Villa in the past

But first here are some points from SAF's press Conference.

• Hagreaves Still not fit to play, also a doubt for the midweek game against Kiev.
• Neville needs more games before he returns to first team
• Hopes Giggs plays longer than the 1 year extension that he signed
• Villa are always hard to play but United have a good record there
• Vidic is fit to play
• All 7 players returned from International duty unhurt

Our Record against Villa in the past

Premier League - Played 30 Won 21 drawn 7 Lost 2(Both Away) average of 2 goals per game.

Overall - Played 166 Won 83 Drawn 35 Lost 48

Last year we completed a hatrick of wins over Villa, two in the league and one in the FA Cup. The last time we didnt get 3 points against Villa was on the 26th October 2002 at OT with a 1-1 result.

As SAF has said "We have a good record against Villa, we don’t take that for granted and we know were going to have to work,"

Score Prediction 3-1 United

GGMU

???

Plenty of United fans would think that I am a nutter saying this and a lot will be in agreement with me.

JOSE TO UNITED.

I think that Jose would be the perfect replacement for SAF. Yes there are others out the like Capello and Ancelloti but how long would they take to adapt to the English game? Jose has had three years in England and not one has gone without reward. Jose is arrogant and he will defend his team no matter what.

SAF or Mourinho?

I don’t know who I would have next season, not that SAF has lost it or anything but Jose has the potential to go the distance like SAF has and I don’t want to loose out on an opportunity like this. It’s like been stuck between a rock and a hard place. It’s SAF for 2-3 more years or Jose for the next 20.

Imagine who is calling Jose and offering him a job as I am typing this, AC, Real, Barca, Juve and the list goes on.

Let’s have a look at his stats.

2002/2003 Portuguese Championship, UEFA Cup, Cup of Portugal
2003/2004 Portuguese Championship, Champions League, SuperCup Cândido de Oliveira
2004/2005 FAPL Champions, Community Shield, League Cup
2005/2006 FAPL Champions
2006/2007 FA Cup, League Cup

After looking at this I don’t think anyone wouldn’t want him in charge of their team.

GGMU

What is it that makes a team? What is it that separates the winner from the rest? As all footy fans know the answer to this is consistency.

United it found hard to find their feet in the first couple of games this year. My last topic was ‘another 1-0’ but at least it was a win. Our team has finally showed their potential and gave us fans a convincing 4-0 win on the weekend and it could have been more. We had injury issues in the first half of the game losing Vidic and O’shea early but that did nothing but give new boy Simpson some 1st team game time as we handled the back quite well.

When you look at Liverpool and how they started the season you have to say they looked good at challenging us for the title but now they seem to have fallen back into the river of inconsistency and haven’t won in four games, their last win been the 6-0 thrashing of Derby. Yesterday should have been there first loss if it wasn’t for a Torrez header in the last minute of the game.

The team that is now ahead of us, and everybody wrote them off at the beginning of the season, is Arsenal. My word how we all keep on questioning the Manager that has given SAF headaches since he came to the FAPL. Wenger has once again put a team together that can really push ball. We haven’t seen them play one of the big teams though and have to wait and see how the youngsters BMT hold up.

United have won their last six FAPL matches and need to keep a clean sheet against Villa to match our record for consecutive clean sheets in a league. Two time FA Cup medal winner Gary Bailey is a presenter on Supersport here in South Africa and said after the game that we now may been seeing the start of the world best striking force in Tevez and Rooney and I have to agree with him. This looks like the partnership that will give us what Cole and Yorke did. Tevez played brilliantly on the weekend, now we just need SAF to let the partnership grow.

GGMU

Welcome Back Gunners

The first few months of this season have seen a return to what for a long time used to be the standard situation in the Premier League, United and Arsenal occupying the top two places on the table. And I for one am quite happy about it. In fact, anyone who has only followed United/Arsenal or Football for the last 15 years or so could be forgiven for thinking that theirs was the biggest rivalry in England, and not that of United/Liverpool.




Now I am not an Arsenal fan, far from it. There has been far too much rivalry and controversy for that to happen. In fact I hate losing to them almost as much as I hate losing to Liverpool. But I will admit to being a very big admirer of Arsene Wenger and the way he sends the Gunners out to play. And in my opinion, if you do not admire the way they play , then quite frankly, you should not call yourself a football fan. This is not the first season where I have found myself flicking over to their game for a few minutes, even when watching United, I find them that enjoyable to watch.




They have undoubtedly been United's most consistent main rival in the 11 years that Wenger has been there. Historically it has been Liverpool, but they have flattered to deceive for too long now, and on current evidence, this is not about to change. I know Liverpool fans will jump up and down at that statement, but the facts do not lie. Pointing to the FA Cup or Champions League trophies will undoubtedly be one of their responses, but every Liverpool fans knows (or at least should know) that the league title is valued above all others at Anfield, and the fact that it has been close on two decades since they last won it hurts more than many of them care to admit.




It is far too early in the season to be handing out any awards, but I reckon if Fabregas and van Persie can stay fit they will certainly be in the running come player of the year time and in Bacary Sagna, Wenger looks to have uncovered another gem. Comparisons with the "Invincible" Arsenal team are also coming way too soon, but as far as potential goes, I think they might be be better. As far as young talent is concerned, Arsenal and United certainly seem to be in pole position.

However , the true test of this young Arsenal team will over the rigorous Christmas period and when they lose a number of players to the African Nations Cup in January, but I for now am relishing watching as a very familiar battle re-commences. ( And the football is certainly better than watching Chelsea)

Another 1-0

I didn’t get to watch the game on Saturday but I did watch the Roma game. All Tommy Smyth (With a Y) was mentioning all the time was how United doesn’t look like the same squad we were last season. The reason he was saying this is because we have won all our games 1-0.

Yes I agree with him, but we are pulling off these wins without our team clicking yet…Imagine when we do. As long as we win these games while we are still trying to find our feet is 100% ok with me. As a devout United fan I can’t wait to watch them play and get that feeling of when we score a goal. It would be fantastic if we could win all our games by putting three or four goals away but getting the three points is what puts you on top of the table.

As long as we not conceding we only need to score one goal don’t we. We have only conceded 2 goals at OT and that was that dismal game in the carling cup to Coventry City. In all other competitions we have had a brilliant back line (which has looked shaky once or twice I must admit) but this isn’t school boy football, all the teams that we play press hard and will make defenders crack at one point or another. To alleviate this problem we need to score more goals obviously but when our forwards will be up to that task I don’t know.

Tevez v Crouch

Me and my mate ripping each others team off.

Gloomy rant.

I’m sitting here listening to the United v Coventry goal and City just scored, now they just hit the post. Thank God its not on TV I would have broken it by now.

Going back to Sundays game and there were some debatable decisions by the referee but SAF came out and said that the decisions were balanced throughout the game. I don’t want to get involved in this debate, all I can say that we got the three points and we deserved them because we dominated the game. Grants first game in charge was fantastic, I bet Roman is scratching his head thinking what he is going to do know. Rumors on the net today say that Chelsea approached Van Basten to join them but a statement from the club says this was not true.

My fantasy team has been dealt a major blow this week. 8 days after I put Owen in my team Newcastle come out and say he needs to have surgery again, there go another 4 points to transfer him out. I feel sorry for Owen he is a good player that has been plagued by injury for the best part of his career.

First half over. United 0 -1 Coventry.

I bet SAF wishes he had Rooney on the bench. He must give them a good talking to during the break.


3 minutes extra time called and united trail 2-0, the Coventry fans can’t believe what’s happening and neither do I. How can we lose to them at home? From the sound of it United had 2 good chances in the game and that’s it. End of the game and end of this post I’m going to sleep my depression off.

Coaches and Managers

It is a well known fact that good players don't always make good managers, but there seems to be a strong case developing to extend that phrase to good coaches don't make good managers either. Now obviously there are a few exceptions, JoseMourinho and Guus Hiddink being two of the most obvious. But by and large there are very few good coaches that make the transition to being good managers. This long and infamous list includes some of the biggest names in the game as well as a string of previously respected coaches. Kevin Keagan, Ruud Gullitt, Roy Evans, Glenn Roeder, Brian Kidd and even Carlos Querioz are all a few of the names that have entered management and failed. Some to a greater degree than others. And it appears that this season, like most others, has already delivered a few more examples.

The first is Sammy Lee. The Anfield legend was a respected coach under Souness, Evans and Houllier at Liverpool, before moving on to become Sam Allardyces assistant at Bolton. Their success in turning the unfashionable Lancashire outfit into a force to be reckoned with in the Premier League is well documented and they deserved all the plaudits they got. But since Big Sam's departure, "Little Sam" seems to have struggled to stamp his own style on the team or to come to terms with the added responsibility. The other is Martin Jol. Yes, he has done well in guiding Spurs to fifth in the last two seasons, but that could probably be put down to good coaching rather than good management. His tactical naivety has been continually called into question over his time in charge and now that they are struggling, he really seems like he has absolutely no clue how to rally the team and get the best out of them. His treatment of Jermaine Defoe being a prime example of his inability to manage. It may take both of these men a long time to build up their confidence and reputation if they fail.

I also think that the next example will come sooner rather than later, and that it will be at Stamford Bridge. Avram Grant is apparently a very good coach, but will he have the ability to generate the same kind of loyalty that Mourinho did, or handle a group of players that are far superior to any he has been involved with in the past? I don't think so and don't be surprised if Roman's axe swings again soon.

It is also the reason that I don't think that Carlos Querioz will be the right person to take over from Sir Alex. He failed at Madrid, and he only had to worry about coaching the first team there. How will he handle that as well having to worry about other aspects of the club too?

Or maybe the days of the football manager are coming to an end in Britain? The European structure of allowing the first team coach to only focus on the first team seems to be becoming a lot more prevalent now. This structure would obviously mean that Queiroz could take over at Old Trafford, but I do not think it will catch on too quickly. Young managers like Keane, Southgate, Hughes and even Allardyce will be around for a long time to come, meaning the traditional British structure will continue. Arsene Wenger has also proven that managers from the continent can succeed in this environment.

The value of a good coach can and should never be under estimated, even Sir Alex has always relied on an assistant throughout his career. What the failure of those mentioned above shows is that once clubs have the good managers, they should do all they can to hold onto them.

Good bye Mourinho, Good bye Mourinho.

A lot has happened this week, but the biggie must certainly be the
‘sacking/quitting/departing by mutual consent’ of Mourinho. Has he suffered the same fate as some of the players he has brought into the club. Either that or has he told Roman where he can go shove one of his expensive oil rigs.

If Roman was not impressed by last season’s results, or Chelsea’s last two performances, it must be a warning to future Managers of the Club. Roman wanted Sheva because he was his son’s favorite player apparently, and who ultimately ended up bearing that cross? Jose’s replacement Avram was the Director of football, and was involved down on the touch line. I’m sure Jose didn’t take to this well. You don’t pay a man Six Million Pounds per annum, and after missing the bull’s eye on one season give him a lashing and undermine his authority. The team hasn’t played well this season yet, but every team goes through that. Chelsea have lost one of the greatest Managers out there and he will be hard to replace. Ladbrokes have dropped Chelsea to fourth favorites to win the FAPL which isn’t much of a shock to me.

Future players of the club - be warned, this regime is ruthless and if Mourinho was sacked, he has followed suit to a couple of players Chelsea have had. If you don’t perform, there’s no second chance, you are booted out the door with your tail between your legs.

Chelsea fans be very weary of the dark future ahead. This is the first sign that this is no more than a game to Roman. There can’t be ONE Chelsea fan out there that thinks that this hasty move could be a good thing for the club. If by any chance there may a delusional die had Chelsea fan out there currently reading this blog with pie in the sky dreams, you deserve the Muppet of the Month award. Any team, fan and owner would bend over backwards for Jose (Unless you support the great United)

I’m grateful now, and so should all United fans be. We may have sold the club, but we sold it to a man who means business and ultimately has the same vision as us, and that is winning. Fergie has had a couple of bad runs since Glazer took over but he wasn’t sent packing was he? Glazer’s sons sit on the board of United, but they don’t get involved down on the pitch do they?

I would like to wish Mourinho the best for the future. He would have given SAF a run for the title for many years to come. But now he will be welcome at Old Trafford when the time comes for the greatest Manager of all time to hang up his tracksuit.

Saying all that, how fortunate are we that this happened 5 days before Chelsea come to Old Trafford? We were comfortable 1-0 victors before all this, and now we are going to destroy a one eyed, three legged and demodulated Chelsea squad.

Score prediction, 3-0.

Everton 0-1 United

Today was the 6th game in the FAPL and I still have not been wowed by a United performance yet. We went to one of the most progressive team’s home and we beat them but that doesn’t justify our poor form in front of goal. It’s happened the whole season, we don’t allow them to shoot, we dominate the midfield and we can’t put the ball into the net.

What about SAF’s team choice for the game? Saha on the bench, why didn’t he start him he got a full 45 minutes in two weeks ago and has since been resting due to internationals. Patrice Evra on the Left, nothing was wrong with Nani. To be honest thought Evra was causing more problems for Everton than Ronaldo.

At least we won and now we equal with Liverpool, Chelsea and 2 behind the Gunners. It’s good to see Wenger has proved his critics wrong once again. He has a very good team and they are title contenders. The Big 4 are the Big 4 once again but if United put on there shooting boots one of these days it will be the Big 1. WE have got a more solid team than any of the other 3 we just need to gel. When will that happen?

UWS

Hatrick of wins comming our way

This weekend we visit Goodison Park. I enjoy this fixture for some reason maybe it because Everton hold the record for most number of years in top flight and it’s great to beat a team with that record. Last year we played them on the 28th of April and I was sitting at work and had to watch it somehow. So I found a way to stream it. Thank God I did this because this was a fantastic game 2-0 down and United coming back to score four, this was almost as good as our come back at White Hart Lane a few years ago. I was so worried that we could have thrown away the league on that day and then United Magic came into action proving why we deserved to win the FAPF last year.

The good news is that Rooney is in the squad for tomorrow’s game, remember last year he scored the goal to put United ahead. Another must win game for us and let’s hope we can complete a hatrick of victories. Everton haven’t lost at home since we been them in April.

The history between the teams is in our favour. We have met 173 times won 74 and lost 61. In the EPL our record against them is very good, played 30 won 23 and lost 3.

I can’t find to much team info but this could be a full strength squad bar Gary Neville.

Score Prediction 1-0 to the legends

GGMU.

The best of the best.

Since the premiership has firmly established itself as the greatest league in the world I thought that I would try and make my own premiership starting eleven with four subs. This proved to be very difficult as I am a United Supporter and it could come out very bias so no offense to supporters of other teams. Lets see how close we can get to perfecting this list.

Keeper
Peter Schmeichel
Petr Cech

Defense
Sol Campbell
Jaap Stam
Colin Henry
Stuart Pearce
Tony Adams

Midfield
Patrick Vierra
Steven Gerrard
Roy Keane (Captain)
Ryan Giggs
Eric Cantona (Although could be classed as a striker)

Foward
Tierry Henry
Alan Shearer
Ruud Van Nistlerooy

Tell me what you think and post suggestions. I’ll post the final verdict on this later this month. The hardest part was the defenders as they don’t get remembered as much, but I tried my best to get as close as I can.

UWS

Fergies Potential Headache

After the last game against Sunderland, I think Sir Alex finds himself faced with a few potential selection headaches in the next few weeks. Not a bad problem to have, but in todays world of footballers with over pampered egos, I think it is going to take all of his famous man management powers to keep every one happy. But in saying that, he has never been one to rotate excessively, like say Benitez does, so this may even be a new challenge for him. He also has a few more superstars to deal with than Benitez, and that is said in earnest not as some sort of snipe at Liverpool. Both the rotation and 'best team' policies have their own merits and faults. Benitez has a lot of 'squad' players to pick from whereas Fergie has a lot of what would be considered automatic selections.

The first of these headaches is created by Louis Saha's return to fitness and the first team. It doesn't take an expert to work out that he is exactly the type of player that United were lacking and although a lot of doubts exist around his fitness, whenever he plays and gets a decent run of games, he has proved that he is a very good player. We have looked very flat up front, and although Tevez has tried hard, he clearly cannot play the role that Saha does. Even when Rooney comes back it will be very hard to leave Saha out, as he also thrives playing off of someone. If you think back to the worst United performances over the last few years, they have all come with Rooney playing up top on his own. When they are all available, it is going to be interesting to see what The Boss does.

But that dilemma is small compared to the one he has in midfield. Ronaldo and Scholes pretty much pick themselves, especially after last season, which leaves Carrick, Giggs, Nani, Anderson, Hargreaves and Fletcher to fill two spaces. In my opinion Hargeaves needs to play, as he looks to be exactly the kind of player we have been missing. Someone who can protect the back four and turn defence into attack in an instant. Giggs gets the nod too as he still delivers at a consistently high level and is one of the few people in the league who manages to clear the first defender from a deadball situation almost every time. He is also a Fergie stalwart and keeps defying his age. Nani has probably played a bigger role than initially expected and played relatively well at that, so he will be itching to keep his place. Anderson was in and around the Porto first team for a while, both domestically and in the Champions League, so will want to get on and impress too. Darren Fletcher is not exactly the type of player to set the world alight, but has recently proven to be quite capable when called upon. Fergie also seems to have a lot of faith in his potential and will not want to give up on him. So all of these will need to be kept happy.

The biggest loser in this sitiuation looks as though it is going to be Michael Carrick, probably too good to be on the bench, but not consistent enough to displace Scholes or Hargreaves, he may turn into a very expensive substitute or squad player. Even against Sunderland, he didn't looked too impressed to be on the bench and also has his England place to fight for. The midfield is where I think Fergie will need to apply most of his skills.

At the back it is pretty settled. Neville, Vidic, Ferdinand and Evra when they are all fit, with Brown and O' Shea for cover as they can both play anywhere across the back. I haven't mentioned Silvestre as I think he is a liability and will hopefully be on his way in January anyway.

It is going to be very intereseting to see how this problem is tackled, but I am sure it will result in another feather in Sir Alex's cap. It is after all a much better problem to have than last season and sets us up for an all out assault on the Champions League.

The Invite Only G-14 (Sorry Chelsea)

The G-14 is an independent group of the Europe’s best clubs that was formed in September 2000 and they are not affiliated to FIFA or UEFA in any way. It is headed by Olympique Lyonnais Jean-Michel Aulas. The group’s main aim is to join together as a unified voice in negotiations with FIFA and UEFA. It’s called the G-14 but in fact there are 18 teams and they plan to invite another 16 teams while broadening oversees.


Members
Ajax, Arsenal, FC Barcelona, Bayer Leverkusen, Bayern Munich,
Borussia Dortmund, PSV Eindhoven, Internazionale, Juventus,
Liverpool, Manchester United, AC Milan, Lyon Marseille,
Paris Saint-Germain, FC Porto, Real Madrid, Valencia

They are taking FIFA to court over paying players for internationals after the Belgian club Charleroi lost Abdelmajid Oulmers in November for eight months when he was injured playing for Morocco. This isn’t a bad thing considering that they supply 22% of the players in the world up. If a player like Rooney gets injured in a World Cup and United loose momentum because of that and finish second in the league 1 point behind the winner it will cost the Club millions. FIFA need to come to the table with solution but the G-14 needs to be reasonable as well.

Also the G-14 has an idea of a European Super league. I think that this is a fantastic idea. Imagine 16 teams (winners of various leagues) playing each other home and away for an entire season that means there will be 32 games. Take that and the 38 games that are played in the FAPL and you get 70 games. Yes it’s a lot of games but teams must choose if they want to play League cup and FA cup. What this will do for major clubs is increase revenue and build bigger squads to compete in all competitions.

New Author

Sorry I haven't posted since Monday. I have invited a good mate of mine to be co-editor of this blog. I always turn him to when it come to football questions that I don't know the answers to. I'm sure you will enjoy reading his posts on all his views, not only about Man United but about football in general. He has been published on Football365's famous mail box numerous times and is currently based in Australia. Not even the huge time zone difference has gotten in the way of him watching the Famous Man United. Welcome buddy.

UWS

Five games in.

Five game weeks into the season and a lot has happened. The transfer window is closed. Liverpool is on top of the log (Makes me sick to my stomach to say that). My fantasy team is in big trouble. Louis Saha is back from injury and scored on his first time out again. Chelsea lost their first game away at Villa Park. Man City have lost back to back games. The list can go on forever and that is why we love the FAPL because of its unpredictability.

Having said that I still find that I have not loved a Man United game as yet. You know, that feeling of utter satisfaction. Yes our first three games were great we played some good ball but we never won any of them. We ‘just’ beat Spurs last week and this weekend we only scored one at home to Sunderland. I didn’t write a match report on the game, there was just not enough to say about it. Saha came on the field the second half though and changed the dynamics of the team. I’ve said it from the beginning we need two world class players up front and it worked. Still to this day though the best 45 minutes of football we have played was the first half against Reading.

Liverpool fans are jumping up and down because of the position they are in and they are playing good football. They have started the premiership well but have only played a big team once and they drew. They should have drawn to Villa also. I cant wait to go to Anfield in December and cut them back down to size.

Man United v Keano

Tomorrows visitors are managed by United legend Roy Keane. Keano holds a special place in my heart but to be honest I did think it was time for him to leave when he did. Although SAF should have had a replacement for him but alas he didn’t and it took us time to adjust to his absence.

This weekend isn’t about ‘Keano’ it’s about Sunderland coming to OT to get a thumping. They beat spurs on the first day of the season and have since then failed to win another. United have to get another win tomorrow if we are to win the title this year. We can’t afford to draw again and I don’t think it’s possible to lose to them at home ever.

We don’t only need to win tomorrow, we need to win convincingly. This will make the players more confident and with Ronaldo returning against Chelsea it should make our title challenge very strong, we must not slip up again though.

We have played Sunderland 121 times in all competitions and have won 50, lost 38. In the EPL we have played 12 times won 8 lost 1. We have beaten them in all games at home bar the draw in April 2006 which is also the last game we played them. This will not happen tomorrow. My score prediction is 4-0 (I said convincing didn’t I)

I wasn’t able to find any team news up till now but Saha will surely play tomorrow as SAF has said.

UWS

Old Trafford part 2 - Stretford End

Traditionally, the Stretford End housed United's most loyal and patriotic supporters. It was the main standing area of the ground, accommodating 20,000 standing United fans. It was once measured that the roar of the crowd from the Stretford End was louder than a Jumbo Jet taking off. The last game played in front of the famous old terrace was a 3-1 win over Spurs on 2nd May 1992.

In 1993, the Stretford End was converted into an £10 million all-seater cantilever stand to comply with the Taylor Report, and its name was officially changed to West Stand, although it is still often referred to as the Stretford End. In 2000, a second tier of seating was added. As well as hosting a number of executive boxes, the first tier of the West Stand is now partly taken up by the family seating area which is one of the quietest areas in the stadium, a contrast to the old Stretford End. Beneath one of the corners are the players' dressing rooms, tunnel and lounge.

Only Denis Law and Eric Cantona have reached the status "King of the Stretford End" among the United faithful. The former for his formidable goal record, the latter for his on-pitch charisma and aura.

Following Manchester United's premature ending with the clubs sponsor Vodafone, the new sponsor, AIG will not be displayed in the seats; the 'Nike Swoosh' has been relocated to the East Stand and the words "Stretford End" have been written on the seats of the West Stand.

Stretford End is also the title of The Website of Dreams (www.stretfordend.co.uk) which is the unrivalled home of Manchester United statistics on the internet with over 12,000 pages of data about the club's match and player history. It has recently (November 2006) become the official supplier of statistics to Manchester United's official club website (www.manutd.com). The Stretford End website raises funds for two Manchester United charities, Manchester United Disabled Supporters' Association (MUDSA) and United for UNICEF.

Banners

Once work on the second tier was complete, the club allowed supporters to mount banners on the wall in front of the second tier, and groups of supporters got together to produce and pay for them. The slogans on the banners included:

• 031 Years — a reference to the length of time since United's rivals Manchester City had won a major trophy. The supporters purchased a set of matching numbers with velcro so that the number could be updated each year. There are various rumours of this banner being removed by the owner to be taken to FC United of Manchester matches. Stretford End Flags are in the process of deciding if a replica "ticker" banner will be made.
• MUFC The Religion — symbolizing fanaticism and loyalism for the club. MUFC stands for Manchester United Football Club.
• Republik of Mancunia – Red Army — written in faux Cyrillic showcasing the Mancunian pride of the supporters and, for some, their apathy towards the England national football team.
• 2O LEGEND — a reference to the United player Ole Gunnar Solskjær who had been injured for over a year when the banner was made. Solskjær wears number 20 on his shirt.
• One Love – Stretford End – MUFC — One Love is the title of a song by Manchester band the Stone Roses that was played at the 1999 European Cup final, which Manchester United won.
• February 6, 1958 – The Flowers of Manchester — A tribute to the Munich air disaster, in which eight United players died. The Flowers of Manchester is the title of a tribute song by The Spinners.
• Form Is Temporary Class Is Permanent – This banner is a reference to United's history in saying that the Manchester United first team has always had great players. Although anybody can beat anybody else on their day, this does not reflect the quality of the team.
  

The banners were temporarily removed in August 2005. Initially, this was caused by building work on the corners of the stadium, but the majority of their owners decided not to put them back up as a protest against Malcolm Glazer's takeover of Manchester United.

More Banners have returned to Stretford End designed by the fans along with the old ones (i.e. the "ONE LOVE STRETFORD END MUFC" banner). The last banner will be voted on by the fans during the end of 2005. This however has caused much controversy amongst United supporters, some of whom consider it to be a show of faith and acceptance towards Malcolm Glazer and his family.
New Banners

• The Phoenix Banner - "MUFC - EST 1878 WE'LL NEVER DIE" (first in place at the Blackburn match)
• Blue Nose Day Banner - "Blue Nose day comic relief for 29 yrs" (in place at the Manchester City match)
• In Memory of Noel Cantwell Banner - "Noel Cantwell 1932-2005 RIP" (in place at the Manchester City match)
• Eusebio I Say Kiddo Banner - "Eusebio and I say Kiddo...Kiddo,Kiddo - Wembley'68" (in place at the Benfica match)
• United > England (in place at the Tottenham match, but has been banned since due to one complaint)
  

From Wikipedia.

Farewell to the Baby-Faces Assasin

Ole could possibly be the nicest guy to grace OT (and the most under-rated). He never complained about anything, he just went on with his job and did what he does best, score goals. He joined united when SAF failed to lure Shearer to the club in 1996. He scored 18 goals in his first season. Ole was dubbed by the fans as a ‘super sub’ and who can blame them after he formed a habit of scoring crucial goals for the club in the dying minutes of important games. No one will forget when he came off the bench to score 4 goals in the 8-1 thrashing of Forest and also scoring the greatest goal in Manchester United history…The winner of the 1999 Champions League Final. To date he is the highest scoring sub for United scoring 28 goals off the bench.

His time at United has come now to an end, retiring because of a recurring knee problem that has plagued him since the 2003 season. He will always be remembered in every United fans heart. Ole will remain at the Club in a coaching capacity and will represent Manchester United as an official Ambassador.

Ole said: "I would like to thank the Manager, the coaching and medical staff and most of all the supporters, who have supported me through my career. They have been fantastic and were a real inspiration to me when I was out injured. "The support the fans and the staff showed me during that time was the main motivation for me making my comeback. I feel proud to have represented Manchester United for 11 years and have some very special memories.”

Last year I was lucky enough to get him to sign my 00/01 League shirt. It’s really sad to see him leave but maybe now we will sign the extra striker we need to complete our squad for the season. Ole you will be missed.

Ole's United Honours

• Premier League (6): 1996/97, 1998/99, 1999/00, 2000/01, 2002/03, 2006/07
• FA Cup (2): 1999, 2004
• UEFA Champions League (1): 1999
• Intercontinental Cup (1): 1999
• Community Shield (2): 1996, 2003
  

Old Trafford

Old Trafford or as Sir Bobby Charlton named it ‘The Theatre of Dreams’ is home to the greatest football team in the world. It’s been the home of Manchester United since 1910, bar the eight years in World War 2 after it got bombed. The Stadium had been used many times while Wembley under went reconstruction to host England internationals, that just solidifies its position as the best stadium in England. Old Trafford has hosted the Fa Cup final and the Champions League final in 1915 and 2003 respectively. Its current capacity is just over 76000. It has the potential to be expanded to 96000 with further development.

Did you know?

• The ground has appeared in more movies than any other in Britain.
• OT was the first English ground to have a perimeter fence installed to stop fan violence and hooliganism.
• Weather doesn’t usually affect games at OT because the center of the pitch is nine inches higher than the edges helping out the drainage of surface water. There is also 37 kilometers of piping under the surface circulating hot water to melt any snow that might fall on the turf.
• OT has is own railway station which only operates on match days.
• OT is the only UEFA 5 star rated Stadium in England.
• It has hosted a Rugby League Grand Final match.

I personally have never been to OT because when I was in England last year we played away at Fratton park and I went there. I can just imagine what it would be like to be sitting in Stretford End. To hear the roar of 76000 fans screaming when the ball hits the back of the net.

UWS

Manchester United 1- 0 Spurs

Our first win today, which just puts a smile on my face. Even though we didn’t look as strong today as we did in our first three games we still came away with 3 points. That just shows you how frustrating football can be. I was cursing the entire game about how narrow we were playing and then the goal comes. From then onwards it was nail biting stuff until the final whistle as Spurs changed gear determined to get a point.

There weren’t many chances in the game for us. Scholes went just over the bar with a shot, Carrick just missed from 20-yards out and Hargreaves with two long range shots off target. The referring was good today because Spurs could have easily been given an unjust penalty for what seemed to be a Wes Brown hand ball at time. Just before that Rio cleared the ball just a few centimeters before the line denying Berbatov his first goal of the season.

Today Tevez and Carrick were both terrible, good think we took Carrick off though I think taking Tevez off wasn't a good idea and. What if Spurs Scored? We would only have Eagles upfront, that would have been to much pressure for the youngster. Tevez is very ineffective on his own upfront and will be a much better player once he gets Saha up front with him(which should be next weekend) but we still need a top striker on the field no matter what.

Match Stats
United Spurs
Shots (on Goal) United 14(5)Spurs 10(3)
Fouls United15 Spurs 7
Corner Kicks United 4 Spurs 4
Offsides United4 Spurs 5
Time of Possession United 63% Spurs 37%
Yellow Cards United 2 Spurs 3
Red Cards 0 0
Saves 2 4

The result was just what United needed to get some confident spirits on the training ground tomorrow. It will surely boost the team for Sunderland and after that Ronaldo will be back to face Chelsea in our next EPL game. United will get through this hard period of injuries and suspensions and after that we will dominate the rest of the season.

GGMU

Top half of the table tomorrow.

I tried to dig up us much as I can on tomorrows opponents but there wasn’t much I could find. I don’t know if I'm looking in the right places though. Two memorable games that I can remember though with Spurs are coming back from 1-0 down at home in the last game of the season in 1999. This come back was the first of three vitals games towards the treble. Another is the 5-3 come back at white heart lane on the 29th of September 2001, with Beckham, Blanc, Cole, Van Nistelrooy and Veron the scorers.

We have played Spurs 30 times in the EPL winning 22 losing 3, not once have we lost at home but we have drawn 3 times. In total we have played Spurs 162 times won 74 and lost 46. The 30 games we have played in the EPL have seen a total of 80 goals which is just below a 3 goals per game average.

Today our 3 rivals for the title all won their games which leave us 8 point behind Chelsea. A must win game for us tomorrow.

I think the score is going to be 3-0 in our favor. I know this sounds optimistic considering my last three predictions but let me set something straight. I NEVER THINK WE ARE GOING TO LOSE. Not once since I have started watching football have I ever thought we would lose and I never will. Even if we are playing Real Madrid with our reserve team will I think a loss for us impossible. I say that when a player walks onto the field wearing a United strip he is a 25% better footballer. United is about passion and heart. Players will always have the backing of the fans regardless of the odds.

UNITED WE STAND.

Not so busy day.

Not a lot has happened today except that Benitez started whining about how unfair his team is treated by the Premier League.

He Said "How can a player with a signed agreement be treated like this?He has a document which is clear, but the Premier League prefers to believe the word of someone else who made a mistake."
I'm sure that if Liverpool had a legal leg to stand on they would have taken it further. The Premier League would not have ignored a legally binding letter, Obviously the letter wasn't.

"Then I would like to ask the Premier League why is it that Liverpool always plays the most fixtures away from home in an early kick-off, following an international break? We had more than the top clubs last season and we have four already to prepare for this season."
Its all about ratings Rafa, more people want to watch United so they give us the better time slot. Accept it Liverpool isn't as important and United.

Benitez added: "Then I want to ask the Premier League why it was so difficult for Liverpool to sign Javier Mascherano, when we had to wait a long time for the paperwork, but it was so easy for Carlos Tevez to join Manchester United?"
The Tevez Saga was going on for weeks, obviously United's team of experts were preparing for the deal. Also the Premier League had dealt with a matter like this before as you clearly put it and it was easier the second time around.

And my favorite thing he said "It's going to be very difficult for us to win the Premier League because the other teams are so strong, but I want our supporters to know that despite the disadvantages we have, we will fight all the way. We will fight to cope with our more difficult kick-off times and all the other decisions which are going against us."
This sounds like an excuse to me and so early in the season mate.

Heinze
The traitor has finally left us, good. He destroyed a good name he had with the United fans. Did he really think he could prove something? Did he think he was going to create a "Heinze" rule like Bosman? I think he thought the deal was as good as done and wanted to get United back for not having him in the starting line up. Can you just imaging the boo's at OT when real come to visit.

GGMU

Good ref bad ref.

There has been a lot of talk and write ups about the state of referring in football. I don’t know where I stand on this subject. Football has been played for over one hundred years with referees making bad decisions all the time, every season and every major tournament. Human error is part and parcel of the game that is enjoyed by millions of people around the world. There will be many times when a referees call will make us happy even though we know his decision was wrong and when our team gets a bad call in return we (yes all fans) question the reliability of the referee.

Saying all this I do believe that referees should know the rules of the game though and not make stupid mistakes like giving three yellow cards to the same player. It was absolutely clear this weekend that Styles raised his hand three times showing three yellow cards one of them to Essien, for which he should have been sent off for his second yellow. Referees write down the names of the players they book and when they see that the player has been carded before they should rectify their mistake immediately and show red. Maybe they don’t read through the names they have written down and in that case the cards should have the player’s names on it before the game kicks off with three boxes to tick, two yellows and one red. These issues have only occurred a few times but eliminate it now before it gets out of hand!

When it comes to diving we should have a “dubious dives panel”. The FA have a dubious goals panel to see which player gets awarded the goal and so on but these decisions are not crucial to the integrity of the game. If a player dives or is suspected of diving the panel should view the video evidence in their own time and decide whether the player should get a lengthy ban. I believe that if players know that they will get punished for their false actions they will think before they act.


A few things that should get implemented soon to make football fairer.
Stop the clock when ball is out of play. This works very well in rugby and I don’t know why it’s taking so long to introduce it to Football.
A dive panel like I mentioned above.
The referee’s decision is final. Over and over again I see players arguing with referees and I have never seen them change their decisions. This is becoming ridiculous and some teams are using this as a time wasting opportunity. If players continue arguing with a referee over a free kick for the ref should move the ball ten yards forward and if it ends up in the penalty area it should be a penalty. This has been done once or twice but it should become more consistent.
A player getting carded should stand in front of the referee and accept his punishment so there isn’t and confusion over who is getting the card.
Goal line technology. There are arguments for 5 minutes over these decisions; it would take far less time to replay it.
Open mics. Yes we would get a 10 second delay for the beeping but once again it works in rugby.

If you have any ideas post a comment.

Just have some faith

We all know the result and I know that nobody can believe that we have scored just 2 points from our first three games. Our worst start since the 1992 season but don’t forget we won that season. How can fans be criticising Man United so early in the season. The season has just begun and it starts with 114 points up for grabs. United have dropped 9 points in total which leaves 107. I’m not saying that we will get 107 points but here is a quick reminder, last year we dropped 25 points in total. I’ve been listening to the BBC 606 podcast and have heard United supporters say “United have thrown away the league” and that makes my stomach churn to hear them speaking like that.

Having said that I do believe that SAF has to really think deeply about what he is going to do. We have dominated the midfield in first games and we are not putting the ball into the back of the net. No Rooney, Saha and Solsjaer. Yes Tevez is world class but it has become very clear now that he needs more game time to get fit and he needs support up front. Should SAF splash on a striker? Would the glazers allow this? Will it be a waste of money? I don’t know the answer to these questions but I do have faith in SAF and believe that the team will come right sooner than later.

On Thursday 606’s Tim Lovejoy said that he believes that the `Big 4` will drop more points in this season than any other that has passed and I agree with him after watching the first 3 game weeks. A lot of money has been put into the FAPL and the mid table teams are getting better at closing down individual players e.g. Carlos Tevez. Every time he got the ball three City Players closed him down and removed him from the game. Mid table teams have started off the season well and with players they have brought in they are better capable of getting that crucial draw with the top teams.

UWS.

A brief history of the Manchester Derby

The first derby was played on the 12th of November 1881 when United were Newton Heath and City were West Gorton. Newton won the game 3-0. The first league game was played in the 1894/1895 Season and Newton Heath beat Manchester City 5-2.

Up until the Second World War fans frequently used to go watch a City game one week and the next week go watch United. After the war supporting both teams became uncommon.

The dirty 70’s Derby’s.
December 1970 - George Best broke Glyn Pardoe’s leg in harsh tackle and the defender almost lost his leg due to the injury.
November 1974 – George Best and Francis Lee spent most of the Game blaming each other for diving.
March 1974 - Mike Doyle (United) and Lou Macari (City) both got red cards and refused to get off the field. The Referee had to take the teams back to the change rooms and play resumed when both players accepted their dismissals.

"The day Denis Law back-heeled United into the Second Division".

April 27, 1974 – Denis Laws was playing for City (after 11 years at United) and scored a goal against United at OT in the 81st minute when the game was 0-0. Lee passed the ball to Law and while his back was facing the goal, he instinctively back healed the ball past Alex Stepney scoring for City. When his team mates were running towards him to congratulate him, Law walked straight off the pitch with his head down after realizing that that was the goal that would send Manchester United down to the Second Division. He was substituted and that was the last league game he played. He later said "I have seldom felt so depressed in my life as I did that weekend. After 19 years of giving everything I had to score goals, I had finally scored one which I almost wished I hadn't."


City Failed to Beat United once in the 90’s. This era sparked a long lasting feud between Roy Keane and Alf-Inge Haaland. In 1998, Keane was clean through to goal and Halland (then playing for leads) was chasing him and tackled him. As Keane was laying on the ground Haaland accused him of faking. The tackle actually that meant Keane would miss a few games as he suffered crutiate ligament injury. Three years later when Haaland was the Captain of City, Keane came in with a knee high tackle for which he was sent off. Haaland suffered with knee problems from then on and retired from football in 1992. He said that it was not due to the challenge but medics say it aggravated a previous knee problem. Keane was fined £150,000 and received a five match ban because in his autobiography he admitted the tackle was premeditated.

Today Old Trafford has a banner on Stretford End with a reference to the last time City have won a Major Trophy – 31 years. Each year this gets updated at the start of the season.

Last year we beat City home (3-1) and away (1-0) with Ronaldo scoring once in each and Rooney scoring at home with Saha. In total we have played city in 148 competitive matches, won 60 lost 29. In the FAPL we have played 20, won 12 and lost 3 (all away). A total of 57 goals in the FAPL averaging 2.85 goals per game.

We will be without any of our goal scorers from last year and we will be without Park, Solskjaer , Neville and Foster.

Like I said in a previous post this is more than just about local pride now, its about showing what we are all about.

Prediction: Man City 0-2 Manchester United.

This post will be updated if there is more news on injury’s and I find any other team news.

Update.
Seems Like this is the team :Van der Sar, Kuszczak, Brown, Simpson, Bardsley, Pique, Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra, O'Shea, Fletcher, Eagles, Scholes, Carrick, Giggs, Tevez, Nani.

Hargeave and Anderson are both Injured no expected return date for them.

How did we start in previous campaigns

I was trying to think back today on how our 9 campaigns to win the FAPL started and couldn't remember them all. I needed to know this to see if it is time to start hitting the panic button, so I went digging and this is what I found. I'm going to post the results of the first five games with W=Win, D=Draw and L=Loss including total points

1993 - L(A) L(H) D (H) W (A) W(A) Total points 7 (0 for the first two). Finished on 84 points, 10 ahead of Aston Villa.

1994 - W(A) W(H) D(H) W(A) W(A) Total points 13(6 for the first two). Finished on 92 points, 8 ahead of Blackburn Rovers.

1996 - L(A) W(H) W(H) W(A) W(A) Total points 12(3 for the first two). Finished on 82 points, 4 ahead of Newcastle.

1997 - W(A) D(H) D(H) D(A) W(A) Total points 9(4 for the first two). Finished on 75 points, 7 ahead of Newcastle.

1999 - D(H) D(A) W(H) W(H) L(A) Total points 8 (2 for the first two). Finished on 79 points, 1 ahead of Arsenal.

2000 - D(A) W(H) W(H) W(A) W(A) Total points 13 (4 for the first two). Finished on 91 points, 18 ahead of Arsenal.

2001 - W(H) D(A) D(A) W(H) W(H) Total points 11 (4 for the first two). Finished on 90 points , 10 ahead of Arsenal.

2003 - W(H) D(A) D(A) W(H) L(H) Total of 8 points (4 for the first two). Finished on 83 points ,5 ahead of Arsenal.

2007 - W(H) W(A) W(A) W(H) W(H) Total of 15 points (6 for the first two). Finished on 89 points, 6 ahead of Chelsea.

Average for first five games. 97/9= 10.8 Average
Average for first two games. 33/9 = 3.6 Average

Last Season we tied our best for first two games but our best in the first 5, only to be followed by a draw and loss. If we win our next 3 games it will leave us on 11 points which is just better than the average. Considering the quality of the FAPL I think we need to get 20 points from the next 7 games.

No panic buttons yet, just time to pull up our socks.

Another frustrating draw.

Not the result we were hoping for, not the start we need. These are the games we need to be winning. These are the results that led to us missing out on the title in previous campaigns. Two draws in two games and 2 points in total. This game was even more frustrating for me than the Reading game. We controlled the entire first half, all we lacked was that neat little finish which is so freaking important. Scholes scored his 96th League goal for United moving him ahead of Ruud to number 1 as Man United's top goal scorer in the Premier League. Benjani equalised from Taylor's cross in the 53rd minute. We showed signs of scoring more goals the entire game but just couldn't put the ball in the net. The last ten minutes saw Muntari getting sent off only to be followed by Ronaldo a few minutes later.

The Commentator mentioned that in our treble winning year we started off the season with two draws. In today's competitive League it wont be that easy, we need to have a great string of wins from now on to show intent. I'll post again tomorrow after I Hear SAF comments.

We are now going to be without Rooney and Ronaldo is facing a suspension. Like I said not the start we wanted.

Sundays game at City is going to be played for more than just pride now.

Porstmouth V Manchester United

Well its going to be an interesting game considering Pompeys good record against us at Fratton Park. We've only won once there in the FAPL and lost 3 times. Played 67 Competitive matches won 39 and lost 19 with 12 of them being away. That's means we've won less than half our games against them. Last year saw us leave Fratton park 2-1 losers with Mr Versatility (O'Shea) scoring.

Statistics out the way, let me tell you how I feel about this game. With Rooney injured and Teves coming into play earlier than expected, I think he has something to prove and that is that United are not dependent on any one player. I was at Fratton park in 2006 and we came away 3-1 winners. Since that was the only time I have seen United in England I will always have a positive feeling about the game. Also considering we drew on the weekend we have to win just to keep the critics quiet and to shut up my annoying friends (Sergio) from Liverpool .

To recap on the games I have watched up until now, I have to say that the best goals ive seen have been Gerrard's free kick and Kapo's goal against Chelski. Best Football I've seen so far is Arsenal in the second half of their match against Fulham (That's not taking United's dominant possession without scoring performance against Reading into account). Most Shocking team till now has to be Spurs. 35 million upfront, apparently the best strike force in the FAPL and 2 terrible games.

GGMU

Rooney v Dirty Sanchez

Things dont always go as planned

In the first game week I got 4 of the results correct. The important one I got wrong, and that was Man Utd v Reading. There goes the average of 3.5 goals per game between us last season. It was an interesting game as United had most of the possession and nearly all the chances of the game, even the commentator said that they should have charged Van Der Sar an admission fee because he was a spectator for most of the game. Despite what a lot of fans on forums and BBC's 606 say, I believe that Steve Coppell's tactics were spot on, he couldn't expect to come to OT and play a 4-3-3 because they would have been destroyed. They came there to defend and got 1 point out the game.
Coppell said"We would have liked to have been expansive, but they smother you to death here...We designed a style of play and I'm not going to apologise for that". That's what football is about, getting the most points you can out of a game.

I said in a previous post that we mustn't sell any strikers until we have a replacement. Look what happened this weekend, if we had Smith (Tevez wasn't game fit) on the bench we would have have had a striker in the second half, not John O' Shea up front. Also why do we have players like Nani and Ronaldo in the team if we are not going utilise them, we played so narrow and every time Carrick or Scholes (both of them didn't feature at all in the game if you ask me) got the ball they played it down the middle through a tight defense. Rooney likes his space, the ball should have been played wide to pull defenders out the middle and give him that extra little space he requires.

It's only the first game of the season and even the fact that Rooney is out for 6-8 weeks, we still have Tevez, Saha, Ole, Hargreaves and Anderson to put on the field and just like Spooney said on 606 "SAF is going to rally the troops and United are going to become harder to beat."

Its nice to get of to a flying start like our rivals did, but you can't win 38 games a season. United will be back at their best on Wednesday and show other teams why we are the FAPL champions.

UWS.

Manchester United v Reading

Last years corresponding fixture was played on December 30 with United winning 3-2, Ronaldo scoring twice and Solskjaer once. We played Reading four times in total, twice in the EPL(first time we have met in league competition) and twice in the FA Cup. Two wins (both 3-2) and two draws (both 1-1) , a total of 14 goals between the two teams, averaging 3.5 goals per game. Taking all this into consideration hopefully we are going to have a cracker of a first game.

We have played reading 14 times in competitive matches losing only once to them on the 27 Jan 1927 in a FA Cup 3rd round replay at Villa Park. I recon we will win it 3-0.

My predictions for the rest of this weekends games. (Its what I want to happen for the sake of my fantasy league team)

Sunderland 1-2 Tottenham
Bolton 1-1 Newcastle
Derby 0-1 Portsmouth
Everton 2-0 Wigan Middlesbrough 1-2 Blackburn
West Ham 0-0 Man. City
Aston Villa 1-1 Liverpool
Arsenal 2-0 Fulham
Chelsea 1-0 Birmingham

Here we go again

I had trouble with the naming of this post, what could I possibly name it? The end of two boring months (It wouldn't have been so bad if there had been a World cup or Euro Cup but every two years we have to go through this). The start of the season! The start of endless debates! The start of weekends spent on the couch! The start of spending four hours on Friday doing changes to my fantasy team! The start of spending 20 minutes on Monday morning discussing the weekends football (and mistakes I made on my fantasy team)! I couldn’t think of anything.

All I can say is Whoohoo, It’s the start of the English Premier League. I’ve already spent 5 hours today chopping and changing my Fantasy Team (http://fantasy.premierleague.com/) and I still haven’t finished. For the second year running we have wagered money to see who has got the managerial skills of SAF, but it’s not about the money it’s about PRIDE. Its about respect (Yes Pimpsta's I know you going to read this. Well done for last year).

Monday morning debates! Monday mornings after a Man United win and a Liverpool lose is going to be fantastic these days, because my best mate who is a avid Liverpool supporter (and one of the pimpstas who won last years fantasy league) has joined the same company I work for and its going to be great to have the whole "who is better" debates on those Mondays. God bless me if its one of those weekends when we lose and they win, ok ok it happens once or twice a year but F**k me will I hear it on the following Monday morning." Have some F**king Respect for the most successful British Club" "The Rafalution has begun" "Steven G to Torres...Goal" "This is the year we win it" and on and on and on. Now that’s what you call Monday morning blues.

Its time for the lads to start getting together again and spend that quality time together not saying a single word to each other for 90 minutes besides "O come on man he should have passed that" "Pass the ashtray" " Shotgun not getting the chips" " Yessssss, Whooohooooo, come on you boykies" and that’s it, that’s our entire vocabulary for 90 minutes. It’s the time that we have the DO NOT DISTURB signs hanging from our brains. For those 90 minutes we don’t know if those shoes go with that top. We do not know any numbers for restaurants so we can’t make reservations. We are unaware of the other channels available to us, so don’t ask us to change the channel. In fact we are unaware of anything around us except for the T.V and people wearing football shirts.

Goodluck to supporters of all teams. Enjoy 10 months of the beautiful game.

Two Friendlies 7 Goals.

Tonight we played two friendlies one in Scotland and one in Belfast. But have a look at the teams we took. Goals scored in brackets.

Dunfermline: Van der Sar, Kuszczak; Brown, Bardsley, Pique, Silvestre, Eckersley; Hargreaves, Fletcher, Scholes, S Evans, Eikrem, Eagles(1); Giggs(1), Rooney(2).

Glentoran: Heaton; Simpson, Vidic, Ferdinand, Evra(1), Lea; Carrick, O'Shea, Gibson, Martin, Nani(1), Anderson; Dong, Campbell(1).

Now we still missing Saha, Solskjaer, Neville, Park and Foster. Split those five into the above two teams and we are looking good to have two teams in the EPL haha, ok maybe not to win it every year but at least to get into Europe. Hats off to SAF for committing to two friendlies in one night and also been able to entertain both capacity crowds with good football, big names and lots of goals. Ronaldo didn't play tonight because he has a slight ankle injury and it was a precautionary measure to leave it at home so we can have him fit and hungry for Sundays game. Good to see Scholes back aswell. Well now that we know who is fit and who is not its up to the administrators to make sure that we have Tevez for Sundays game, even without him I think we will be victorious.

Since Ive started this blog I have been doing in depth reading about the club I love and have learnt some interesting things. Like to day for example I learned that SAF played for tonight's friendly opponents Dunfermline and he is still their fifth top goal scorer (you go Alex) scoring 91(Wikipedia says 66) including 6 in Europe for the team before he was transferred to Rangers for £60,000 a then record fee between two Scottish clubs(thanks TEAMtalk).

Dunfermline chairman is grateful to SAF for taking a strong team with him tonight and that includes Paul Scholes which means he could play part of Sundays opener, at least he will be on the bench.
United play two friendly tonight but Ronaldo, Tevez or Heinze will not play in either tonight.

Manutd.com poll.

A poll of more than 10000 United fans on manutd.com resulted in 68% wanting to win the Champions League (CL) as a priority, with this I cant agree. The EPL is the hardest and most watched league in the world no matter what other leagues try do or who they try buy (Beckham). The competition in England is tough, we had three teams in the semi-finals of the CL and Liverpool knocked out Chelsea. Does this mean that Liverpool are better than them? No way! That just mean that they played better on the day just as AC Milan did at the San Siro against us. Chelsea were going for the EPL title and F.A cup at the time of the semi finals and they didnt have the luxury of resting loads of players the weekend before as Liverpool did. Same with us we had to play Everton the weekend before came back up from 2-0 down to win, that caused tired legs. Its not an excuse its just that last year we had a choice to rest players for the Everton game and possibly give up the title or go for the win and try our best in the CL. SAF chose the EPL. The EPL is about consistency, squad juggling, depth and maintaining a fit, injury free team. Don't get me wrong the CL is dear to me and I want to win it, but for me the Premiership is gold and the CL is silver. GGMU.

Heinze the traitor.

Heinze (or "the flying elbow" as a friend mine named Harry calls him) has come out and said he wants to leave the club. This is a clear indication that he doesn't think he has what it takes to fight Evra for a first team place. If a Player wants to leave the Premiership Champions it must mean that something has obviously gone stale somewhere. What has caused him to want to go to our rivals? He said that they are the only ones that have tabled an offer! Did his agent approach them? I don't think they would have put in an offer for him out the blue, they must have gotten word that he was for sale from his agent and that means that the agent did approach Liverpool knowing that Gill told him that Heinze would not be sold to a rival. I think the panel will vote in Uniteds Favour. That cult following that Heinze got while he was at our club has now dissolved, he is a traitor.

Yesterday was great the first "real" game of football since the close of the season. We are ready for the new season and according to Ryan Giggs, Tevez fits into the team very well and he cant wait to be playing with him. Tevez's contract should get signed this week and if all goes well he should play on Sunday. I'm just as excited as Rooney for the EPL and I agree that winning the Community Shield will give the team the confidence they need to get off to a flying start this season. Last year we won the first four and losing the fifth to Arsenal on 17 September after that we drew 1-1 to this weekends opposition Reading.

The Commentators during yesterdays game said that if we win the Champions League this year there is a good possibility of SAF retiring. Never, there is a great possibility of United winning the Champions league because we got the depth which we were lacking at the end of the season. I think SAF wont retire until there is a suitable replacement in line.

Ronaldo said today "It is always difficult to win the Premier League but we have bought four great players so we don't just want to win the league, we want the Champions League as well."

Lets see what the outcome of SAF and Heize's first meeting will be. I want him to stay because like I said last week we need a strong defender to keep the rest on their toes and just in case we get a injury.

What happened today in the history of Manchester United 1994
United field a weakened side and lose 1-0 to Rangers to finish in third place in the Glasgow Rangers four-team tournament. Eric comes on at half-time but is sent off after two bookings in the space of a couple of minutes.

Wish we could swap today's game for the FA Cup final not only because we won but because it was a fair bit more exciting. Both the teams were missing some key players and both had good chances of winning it during normal time. The game started off with United looking shaky but from the 20th minute we pulled our socks up and showed why we are the champions. We pulled off some good moves and slick passing at times. Ronaldos great run on the left around the 25 minute mark showed why its going to be hard to knock him of the top podium as the EPL's best player.

Evra's play by passing the ball back to Ronaldo and moving two defenders off him was key in the lead up to Giggs' goal. Giggs' goal was cancelled out by Malouda after a good run while keeping Ferdinand off him and then placing his shot beyond Van Der Sar's reach. I think that Ferdinand could have done a bit better to prevent that goal.

Carrick had a very good moment and a bad one. His good moment was his shot just off goal which would have left Cech scratching his head wondering where that came from and his bad was when he left Essien unmarked in the box which almost lead to a goal by Chelsea.

Vidic was involved in what could have been 2 penalties one for Chelsea when he "handled" the ball in the area and one for United when he was pushed in the air by two Chelsea players. One player that didn't seem to be in the game was Lampard maybe its got to do with the uncertainty of a new contract?

Both teams decided that if there was a draw at the end of normal time they would not play extra time and go straight into penalties. This is how the penalties went.
Claudio Pizarro - VDS Save
Ferdinand - Goal
Frank Lampard - VDS Save
Carrick - Goal
Shaun Wright-Phillips - VDS Save
Rooney - Goal to give SAF his 6th Community shield.

On a final: Nani played a small part in today's game but from what I can see his fast first time passes are going to be a problem for defenders in the near future.

Doncaster Rovers 0 - 2 Manchester United.

Scorers - Gibson, S.Evans. Anderson Played 45 minutes and was running around and show some impressive passing skills.

Tevez will be playing his first game in one of the friendlies on Wednesday.

What happened today in the history of Manchester United 1975

Jim Holton was sent off in United's 3-0 pre-season win over Danish side Halskov. Lou Macari scored two goals, Gerry Daly grabbed the other.

Tevez Saga Over.

Its Finally over. West Ham have finally agreed to let Tevez go, they have accepted a settlement offer of £2million. Tevez's agent has said that he has passed a medical at OT and the paperwork will be completed next week. He will be training with the team over the weekend apparently. United's Strike force next year will be ROONEY, TEVEZ, SAHA, SOLSKJAER and DONG. Can you imagine the look on Carragher's face when he sees Rooney and Tevez running towards him, he wont know what to do. Remember nothing is 100% until the paperwork is signed but as far far as im concerned he is a United player now.

Rhain Davis the Whiz Kids join Manchester United

Thanks to Rhain's grandfather for sending in the DVD this kid has joined the MUFC Acadamy according to various sources.Rhain told The Times newspaper, "Being here has been brilliant so far. The best part has been meeting lots of the players, like Wayne Rooney." A Spokesman for the club played down any expectations for the kid and pointed out that they(MUFC) recruit 30 nine year old kids a year "The number of United academy graduates going into professional football is quite high. But of the current United first-team squad, only one English player (Danny Simpson) came from the academy."

Some websites say that the Tevez saga has reached an agreement and it will be announced on today. I'm not gonna go on about this story...enough already.

SAF says that Hargreaves was worth the wait. OK so our midfield is sorted out and our defense, but with Rossi and Smith(Hasn't agreed personal terms with the magpies but will soon i suspect) our front line doesn't look very stable. Tevez should join the club but doesn't have any preseason game time with our squad. Saha is always getting injured and at any minute he could be out for a couple of months. OLE is a UNITED legend but he is old now he doesn't have the legs anymore. It gives me confidence that our top goal scorer of last season was from the midfield but i get worried when we strengthen one part of our squad and another part get weakened. This transfer period we have bought 3 midfielders(Nani, Hargreaves and Anderson) and sold one(Richardson). On our front line we have sold 2(Rossi and Smith) and probably bought 1(Tevez). If our stikers can remain fit, in form and injury free we do have the depth go the distance in all the competitions.

Man United 1 - 2 Inter Milan

Scorers for Man United Rooney. Scorers for Inter David Suazo(2), Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
I didn't get to watch the game because the broadcasters didn't show it because of live local football(South Africa). What I have read though is that our defense needs to tighten up. Rooney showed that he is in fine form and Evra needs to stop attacking so often. Ferdinand missed a sitter at the end apparently but what more can you expect from a defender.

Hargreaves and Anderson to get some game time this weekend.
"Owen Hargreaves and Anderson will be involved over the next couple of games." said SAF.
Now this kid I wanna see play, I'll post the clip of him from Youtube. He looks very promising but lets just see, he is young and needs to show that he can make it in the EPL.
Hargreaves was England's best player of last years World Cup so there is not much to say about him except that we have a world class defensive midfielder.

Heinze recons that the he will know which club he will be playing for by the end of the week. This could be a bad thing not because he might be going to Liverpool because that will never happen, but because after Evras performance last night ( Again what I've read as I didn't watch the game) we might need Heinze to fight for position and lift Evra's game.

Big Sam says that Newcastle have agreed a fee for Smith. I hope this is not true. I want to be assured that we WILL have Tevez in the squad before any commitments to other clubs are made. Its going to be hard to see him go after all he had a great attitude when he returned from injury and played like a legend against Roma. Passionate players like Smith are a real commodity to a squad.

What happened today in the history of Manchester United 1954
Sammy McIlroy is born. Sammy’s 418 appearances included three FA Cup final appearances. He also won a Second Division winners’ medal in 1975.

So tonight's friendly could be the first glimpse of what we are capable of this season (charity shield been a clearer indication). Well this is what i found regarding tonight's game. Just note that I wont be guessing who will be playing or not I'm just gonna post what i can gather off the net.

• "Nani got a little injury in his ankle in training on Monday," said the boss(SAF). "He's a bit of a doubt for Wednesday's game."
• Neville, Saha and Solskjaer are still all out due to surgery.
• Hargreaves and Anderson have been in training since Monday so should make their debuts soon either tonight(unlikely though) or against Peterborough.
• Not much news to be found online regarding Inter's injuries or rested players.
• Mancini did have this to say though "I've never played in Old Trafford, nor against United...So I'm delighted to come to a venue which has played a such an important part in the history of football."

News.

• Rossi to join Villa Real. A club spokesman said "The transfer is subject to a medical which is expected to take place in Spain tomorrow." This means that SAF must be confident in signing Tevez. We sold Rossi for a reported £6. SAF has revealed that MUFC have first option on the player, which is a great for us. Lets hope he has a good few seasons at Villa Real.
• Tevez's "owners", led by Kia Joorabchian, produced a secret document that seriously questioned the credibility of West Ham over the player's ownership.The club will get the chance to put their case when the injunction is heard over three days from August 22 and Joorabchian aims to subpoena chairman Eggert Magnusson and chief executive Scott Duxbury to give evidence.
• Van der Sar is fighting to keep his place as the first choice keeper, he said "You always have to be at your best at United because if you don’t someone else is always ready to take your place,” Lets be honest we dont want to have the same problem as we did when Schmeichel left, we need to start leaving Van der Sar on the bench as often as we can and determine whether or not kuz can handle it.
• Smith might be going West Ham. this may mean one of two things, either this could be part of a Tevez Deal, or its absolute cr*p. We wont be able to hunt down a treble with only Rooney, Saha, Solskjaer ans Fangzhou.

What happened today in the history of Manchester United. 1932 Scott Duncan took over as United boss. He later became one of the club's longest-serving managers, despite mixed fortunes under his tenure. He resigned after 14 matches of the 1938/39 season and joined Ipswich Town.

Manchester United New Kit - 2007/2008

New Blog. New Season. New Kit.