There were spells during the game where we looked uncomfortable, mainly due to the large number of injuries we have at the back. We kept things together though and found ways to put them under pressure. I don't remember watching a game where we were awarded 3 penalty kicks, so that was a little bit surprising. I'd say 2 of them were decent calls. Since we missed one and scored on 2 of them, it all evened out anyway. The 4 goals scored and +3 goal differential was another major positive since it may come down to one of those tiebreakers.
Van Der Vaart was outstanding (even though he was given 2 yellow cards and ejected) as well Bale and Huddlestone. It's pretty clear to me considering our lineup and performance in the previous two games (league cup and league) that we are still focusing on the Champions League. This will sound odd, but I really don't care as much about the other cups this year and less about then league then last year. This season is all about enjoying our time (it will probably be brief) in the world's best club competition. In addition, I really hope we advance out of the group so that we aren't demoted to the Europa League and forced to play more matches. A perfect scenario would be to make the knockout round and have a good showing. After elimination (honestly, we aren't going to advance that far) we could focus on the Premier League in the spring and hope the other teams that may challenge for 4th spot are still tied up in the Europa League.
Next up we face Inter Milan, the defending champions, home and away. We can lose both these games (although we may be able to steal a draw at home) and still be in a comfortable spot as long as one of the other teams we've already played doesn't get 4 points out of the next two matches. I'll be pulling for draws or even a home win for each side. That would keep us in second spot with 2 games remaining.