Is Fergie reading my blog? Because no sooner had I posted a rant about the incessant player swapping every game, he finally admits to the press that his tinkering is the reason for our poor start. Anyway, there is not much we can do about it now but field our strongest lineup whenever possible, perhaps giving rests to players during the League and FA Cup periods (I honestly can't see Fergie seeing them as priorities anyway).
With regards to tonights game, Sparta Prague have shown that they are a very good and technical side and so even if we get 1 point tonight, it can be seen as a good job. I would probably expect Giggs and Scholes to start following their respective injuries and we will need their creativity after our desperate performance at the weekend. Also captaining Sparta will be United old-boy Karel Poborsky who showed at Lazio and Benfica that he was a better player then his performances suggested at Old Trafford. Rio and Keane will be missing (family bereavement and virus respectively) so Silvestre should lineup alongside Brown or O'Shea.
I'm not sure if others would agree with this one, but I think our strikeforce should consist of Smith and Ruud tonight. Ruud's pedigree in Europe makes him a certainty whilst Smith's goal-scoring start to the season surely warrants a place in the team. Post your thoughts below...
Tuesday, October 19, 2004
Sunday, October 17, 2004
Title hopes fading away
I was speaking to a fellow Man Utd supporter yesterday, post-Birmingham, and his scathing words still echo in my ears... "Fergie is f*cking insane, why the f*ck is he playing 4 strikers on the pitch at the same time?! What the f*ck is wrong with him?!"
It seems that many of my fellow United supporters are growing increasingly concerned at the plight of the team. We have made our worst start ever to a premiership season and our central midfield looks weak. This is further exacerbated by our strikers unwillingness to put the ball in the back of the net in the Premiership, with our top scorer, Smith, starting to be played out of position or left on the bench.
At first I was of the opinion that it's not our team getting worse, but teams in the Premiership getting better. However, a friend of mine, yesterday re-iterated a point that he has been saying to me for a few months now, regarding teams like Charlton, Boro, Birmingham et al... the so-called 'solid' teams. I quote:
"No longer satisfied with trying to win, they try not to lose"
Never was that more appropriate than yesterday. I'm sorry to say that if Birmingham play for a point at home, then they will get relegated, and from me there will be no sympathy. You have to play to win at home. The match could have gone on for another hour and Birmingham would not have scored. I can understand it if they came to Old Trafford, but at home it is not acceptable. People pay good money to watch premiership games.
Next rant, our team. Why oh why does Fergie insist on swapping the team every game? Henry, Reyes, Pires, Cole, Campbell and many more of their team were on international duty and still they made Arsenal's starting lineup. The fact that the line-up is changing so frequently will eventually be our downfall as the team does not get time to gel. Furthermore, playing 4 strikers up front is not going to return goals when there are no creative midfield players to lay on the chances... Ronaldo should have stayed on and shifted over to the left side where he could have had more success than he had against Julian Gray. Regarding our midfield situation, I'd like to know why P. Neville has been so harshly omitted from the central midfield position following his superb performances there last season. I'm certain he would do a better job than some of weak performances we've seen so far from Keane, Djemba-Djemba etc.
It seems that many of my fellow United supporters are growing increasingly concerned at the plight of the team. We have made our worst start ever to a premiership season and our central midfield looks weak. This is further exacerbated by our strikers unwillingness to put the ball in the back of the net in the Premiership, with our top scorer, Smith, starting to be played out of position or left on the bench.
At first I was of the opinion that it's not our team getting worse, but teams in the Premiership getting better. However, a friend of mine, yesterday re-iterated a point that he has been saying to me for a few months now, regarding teams like Charlton, Boro, Birmingham et al... the so-called 'solid' teams. I quote:
"No longer satisfied with trying to win, they try not to lose"
Never was that more appropriate than yesterday. I'm sorry to say that if Birmingham play for a point at home, then they will get relegated, and from me there will be no sympathy. You have to play to win at home. The match could have gone on for another hour and Birmingham would not have scored. I can understand it if they came to Old Trafford, but at home it is not acceptable. People pay good money to watch premiership games.
Next rant, our team. Why oh why does Fergie insist on swapping the team every game? Henry, Reyes, Pires, Cole, Campbell and many more of their team were on international duty and still they made Arsenal's starting lineup. The fact that the line-up is changing so frequently will eventually be our downfall as the team does not get time to gel. Furthermore, playing 4 strikers up front is not going to return goals when there are no creative midfield players to lay on the chances... Ronaldo should have stayed on and shifted over to the left side where he could have had more success than he had against Julian Gray. Regarding our midfield situation, I'd like to know why P. Neville has been so harshly omitted from the central midfield position following his superb performances there last season. I'm certain he would do a better job than some of weak performances we've seen so far from Keane, Djemba-Djemba etc.
Thursday, October 14, 2004
Quick international roundup
Sorry for not writing frequently lately but I have been a bit busy of late. Anyway, it seems like a good week in general for Man Utd's internationals. Ferdinand was outstanding alongside Campbell as England beat Wales and Azerbaijan. Keano helped the Republic of Ireland ease to a 2-0 win over the Faroe Islands and also a solid draw with France.
Nistelrooy returned from suspension to fire holland to a 3-1 win over Finland, who had drawn with Macedonia in their previous match, whilst Ronaldo produced another sparkling performance (and 2 goals) to help Portugal to a 7-1 thrashing of Russia following their embarassing draw with Liechenstein. However, Fletcher was unable to make an impression as Scotland succumbed to a 1-0 defeat by Norway and a 1-1 draw with lowly Moldova.
It was unfortunate that Giggs wasn't able to make the starting lineup for Wales against Poland as I am convinced he would have made the difference (it was a fantastic game of football by the way!). It really is a great shame that such a magnificent player has never been able to grace an international tournament, and it is now looking likely (barring a miracle) that England and Poland will occupy the top two slots.
Nistelrooy returned from suspension to fire holland to a 3-1 win over Finland, who had drawn with Macedonia in their previous match, whilst Ronaldo produced another sparkling performance (and 2 goals) to help Portugal to a 7-1 thrashing of Russia following their embarassing draw with Liechenstein. However, Fletcher was unable to make an impression as Scotland succumbed to a 1-0 defeat by Norway and a 1-1 draw with lowly Moldova.
It was unfortunate that Giggs wasn't able to make the starting lineup for Wales against Poland as I am convinced he would have made the difference (it was a fantastic game of football by the way!). It really is a great shame that such a magnificent player has never been able to grace an international tournament, and it is now looking likely (barring a miracle) that England and Poland will occupy the top two slots.
Sunday, October 10, 2004
Thoughts on Glazer's takeover proposal
I'm going to take a negative stance on this one, even though like the majority, I am on the outside looking in. Many of the United fans I have spoken to are vehemently against Glazers proposal, and see it as a bigger threat than the Sky takeover bid.
Conspiracy theorists propose a hit-and-run scenario by Glazer, others suggest that the he will take profits out the club and place them in his own pocket, rather than re-investing. This is a very real possibility because Glazer doesn't have enough money to buy the club, let alone invest his own money into transfer funds. We definitely can't expect a Roman Abrahamovich situation here. The fact that Glazer will have to take out a loan to purchase the club means that United will be effectively turned into a mortgage laden model. Therefore we are transformed from a club in profit, to a club in debt. Again, while this doesn't pose a problem to the survival of the club, it will definitely have a hard-hitting effect on immediate transfer funds.
Another cause for concern is Glazers' apparent lack of knowledge of the traditions and vast histories of our club. Some reports have claimed that it wasn't Glazer's idea to buy the club, but his sons who are United fans. The fact that Glazer is an experienced sports "owner" and will have little concern for our famous history means that he will use the club solely for profit, exploiting us fans by hiking up ticket prices. Additionally, Glazer (who has very close ties with Sky) may undersell us and give Sky world exclusive rights to our games.
I would like to re-iterate that I in no way claim to know all the details, but only see things as they are portrayed in the public eye. After all, when Glazer bought the Tampa Bay Bucs they were the laughing stock of the league. He hired the right people, who in turn hired the right people to turn the team around. However, if Glazer does have an ulterior motive then as United fans, we all have reason to be concerned.
Conspiracy theorists propose a hit-and-run scenario by Glazer, others suggest that the he will take profits out the club and place them in his own pocket, rather than re-investing. This is a very real possibility because Glazer doesn't have enough money to buy the club, let alone invest his own money into transfer funds. We definitely can't expect a Roman Abrahamovich situation here. The fact that Glazer will have to take out a loan to purchase the club means that United will be effectively turned into a mortgage laden model. Therefore we are transformed from a club in profit, to a club in debt. Again, while this doesn't pose a problem to the survival of the club, it will definitely have a hard-hitting effect on immediate transfer funds.
Another cause for concern is Glazers' apparent lack of knowledge of the traditions and vast histories of our club. Some reports have claimed that it wasn't Glazer's idea to buy the club, but his sons who are United fans. The fact that Glazer is an experienced sports "owner" and will have little concern for our famous history means that he will use the club solely for profit, exploiting us fans by hiking up ticket prices. Additionally, Glazer (who has very close ties with Sky) may undersell us and give Sky world exclusive rights to our games.
I would like to re-iterate that I in no way claim to know all the details, but only see things as they are portrayed in the public eye. After all, when Glazer bought the Tampa Bay Bucs they were the laughing stock of the league. He hired the right people, who in turn hired the right people to turn the team around. However, if Glazer does have an ulterior motive then as United fans, we all have reason to be concerned.
Saturday, October 02, 2004
Will Middlesborough prove once again to be our bogey team?
After the euphoria of tuesday, it's time for the boys to get back to their bread and butter in the Premiership. I'm sure Fergie will be keen to remind the team of the poor defending from set pieces which led to Fenerbahce's two goals.
Middlesborough had a lot of players out for their UEFA cup match and it is touch and go whether they will make tomorrow's game (or maybe McClaren is keeping his cards close to his chest?). Nevertheless, we should see a return to the United lineup for Ronaldo, and possibly Smith, provided that Fergie opts to rest Rooney (I hope he doesn't!).
For anyone who saw the game, I'm certain they would have acknowledged our central midfield as the weak link of the team. Djemba-Djemba was average and will drop down to the bench. His midfield partner on tuesday, Kleberson, stands a slight chance of starting ahead of O'Shea in midfield, but I wouldn't bet my life savings on it. Although Kleberson whipped in a great cross (with his weaker!) left foot he had a few displaced passes and his lack of effort in tracking back left a lot to be desired.
Despite this, and based on our form, the fact we're at home, Boro's injury list, and their recent set of poor results (they've lost their last 2 Premiership games) I would expect us to take all 3 points.
Middlesborough had a lot of players out for their UEFA cup match and it is touch and go whether they will make tomorrow's game (or maybe McClaren is keeping his cards close to his chest?). Nevertheless, we should see a return to the United lineup for Ronaldo, and possibly Smith, provided that Fergie opts to rest Rooney (I hope he doesn't!).
For anyone who saw the game, I'm certain they would have acknowledged our central midfield as the weak link of the team. Djemba-Djemba was average and will drop down to the bench. His midfield partner on tuesday, Kleberson, stands a slight chance of starting ahead of O'Shea in midfield, but I wouldn't bet my life savings on it. Although Kleberson whipped in a great cross (with his weaker!) left foot he had a few displaced passes and his lack of effort in tracking back left a lot to be desired.
Despite this, and based on our form, the fact we're at home, Boro's injury list, and their recent set of poor results (they've lost their last 2 Premiership games) I would expect us to take all 3 points.
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