Sir Alex Ferguson is hopeful that Manchester United can make it to the next international break without any more injuries, as their defensive crisis worsened with Nemanja Vidic undergoing knee surgery. The Independent reports.
Phil Jones and Chris Smalling are already out of action, although Smalling could return to training within a couple of weeks.
Johnny Evans and Rio Ferdinand are United’s two fit remaining centre-backs, but Scott Wooton looks set to be in tomorrow’s squad to face Tottenham after impressing Sir Alex in Wednesday’s Capital One Cup win over Newcastle.
After facing Tottenham tomorrow, the Reds travel to Romania to play CFR Cluj in the Champions League on Tuesday before travelling to Newcastle next Sunday.
“Everyone knows the situation with our defenders,” said Ferguson.
“We just hope if we can get through the next two league games it will give us a little breather and we can start to get one or two of them back.”
But there is better news upfront for United, with Wayne Rooney fully recovered from a gashed thigh and Tom Cleverley finally adding goals to his game by breaking his duck against Newcastle.
“I have always scored goals when I have gone on loan, so it was bugging me that I had not been doing it for my club or my country”, said Cleverley.
“I have got the first one out of the way now. Hopefully they will all come at once.”
When Sir Alex Ferguson announced his retirement, Manchester United acted swiftly in appointing a replacement. The unanimous decision was Everton manager David Moyes.
Whenever a new manager arrives, they always have to make tough decisions. What players fit into their plans, who to bring in to improve the squad. Another decision is what to do with the current coaching staff.
David Moyes has decided to change the coaching setup at Old Trafford. The setup at United was a successful one but Moyes has decided to go for his own approach.
Mike Phelan had been at United for 12 years. Phelan started off coaching in United’s centre of excellence but was promoted to first team coach in 2001 after Steve McClaren left. When Carlos Queiroz left to manage Portugal, Phelan was given the chance to take over his role as Assistant Manager.
Eric Steele was the Manchester United goalkeeping coach and was at United for five years. He has been instrumental in the development of David de Gea. Steele was the man that watched De Gea at Atlético Madrid and made United go for him. When the Spaniard arrived, he was at fault for several goals and was getting a lot of criticism in the press. Steele was always his biggest fan and worked hard with David. The improvement in de Gea has been enormous. He is now one of the best Goalkeepers in the world and was voted in the PFA Team of the Year last season.
Many people feel that the biggest loss will be Rene Meulensteen. The first team coach has also been relieved of his duties by David Moyes. The Dutchmen is a highly regarded coach and was key in the developments in Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo. It’s been rumoured that he will succeed Roberto Martinez as Wigan manager. Robin van Persie has praised the work that Meulensteen has done. Van Persie said this about Meulensteen.
“The way he trains is exceptional. He truly is one of the best coaches in the world. I have had a lot of good trainers, but it’s the way he prepares our team for the games. Every match is different, so every training session building up to the game is unique. We know exactly what to expect and he wins points for us through his training.”
It’s a tough decision on whether to stick with a winning formula or start afresh. The coaches at Manchester United were world class and it will be a top job to replicate them. But Moyes has decided that his coaching staff at Everton will join him in his new job at Manchester United.
His assistant Steve Round, goalkeeping coach Chris Woods, scout Robbie Cooke and former Manchester United player Phil Neville are all expected to make up Moyes coaching staff.
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Some people believed that Moyes should have stuck with Ferguson’s staff. But they were Ferguson’s men. They might of helped Moyes settle into the job at Old Trafford and it may have helped make a smoother transition of changing managers, but it would have felt like Ferguson’s shadow would of been hanging over him.
Moyes has made the right decision. He needs to stamp his own mark on Manchester United. He needs a fresh start to build his own legacy.
French side Bordeaux are set to offer Arsenal flop Marouane Chamakh a return to the club in January after the striker joined the Gunners from the club in 2010 and has failed to sparkle since, as reported by Sky Sports News.
In his time the Emirates, Chamakh has struggled to impress and has become nothing more than a reserve player for Arsene Wenger who is set to allow the Moroccan to leave North London in January, but Bordeaux feel the move may not be financially viable.
“Chamakh will always be welcome here,” Bordeaux chairman Jean-Louis Triaud told France Football.
“He left with good memories and he is a talented player with fighting spirit. He is a boy that could inject enthusiasm into our group.
“However, there are a lot of conditions. His preference would be to remain in England and the financial aspect is important.
“Also, who said Arsene Wenger wants to let him go? Nothing is definite. If it is feasible, we will try to make it happen.”
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Arsene Wenger is reportedly ready to trigger Demba Ba’s buy-out clause in a bid to prize him away from Newcastle in January, the Sun reports.
The Senegalese striker has a £7.5million clause in his Newcastle contract, allowing him to leave to anybody who matches that fee. It was expected that clubs would come in for him last summer but it seems Wenger is ready to take the plunge and bring the striker to the Emirates in the winter transfer window.
Ba, 27, is however said to be keen to stay at St James Park:
“Demba wants to be paid what he thinks he deserves but remains committed to the club. He loves it at Newcastle and wants it to be sorted out as soon as possible.” Said a source close to the player.
After the sale of Robin van Persie to Manchester United in the summer, the Gunners have struggled to find a regular goal scorer to take his place. New signings Lukas Podolski and in particular Oliver Giroud, despite flashes of what they can do have struggled to find any consistent form since moving to England.
Ba in comparison is currently joint top of the Premier League scoring charts with 10 goals and Wenger is reportedly ready to offer him £60,000 a week in wages plus add ons to bring him to the club.
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Manchester City are set to wrap-up a deal for Swansea winger Scott Sinclair on Tuesday, Sky Sports claim.
The Premier League champions are eager to bring in a new face or two before the transfer window closes, with Jack Rodwell the only signing of note so far this summer.
After selling Adam Johnson to Sunderland last week, a place for a new wideman has arisen, with Sinclair a target over the last month.
The talented attacker is in the last year of his contract at the Liberty Stadium and has refused to extend with the Welsh side.
With Swansea facing losing their player for nothing next summer, Michael Laudrup will sell Sinclair to City for a fee believed to be in the £6.2 million range.
It is thought that only loose ends over the deal need to be tied up, which will happen on Tuesday after the Bank Holiday.
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Nani’s dispute with Manchester United looks set to continue, after failing to agree a new contract with the club. The Daily Mail reports.
It has resulted in a loss of form for the Portuguese international, as he was dropped following the disappointing 1-0 defeat to Everton and only featured in the last 30 minutes of United’s win at Southampton.
Negotiations reportedly came to a halt when United refused to meet the 25-year-old’s astonishing £130,000 a week wage demands in the new deal.
Zenit St Petersburg reportedly offered Nani a way out of Manchester, but they were also put off by the player’s unrealistic wage demands.
He has since slipped behind fellow wingers Ashley Young and Antonio Valencia in the pecking order, and there could be no way back for the troubled star.
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There are suggestions that he will see out the remainder of his current deal to enable him to leave Old Trafford for free- claims which have outraged the Red Devils and will cause this saga to rumble on.
Tottenham centre back William Gallas has dismissed claims that 4th place is success and insists silverware is what every footballer wants.
The Spurs defender is aware that his current side have not won a trophy since winning the League Cup in 2008, and that Tottenham have been challenging for a Champions League place in recent seasons.
Gallas maintains the satisfaction of reaching Europe’s elite competition does not compare to winning trophies, as it something that does not come along very often so they are moments to be cherished.
“For me, a trophy is something you lift at the end of the season and I know it’s a fantastic feeling.
“It doesn’t happen many times through your career, so for me to finish second or fourth isn’t the same as finishing top, as champions. It’s completely different.
“You feel different because you are the best team – the best player. You are so happy to lift a trophy – it’s the real thing to do.”
The Spurs ace emphasized that this competition was important to the club and that his teammates will be doing all they can to win the Capital One Cup.
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The French international goalkeeper arrived at White Hart Lane at the end of this summer’s transfer window in what many thought it was a strange move. A lot of Tottenham fans didn’t see a whole lot wrong with what they already had in Brad Friedel.
They are now being turned round to this move as being a little masterstroke, whether AVB wanted the player in the first place or not. The reason for this is he is part of the way goalkeeping is moving in the Premier League. A transition is going away from the goalkeeper being isolated for the rest of the team and simply there to save shots. A keeper is a very much active member of the team and is seen as the start of a lot of the counter attacking football that goes on.
Hugo Lloris is a prime example of how attention to detail in a goalkeepers play is so pivotal to the functioning of a team. The difference between Friedel and Lloris when they have the ball in their hands is the American chooses to bounce the ball a few times before he finds his man, whereas the Frenchman throws the ball out with accuracy to the wings on distributes to the wings with his feet with precision. I do not mean these aimless throws like Heurelho Gomes used to often deliver that looked impressive but often did not find the target. The distribution of a modern keeper is an aspect of a game that is so underrated. Despite the stereotype of footballers, they have to be smarter and Hugo Lloris illustrates an ability to know his team’s strengths. The keepers are meant to act as a calming influence and that is delivering the ball to a player’s feet. Lloris is aware that Bale and Lennon is the fulcrum of Tottenham’s attacking play and if they are released early with the ball on the floor they can easily wreak havoc.
It is for this very reason that I favour David De Gea to win the battle of wills at Old Trafford with Lindegaard to gain the permanent starting position, and why he commanded a fee of £18 million. There is a large aspect of a keeper’s play that is focussed around the ability to stop shots and have an instinctive nature to be able to stop the trouble. This is not a new commodity; there are several goalkeepers who can shot stop well. Bogdan was a prime example of this at Bolton last season, but you didn’t see a rush for Tottenham to sign him.
The reason for this is his distribution is not on the same level as Lloris. As the Premier League becomes more intricate too it is the goalkeeper’s responsibility to notice this too. Manchester United has been a team that have flourished because of their ability to devastatingly pick teams apart within moments due to incisive passing. The distribution of the Spaniard is stunning and it is clearly irresponsible for a keeper these days to boot it long and hope his team mates can work from there. The need to be skilful with their feet is often a talent that is forgotten in the discussion of what keeper’s need. They are footballers after all.
When your team is under pressure and shots are raining down and your number one receives a goal kick it is senseless to pump a long ball to the left, unless you have a play which is functioned around this. Newcastle goalkeeper Tim Krul could take note of the distribution of other keepers in the league, as his is piling pressure upon his teammates. I have never seen Demba Ba’s face light up with glee as a long ball happens to come into his airspace and he has to desperately challenge for the ball.
He has to take what he is given, but this doesn’t exactly encourage him to not panic when he does receive the ball on the floor. Especially when a team is struggling like Newcastle are at the minute you need a keeper who can be there to pass the ball back to and he will simply deliver it to his nearest full back rather than hitting it long and hoping for the best.
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It may have been difficult for Tottenham fans to justify wanting Lloris ahead of Friedel when the 41 year old was making such great reflex saves. Now they have had a chance to see Lloris have a longer stint as number one they may be able to see why they have taken a step ahead of other clubs. The same appreciation I expect to occur when David De Gea fully comes of age. The distribution of keeper’s will be become an ever-growing influence in the Premier League.
Liverpool forward Dani Pacheco looks set to end his spell at the club after he revealed he would not be travelling on the Anfield club’s pre-season tour of Asia and Australia, according to talkSPORT.
The Spaniard tweeted: “Finally not travelling to Asia. Will talk about my future in the next couple of days. Thank you.”
The news looks as if it will end what has turned out to be a disappointing few years on Merseyside after he was signed by Rafa Benitez from Barcelona in 2007. There were high hopes for the man from Pizarra after a sequence of very impressive games for the club’s reserve side.
However, as happens much too often with some young players, he was sent out on loan time after time. Three times in four seasons to be precise which undoubtedly contributed to the stuttering nature of his career.
Brendan Rodgers did originally name Pacheco as one of 28 men due to travel to the pacific region and he did feature in Liverpool’s 4-0 win over Preston on Saturday. Yet it seems both parties know that it is unlikely Pacheco will be a Liverpool player come the start of the Premier League season.
Many sides in La Liga will feel like they can reinvigorate the talent that Pacheco possesses in abundance. A move back to his homeland is the most likely scenario but with many teams in Spain feeling the pinch of the country’s financial crisis, ironically the final year of Pacheco’s Liverpool contract may be out on loan once again.
Liverpool fans, are you sad to say goodbye to Pacheco?
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If last night’s 3-0 hammering at home to Bayern Munich spelt the end of Barcelona’s ‘cycle,’ as Sky Sports’ Gary Neville has likened it to in recent weeks, then the end of the Catalan side’s time at the top of the game was one of the most brutal imaginable.
Be it the 4-0 masterclass that Fabio Capello’s Milan side handed out to Barcelona in Athens back in 1994, or the men from the Camp Nou’s deadly ‘carousel’ that humiliated Manchester United over two Champions League finals, the Spanish club know better than anyone that the changing of the guard in European football very rarely tends to be anything short of explosive.
Yet even when held up against some of the more comprehensive beatings we’ve witnessed in recent European competition, there’s felt something particularly illuminating about the nature in which Bayern Munich deconstructed Tito Vilanova’s side a staggering 7-0 over the course of two legs.
Brutally efficient, unrelenting in their supremacy and seemingly able to rubber stamp their performances with a sprinkling of stardust, for all the talk of German efficiency and physical domination, there was something very Catalan about the way in which Jupp Heynckes’ side took Barcelona apart last night; maybe not so much in the mechanics of their play, rather in the way they went about the task in hand.
And after all but confirming what felt like something of a formality – bar a very nervous last five minutes in Madrid for Jurgen Klopp’s Borussia Dortmund side on Tuesday night – we now look ahead to the first all-German Champions League final in Wembley on the 25th.
For some on these shores of course, once the initial nationalistic pain of seeing two teams from the old foe battle it out upon English soil for Europe’s biggest prize subside, there is a far bigger insecurity to crop up out of the Bundesliga’s recent journey to continental domination. What’s happened to our own set of once-valiant sides in the Champions League?
After a campaign which saw only two English teams make the competition’s round of 16 and not a single entrant reach the quarter finals, many have been quick to write English football’s obituary within the Champions League.
Out of touch, behind the times and somewhat archaic in comparison to our esteemed neighbours on the continent – the column inches haven’t been particularly kind to Premier League teams in recent weeks. And on a superficial basis at least, while you must look beyond Fleet Street’s usual hyperbole to understand the point being made, it has of course been incredibly hard to argue with some of those points this season.
The simple reality has been that in comparison to the cream of Europe this season, English clubs simply haven’t been able to hold a torch to the real, elite performers when they’ve been at the top of the game and given our own domestic top-flight’s penchant for self-promotion, that doesn’t reflect very well at all.
Given the trade off we seem to have unwillingly made between the desperately poor fortunes of our national team in exchange for a scintillatingly brilliant domestic competition, when the wheels fall off the latter, such post-mortems generally tend to feel a lot more painful than they do in either Spain or Germany. But just because they’ve fallen off, it doesn’t mean they can’t be put back on again.
Neville’s recent sentiments about cycles within football and a natural lifespan for success and domination within the European game seem to have been taken at face value by many, but for as simple an observation as it may seem, perhaps it’s time we started buying into the concept that nothing lasts forever – be it success aswell as a lack of it.
Let’s rewind four years to the Champions League knockout stages of 2008: English football is arguably enjoying its most prominent zenith of modern times, with all four of its entrants into the elite European competition making the quarter finals. Three of those teams in Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool went on to make the semi-finals with the latter pair going on to compete for the trophy in the final in Moscow.
It was a year of blanket domination, albeit peppered by the beginnings of the Barcelona uprising. But if English football was experiencing its all-conquering high, then German football was most certainly at its nadir.
FC Schalke were the only German club to scrape through the group stages during a chastising campaign for the country’s clubs in Europe. Indeed, it was a year in which this season’s finalists didn’t even qualify for the competition.
Five years on however and the German footballing landscape has come an awful long way on since those dark days of five years ago, going on to not only dominate this season’s competition, but also sweep away a Barcelona dynasty so vaunted, it was difficult to see how their success was ever likely to be halted at one point this season.
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Yet when you strip away the hyperbole, the headlines and the romanticism from the event, all we’re seeing is simply the end of one side’s domination and the start of another’s.
Premier League clubs have suffered a torrid year in the Champions League this season, compounded in no small part thanks to the futile performance produced by the benchmarkers in previous league champions Manchester City.
But although the road to redemption is one that tends to take several seasons, rather than several months, English clubs will be back.
Quite whether the lack of patience that exists within these shores will cater for that wait, however, is quite another story indeed.