Manchester United's Headliners, Articles and Rumours

[richie_rich]

FERGUSON DETERMINED TO KEEP VIDIC

Sir Alex Ferguson insists he wants to keep Nemanja Vidic at Manchester United.

The Serbian's future has been the subject of intense speculation for most of this season, with Tuesday night's Champions League opponents AC Milan being linked with a summer move for Vidic and, more recently, Real Madrid.

Vidic's continued absence from the United line-up with a nerve problem has not done much to dampen down the rumours, with claims surfacing that Ferguson is not greatly impressed with the former Spartak Moscow man's attitude.

But if that opinion is true, Ferguson has a funny way of showing it judging by the forceful way he declared his desire for the 28-year-old to remain at Old Trafford.

"Of course we want him to stay," said the Scot.

"He is a great player. One of the best centre-backs in the world.

"Our players are the subject of speculation from time to time. You just have to deal with it."

What Ferguson is unable to do is put a date on when Vidic is likely to return.

The United boss did hint Vidic would be in his starting line-up for the defeat of Portsmouth at Old Trafford nine days ago. But he did not make that, or the trip to Aston Villa which followed.

And when the United party left Manchester for their attempt to overcome AC Milan at the San Siro for the first time this morning, Vidic was not there either.

"It is a difficult one," said Ferguson.

"He feels he needs to do a lot of training and has been training for the past 10 days but he doesn't feel ready to take part in games.

"It is something we have to be patient with and that is what we are doing at the moment."

[richie_rich]

FERGUSON NOT GIVING UP HOPE

Sir Alex Ferguson is refusing to be too downcast at Manchester United's shattering defeat at Everton on Saturday - but he admits his side must overcome West Ham on Tuesday.

An excellent recent run, since their fifth defeat of a difficult Premier League campaign at Fulham in December, had taken United to within a point of favourites Chelsea.

But they slumped again on Saturday afternoon, going down 3-1 at Goodison Park despite taking the lead through Dimitar Berbatov.

With 11 games of the season remaining, it now looks unlikely United will get to the 90-point mark that has tended to be required to clinch the championship in recent times.

Yet Ferguson has already claimed 82 could be enough this year so, as he reflects on a disappointing performance against the Toffees, the Red Devils chief does believe his side can get themselves back in contention by beating West Ham at Old Trafford on Tuesday.

"It was a bad result for us and at this time of the year you can't afford results like that, but I don't think we will panic because it has been a funny season," he said

"Teams have been losing points that you don't expect so the very nature of the league suggests we still have a chance.

"But Tuesday is a massive game now."

Ferguson was at a loss to understand why his side performed so poorly, failing to force Tim Howard into a significant save once Diniyar Bilyaletdinov had levelled just two minutes after Berbatov's opener.

Although United controlled the game for long spells, Everton were more incisive and it was no real surprise when Dan Gosling bundled the hosts team in front after Steven Pienaar took advantage of Antonio Valencia's failure to track back and sent over an excellent cross for the youngster.

Jack Rodwell finished United off near the end, leaving Ferguson to wonder whether his side's midweek efforts in Milan had taken their toll.

"Milan could have had an impact," he said.

"It is difficult to think that when you go through all the emotions and the pace and intensity and atmosphere of a game like Tuesday, you don't lose something.

"Whatever it was, it was just too much for us today.

"We had some good chances early on and we could have been two or three up.

"The equaliser changed the game a little bit. But it was the second half that let us down.

"Our second-half performance was very poor and when you are going for the championship you expect Manchester United to respond to the importance of the game."

Rio Ferdinand will be available on Tuesday after completing his four-match suspension, while central defensive partner Nemanja Vidic could also come into contention after being named on the bench for today's encounter.

[richie_rich]

HARRIS CALLS FOR MAN UTD BOYCOTT

Football finance expert Keith Harris has called for Manchester United fans to boycott matches as he plots a buy-out of the club.

Harris, a United fan who has been involved in several takeovers involving Barclays Premier League clubs, has previously claimed to have spoken to several interested parties as he attempts to put together a takeover proposal.

And he now says "getting the money together is the easy bit" and that fans must now "force" the Glazer family to sell the club.

Harris, the former Football League chairman, is executive chairman of investment bank Seymour Pierce and began working on a possible takeover after being contacted by members of the Manchester United Supporters Trust.

MUST have recently launched a 'green and gold' campaign, with fans donning the colours in protest against the Glazer regime.

But Harris reckons they must be prepared to take further action.

He told the Daily Mail: "The green and gold protest is fabulous, a symbolic and significant message to the owners. But it won't force the Glazers to sell.

"If enough people - and I'm talking about thousands - stop turning up to matches and do not renew their tickets then that does it.

"The supporters have to hurt the Glazers in the pockets. They have to be prepared to take the pain of not watching their club in order to achieve long-term gain.

"It's a big ask, it's a risk, but that is what must happen. The Glazers are thick-skinned and seem impervious to protest. They will not be impervious to enormous drops in revenue."

Referring to his proposed takeover bid, he added: "I would not talk about this if I didn't have full confidence in our ability to raise the money to do this.

"Getting the money together is the easy bit. But we can't make an offer until the Glazers are placed in a position where they are forced to consider it."

[sentsggirls]

Any rumors for trasfer of players linked to man utd?

[machoman]

Rampant Rooney destroys Hammers

Wednesday, February 24, 2010, 06:13:42 HRS

Manchester United's English forward Wayne Rooney (R) celebrates with Manchester United's Ecuador midfielder Antonio Valencia after scoring the opening goal during the English Premier League football match against West Ham United at Old Trafford in Manchester. United won 3-0.

Wayne Rooney scored twice as Manchester United kept the pressure on Premier League leaders Chelsea by defeating West Ham 3-0 at Old Trafford on Tuesday.

United's sixth successive home league win saw the champions move to within one point of Chelsea, having played a game more, as England striker Rooney made it 19 goals in 19 outings and 27 in all competitions this season.

Substitute Michael Owen added a third 10 minutes from time within moments of climbing off the bench to seal a comfortable win after a sluggish start.

It was just the send-off Sir Alex Ferguson had demanded as the United manager goes in search of his 20th piece of major domestic silverware in Sunday's League Cup final against Aston Villa at Wembley.

Starting the match four points behind leaders Chelsea, Ferguson opted to bring Ben Foster back in from the cold for a match United simply had to win.

It was Foster's first start since he was dropped after United's shock 1-0 Champions League home defeat to Besiktas on November 25.

Fit-again Nemanja Vidic, Darron Gibson, Paul Scholes and Anderson also returned to the side while first-choice stopper Edwin van der Sar did not even make the bench.

But Anderson's match was cut short inside the opening 20 minutes, the Brazilian going off with a twisted knee which could wreck his hopes of appearing at Wembley at the weekend.

His departure hardly helped United as they struggled to get out of second gear for much of the first half.

The visitors had won only once on their league travels since the opening day of the campaign yet Valon Behrami went close with an effort which flashed across the six-yard area in the 20th minute.

After the 3-1 defeat away to Everton at the weekend, the home supporters were looking for a lift from their team.

But the first half was played out in a largely subdued atmosphere as the hosts struggled to trouble the West Ham defence. It took 26 minutes for United to force Robert Green into his first serious save.

The England stopper blocked a fierce effort by Antonio Valencia only for the ball to fall kindly for Republic of Ireland midfielder Gibson just outside the area.

His effort took a deflection off Dimitar Berbatov and appeared to have wrong-footed Green before the keeper stuck out a leg to save his side from falling behind.

While Rooney and Berbatov struggled to unlock the visitors defence, Gibson's long range efforts were causing concern.

Manchester United's English forward Wayne Rooney heads the second goal during the English Premier League football match against West Ham United at Old Trafford in Manchester. United won 3-0.

The United midfielder again went close from 20 yards, his powerful effort turned behind by Green for a corner before Rooney's breakthrough effort seven minutes before the interval.

Fergie had used his programme notes to lavish praise on Rooney's form this season and the 24-year-old had his manager applauding from the sidelines as he headed home from eight-yards after connecting with Valencia's superb volleyed cross.

The goal awoke United from their slumber. Rooney almost doubled the lead moments later with a spectacular long-range effort which landed on the roof of the net as Ferguson's side finally began to stamp their authority.

United finally took command of the contest as they proved more of a threat in the opening 10 minutes of the second half than they had during the previous 45.

South Korea's Park Ji-Sung rattled the bar with a right-foot effort within seconds of the re-start.

And man-of-the-moment Rooney put the game out of West Ham's reach when he pulled away from his marker to meet Valencia's excellent 55th minute cross to nod past Green.

There was no way back for the Hammers with United having past the nine-and-a-half-hour mark since they last conceded a league goal on home soil and Owen came off the bench to put the result beyond doubt with his first league goal since September - a clinical finish from Paul Scholes' 80th minute pass.

- AFP

[asiancigar]

fabulous football from our beloved United....... am so glad that MO scored.... he so ker lian, only playing as 3rd choice striker.... sigh

Cheerz
AC

[richie_rich]

Originally Posted by asiancigar

fabulous football from our beloved United....... am so glad that MO scored.... he so ker lian, only playing as 3rd choice striker.... sigh

Cheerz
AC

guess MO is not going to the World Cup in South Africa......

CAPELLO: I CAN`T PICK OWEN

Fabio Capello maintains that anyone struggling for games at club level will not be going to the World Cup.

The England boss is finalising his plans for this summer's showpiece in South Africa and will have a good idea as to the makeup of the squad he would like to take with him.

There are, however, a few places still up for grabs, with a number of players pushing hard for a place in the final 23-man travelling party.

Manchester United striker Michael Owen is among those regularly mentioned as a World Cup possibility, with the experienced frontman chasing down Bobby Charlton's all-time scoring record.

He has been unable to hold down a starting berth at Old Trafford this season, though, and Capello insists he will not break his selection philosophy for a player short on big-match practice.

"Am I under pressure to call upon certain players?" Capello said in an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport.

"A lot of people would like to see me select Owen. He is the best English goalscorer of his generation but if he doesn't play, I cannot pick him."

One man guaranteed to make the cut, providing he can steer clear of injury, is Owen's United team-mate Wayne Rooney.

The 24-year-old has been in blistering form this season and Capello admits he can now rightly be regarded as one of the finest talents in world football.

"Rooney compared to (Lionel) Messi?" he said.

"They are two players that everyone would like to have, along with Cristiano Ronaldo.

"Wayne is an extraordinary player, talented and willing to learn. (Sir Alex) Ferguson has taught him so much.

"I have told him that he must make sure he plays inside the box and he must continue to score goals.

"The departure of Ronaldo at Manchester United has empowered him and is now integral to their plans."

[richie_rich]

UNITED IN FOR VILLA

Repeating one of Fleet Street's favourite summer transfer rumours, The Daily Mirror reports that Manchester United are lining up a new move for David Villa.

The paper claims that United will make their move if he is put up for sale in the summer by Valencia, hoping that the price tag of roughly £45million will have gone down since last year.

Apparently Sir Alex Ferguson sent his bro Martin to scout out Villa.

Anyway, The Mirror reckons United will be in luck this summer, with Villa 'opening the door' to a move to England with various come hither comments over the past few weeks.

[alex18122003]

Foster craves action

Ben Foster was delighted to make his return to senior action in Tuesday's victory over West Ham, but admits he craves more minutes of playing time over the remainder of the season.

The England international had a week to psyche himself up for his first start since November and, having made a couple of smart saves en route to a clean sheet, is now setting his sights on more action in order to play himself into England's World Cup squad.

"It's nice to get a run-out tonight," Foster told MUTV. "It was a good game for me to get involved in. West Ham have got a couple of big lads upfront and there's always a chance you're going to get some action. It was a good performance from the lads and a good result.

"I knew maybe a week ago, the Boss told me so it gives you plenty of time to prepare mentally. Obviously I haven't played for a few months and it's nice to know you're going to be playing.

"It's not nice when you're not even on the bench sometimes and you're not involved in the squad. With it being a World Cup year it's an important time, you need to be involved, but hopefully it's the start of a few more games coming my way.

"That's all I can look forward to really. I think I need to play some more games. Obviously it's not down to me. If I get a chance, I've just got to do as well as I can do. That's all I can do at the moment."

Having played his way back into action, Foster concedes that it is unlikely he will be given the chance to reprise last season's Wembley heroics in this weekend's Carling Cup final, but his only concern is that United retain the trophy - whether he is involved or not.

"I'm not really counting on anything like that (being involved), this is my first game in three months," he said. "It'd be a bit ambitious to expect to be playing in the final on Sunday as well. If I'm involved I'll be happy. But so long as we win the match and retain that trophy, we'll all be happy."

[sentsggirls]

Originally Posted by richie_rich

UNITED IN FOR VILLA

Repeating one of Fleet Street's favourite summer transfer rumours, The Daily Mirror reports that Manchester United are lining up a new move for David Villa.

The paper claims that United will make their move if he is put up for sale in the summer by Valencia, hoping that the price tag of roughly £45million will have gone down since last year.

Apparently Sir Alex Ferguson sent his bro Martin to scout out Villa.

Anyway, The Mirror reckons United will be in luck this summer, with Villa 'opening the door' to a move to England with various come hither comments over the past few weeks.

45mils for him , doubt he worth so much but he is a worth to wear a man utd jersey.

[richie_rich]

ANDERSON OUT FOR THE SEASON

Manchester United midfielder Anderson has been ruled out for the rest of the season after rupturing his cruciate ligament during Tuesday's win over West Ham.

Anderson, who was making his first appearance for over a month, suffered the injury during the first half of the 3-0 Barclays Premier League win.

It is another setback for the Brazilian, who has struggled to hold down a regular place since joining United from Porto in 2007.

[alex18122003]

Edwin signs new deal

Edwin van der has signed a new one-year contract that will keep him at Old Trafford until at least June 2011.

The 39-year-old Dutch goalkeeper has put pen-to-paper on the new deal, which takes him beyond his 40th birthday in October this year.

Sir Alex Ferguson is pleased to have secured the experienced shot-stopper's services for another 12 months.

“Edwin’s professionalism and dedication to his job and the way he looks after himself has given him the longevity in the game," the boss told ManUtd.com. "That longevity includes such great experience not just at United, but at Juventus, Ajax and on an international level. We are absolutely delighted he is continuing for another year."

Van der Sar is "delighted" to have signed for another year, and also thanked United for the compassion shown in helping him to deal with the recent illness of his wife.

"I still feel good and am enjoying my football," he told us. "This is a great club and I was shown a great deal of compassion and support during a difficult time in December and January for which I am extremely grateful. I am looking forward to winning more trophies with this great team."

[richie_rich]

FERGIE PONDERS LEAVING ROONEY OUT

Sir Alex Ferguson is considering whether to leave Wayne Rooney out of his Carling Cup final starting line-up.

Rooney has been in explosive form recently, following up his Champions League double against AC Milan with two more goals in the midweek win over West Ham.

That took his overall goal tally for the season to 27, just 15 short of the amazing number Cristiano Ronaldo contributed to Manchester United's 2008 Champions League-winning campaign.

With a maximum of 17 games left, Rooney has an obvious target to aim at.

However, as he ponders a fixture list which includes a return meeting with Milan at Old Trafford on March 10 and vital Premier League games, Ferguson claims he is giving serious consideration to leaving Rooney out of the Wembley clash with Aston Villa.

"It has to be a consideration simply because we have important games coming up," said the United boss.

"The problem is he is desperate to play, he is always desperate to play.

"Maybe it is his chance to play right-back because he keeps telling everyone he is a great defender, centre-half or sweeper."

In all probability, Ferguson will avoid the inevitable argument with Rooney by sticking with his main man as United look to add another trophy to their impressive collection, and at the same time create a small piece of club history by retaining a cup competition for the first time.

Yet Ferguson is anxious to avoid Rooney being weighed down by too much expectation.

There may be nothing he can do to prevent others discussing Ronaldo's 42 goals, but he is still sticking to a more recent - and now very conservative - target of 30 for the 24-year-old.

"We have 10 league games after Sunday and hopefully six European ties. That is 17 games in total," said Ferguson.

"A goal a game would bring him to 44. There's pressure for you. It is a target and who wouldn't love to get that kind of goal tally.

"It is hard to think he could reach it though. I don't think he has got that kind of target and I certainly haven't.

"He is in a great scoring burst right now. He is popping up in the right places at the right time and his judgment in the penalty box is improving. That is a nice sign.

"But I have said all along if he gets over 30 I will be delighted so let's not be greedy."

Should Ferguson opt to leave Rooney out, it would at least offer Dimitar Berbatov a chance to play.

The Bulgarian could hardly have imagined that, after spending a club record £30.75million on him at the start of last season, Ferguson would leave him out of so many key games.

Benched for last season's Champions League final, Berbatov was also among the substitutes against AC Milan in the San Siro.

His response has been admirable though, scoring at Everton last weekend before producing an outstanding performance in a creative capacity against West Ham in midweek.

"Dimitar is consistent," said Ferguson. "On Saturday he looked like the only one who could score and has performed well in recent games.

"We do have a preference to play one striker sometimes, but that does not reflect on him in any way, or Michael Owen for that matter.

"It is just the choice we make."

As usual, Ferguson has more contenders for his starting line-up than places on offer.

Darren Fletcher would appear a certainty and, on the basis that he missed last year's win over Tottenham through injury, so too does Brazilian full-back Rafael.

The other nine spots are up for grabs, although Jonny Evans and Darron Gibson are expected to add an element of youth as United look to win the competition for a fourth time.

One of the other issues surrounds the goalkeeping slot, which appears to be between Tomasz Kuszczak and Edwin van der Sar who, as he hinted last week, has opted to remain at Old Trafford for another season.

The new deal will take Van der Sar beyond his 40th birthday and also allows him to thank Ferguson for the compassion shown after his wife Annemarie suffered a stroke in Holland just before Christmas.

"I still feel good and am enjoying my football," he said.

"This is a great club and I was shown a great deal of compassion and support during a difficult time in December and January, for which I am extremely grateful."

[richie_rich]

Key quartet missing for Red Devils

Rio Ferdinand and Ryan Giggs are among a quartet of Manchester United stars who will miss the Carling Cup final against Aston Villa at Wembley. Ferdinand is out after suffering a twinge in his back while Giggs is sidelined with a fracture in his arm. Anderson (knee) is out for the season, Nani is suspended while Rafael is set to feature in his first major final.

United have never successfully defended a cup competition before but having overcome Tottenham on penalties last term, could put that statistic right by overcoming Martin O'Neill's men on Sunday.

Man Utd (from): Van der Sar, Kuszczak, Foster, Rafael, Neville, Brown, Evans, Vidic, De Laet, Evra, Fabio, Valencia, Obertan, Fletcher, Carrick, Scholes, Gibson, Park, Berbatov, Owen, Rooney, Diouf.

[machoman]

Rooney fires United to League Cup win over Aston Villa

Monday, March 01, 2010, 01:36:58 HRS

Manchester United's English striker Wayne Rooney celebrates after scoring his team's second goal against Aston Villa during the 2010 Carling Cup Final at Wembley, in north London. United won 2-1.

Wayne Rooney came off the bench to ensure Manchester United retained the League Cup by beating Aston Villa 2-1 on a painfully bittersweet afternoon for his team-mate Michael Owen.

With England coach Fabio Capello watching from the stands, Owen had evoked memories of his glory days with a wonderful, instinctive finish to cancel out James Milner's early penalty for Villa.

But just as he might have been starting to entertain hopes of an international recall, a hamstring injury ended both his afternoon and any lingering hopes he may have had of making Capello's squad for the World Cup.

"He looked sharp today when he was on and took his goal really well. Hopefully he'll be back soon," Rooney said of his team-mate.

The striker said he was thrilled to earn a second League Cup winners' medal.

"It's a great feeling. I'm delighted," he said.

"I think we probably created the best chances in the game but full credit to Villa, they played well and it was a good final.

"I think we knew there were spaces out wide and if we attacked them out wide then we could create chances.

"My sights are the medals. If the goals come, then great but I'm thinking about winning medals, not scoring," he added.

Gabriel Agbonlahor had scored the winner when Villa won 1-0 at Old Trafford earlier in the season and it was immediately apparent that his pace, unleashed from the left-side of his team's attacking trident, would again trouble a United defence missing Rio Ferdinand.

Aston Villa's English footballer James Milner (R) scores a penalty against Manchester United during the 2010 Carling Cup Final at Wembley, in north London. United won 2-1.

Within four minutes, Ashley Young's first-time pass had sent him clear of Nemanja Vidic, who resorted first to shirt-pulling and then to a desperate lunge to prevent his opponent from getting a shot away.

Vidic, remarkably, escaped sanction but Milner ensured Villa took the lead by sending Thomas Kuszczak the wrong way from the resulting penalty.

With both sides displaying a refreshing commitment to attack, the tone had been set for an entertaining, open encounter and United were quickly back on level terms courtesy of a vintage piece of finishing from Owen.

The striker had already served notice that he was in the mood to catch Capello's eye when, having robbed Carlos Cuellar, he went past James Collins only to have his progression towards goal arrested by the Villa centreback's crude lunge.

There was however nothing anyone could do about his equaliser, which came after Berbatov dispossessed Richard Dunne 30 yards out.

The Villa defender recovered the uncharacteristic lapse with a superb tackle on the edge of the area but succeeded only in diverting the ball from Berbatov's toes into the path of Owen, who didn't break his stride as he steered a controlled low shot beyond Brad Friedel's right hand.

Milner tested Kuszczak with a drive three minutes later, but as the opening period wore on it was United who looked the more likely to add to their score, with much of their drive coming from the energetic forward thrusts of Park Ji-Sung.

The South Korean midfielder sliced one good chance wide after being teed up by Berbatov's back heel and, having broken from deep inside his own half and combined deftly with Antonio Valencia, saw another effort blocked by Stiliyan Petrov before being denied by the woodwork in first-half stoppage time.

Valencia was again involved, skipping past Villa's would-be England left-back Stephen Warnock with an ease that will have been noted by Capello before delivering a cross that was deflected to Park 12 yards out.

His first-time shot struck the inside of the post and then Cuellar before finally being scrambled to safety.

By that stage Rooney had replaced the desperately unlucky Owen but it was Berbatov who continued to look the most likely to open up Villa, and another deft backheel from the Bulgarian gave Michael Carrick the chance to force Friedel into a fine save four minutes into the second period.

Villa's best chance of the second half fell to Young, who was unmarked as Berbatov's clearing header fell to him just inside the box but shanked his volley into the turf and wide of the target.

Three minutes later, Rooney applied the decisive blow with his 28th goal of the season, beating Friedel with a looping header from Valencia's cross after the Ecuador winger had combined neatly with Berbatov.

- AFP