

Chelsea have looked unconvincing.

And Arsenal? Well, the less said about them, the better.

United are traditionally slow starters to a season- normally kicking into gear after Christmas and powering on into May, claiming the title and any other silverware that happens to be lying around on the way.

This season however, they have started in fifth gear. A shaky opening performance against West Brom aside, a 5-0 victory against a talented Tottenham, 8-2 demolition of an under strength albeit equally aged Arsenal team and a 5-0 thrashing of a resiliant and vastly improved Bolton team, sounded a message to the rest of the league, and Europe beyond.

But how good are United?

I mean, really, how good are they?

Well, with the additions of Phil Jones and Ashley Young, they are certainly better than the championship winning team and Champions League finalists of last season.

David de Gea has had a slow start, but he will undoubtedly prove to be a great signing- people forget he is only twenty year old- young, especially for a goalkeeper.

Young, in particular has been in fine form- dragging United to a victory against West Brom, being equally impressive against Spurs and excellent against Arsenal.

Phil Jones though, shouldn't be overlooked- against Bolton, starting at the unfamiliar right back position, he ripped apart the far more experienced Paul Robinson, setting up two with a fantastic delivery and mazy run respectively, whilst also contributing to a clean sheet.

United seem to have a more youthful look about them this season- not only with De Gea (20) replacing Van Der Sar (40) and the addition of Jones (19). But academy players Cleverley (22) and Welbeck (20) back from loan periods have come straight into the first team and impressed. Not to mention Chris Smalling (21) doing so well at right back he earned two England caps.

I haven't even mentioned Wayne Rooney.

Two hat-tricks in his last two games- a goal in every Premier League game this season- need I say more?

The style of football United are playing is not only effective, but beautiful to watch- Nani's goal in the Community Shield was full of inter-play and passing Barcelona would have been proud of.

And so we come to it.

The elephant in the room.

Barcelona.

Are they better than the European Champions?

Well first things first- United are better than City.

Despite City's impressive start to the season (and it has been incredibly impressive), I expect them to fall away at some point during the season.

Mental toughness is United's biggest weapon- and that has been earned through experience, not bought.

As the winter sets in, Sergio Aguero gets a taste of the English weather and Yaya Toure jets off for the African Cup of Nations, I can see City falling away- not by much- but I think points will be dropped.

So back to Barcelona.

The bane of Ferguson (and probably the reason he's staying on).

In last season's Champion's League final, United were schooled.

It was a performance that illustrated the gulf between the Catalan club and the best of the rest.

So now.

Have United closed the gap?

The short answer is yes, I believe they have- although Barcelona have undoubtedly strengthened, I think United have done slightly more- not to mention the gradual evolution of their youth players.

But still, I don't think United are as good as Barcelona.

United are good, Barca are better.

Despite throwing away of 2-0 lead today and coming away with a 2-2 draw, Barcelona just seem to be on another level to everyone else- even the seemingly unstoppable United.

The gulf in class so massive last season, it may take a few years before this crop of Fledglings can challenge Barcelona's dominance of Europe.

But challenge they will.

Experience is key, and I see a couple more lessons in Europe needed before Ferguson can get his hands on that famous trophy for the third time.

So how good is this Manchester United team?

They'll probably win the Premier League this season.

They're better than last year.

But they're still only the second best team in Europe.

Does Rooney escaping punishment symbolise all that is wrong with the FA?

Wayne Rooney has escaped punishment for his elbow on James McCarthy against Wigan on Saturday.

As the referee Mark Clattenburg did not book Rooney at the time, the FA had the option to ban him retrospectively but it seems they have not decided to take any action.

Footage seems to show that when McCarthy tried to block Rooney off, the England hitman stung an elbow forcefully into the side of the midfielder's face.

If the referee says he did not see the incident, which he surely must not have based on the fact Rooney was not given a card, the FA can take action themselves.

This has not happened however and as Clattenburg has said he thought he took the appropriate action, the FA is powerless.

As an objective fan, to me at least, that elbow looked dangerous and malicious- two things which should not be tolerated in our game.

To McCarthy's credit, he did not make a big deal of it and that may have helped Rooney.

The disciplinary system of the FA however, seriously needs to be looked at.

With their desire not to undermine officials, they are sacrificing their power to stamp out challenges and incidents which should not be tolerated.

If for example, a player is booked for a challenge, even if on retrospective viewing it was the worst tackle ever and did/could have resulted in serious injury, the FA cannot overrule the card and the player will escape any further action.

This surely cannot be right.

Just because the referee missed it or had a different opinion, doesn't mean he was right and the FA should have the bottle to admit their officials are not perfect.

Their inability to acknowledge technology, even replays after a game, are beneficial is once of their biggest weaknesses and symbolises everything that is wrong in the FA.

If they did, we would get a fairer game and much much more uniform discipline across the board.

What do you think?

Are there any changes you'd like to see at the FA or in football as a whole?

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Rooney: Man or Myth?

Over the last season a ghost has walked the hallowed turf of Old Trafford.

He was once the most expensive teenager in the history of the English game.

He has been called the gifted English player of his generation.

A genius in the purest sense of the world.

His name is Wayne Rooney.

His ghost like performances however have begged the question: has Wayne lost everything he promised and is he proving the heroics of last season were merely a fluke, no better than Amir Zaki or Frasncis Jeffers?

Despite the utterly stunning goal against Manchester City, Rooney has failed to deliver on all fronts this season.

It begs the question- was that goal a reminder of his genius or just a blast from the past?

It isn't a secret that Rooney has been ravaged by injury for the last twelve months. Ever since that fateful night against Bayern Munich (the other fateful night against Bayern Munich...) he has struggled with his ankle and has not really been the same since.

That excuse could have been valid for the World Cup. But is it now?

6 months on, and Rooney still looks out of sorts. It is true that his work rate is still fantastic- his goalless part in United's 5-0 victory against Birmingham  a month ago was arguably bigger that Dimitar Berbatov's, who scored a hat-trick. (Believe me, I was there.)

The hard fact is that Rooney is, a striker. Even my mother knows that a  striker's job is to score goals and six goals in twenty-one appearences is simply not a good enough return, especially when two of those were penalties.

He has shown too little of the predatory, six yard box instrict we saw from the thirty-four goal superstar last year.

When he has relied on pure talent, when he hasn't had the time to overthink a situation, it has been business as usual. Case in point the goal vs. City, the header vs. West Brom and the two vs. Villa.  All four goals were Rooney at his best-ruthless, instinctual.

But once again, those are the only four instances in the last year I have seen him be anywhere near as good as he really is.

Truthfully, I have shown more flashes of brilliance in the past twelve months.

I do honestly believe that Rooney will get it back together. I am one of those people who called him the most gifted English player of his generation because, quite simply, I think he is. How can't he be?

For the record, I also do not think that he really wanted to leave Old Trafford a few months ago and I do think his heart is still in it- I just think he needs to rely on what got him this far in the first place- talent.

With "Just enough education to perform", thinking is perhaps not Wayne's strong suit- if he started listening to his playground-honed instincts once again, we will see the man back for club, and country.