Only one week ago a Carlos Tevez brace gave Manchester City a slender 2-1 lead over Manchester United in the Carling Cup Semi-Final 1st Leg, but as United strolled to a 4-0 victory over Hull at the weekend, they sent out a clear message. We are top dogs in Manchester and will not be giving cup the trophy without a fight, Wayne Rooney is in inspired form and Sir Alex Ferguson will be going all out for victory.
City have won the League Cup on two previous occasions and coincidently the Final comes exactly 34 years after the last won the trophy, their last trophy. So the fans, players and management will be well aware of what this game means, especially as it is against bitter rivals United.
Wednesday, 27 January 2010
Wednesday, 20 January 2010
Legend of Calcio - Toto Schillaci
Cast your mind back almost two decades, the Cold War was ongoing, Margaret Thatcher was leader of a Conservative government in the UK and everyone was doing the Vogue, courtesy of Madonna. But there was something else about 1990 that will have you in a world of excitement and wonder; it was indeed the performances of Salvatore ‘Toto’ Schillaci for Italy at the 1990 World Cup. The tournament propelled the diminutive Sicilian from obscurity into world superstardom.
Toto was born on 1st December 1964 to a very poor family, and was raised in an area of Palermo, controlled by the mafia. He started his career with the local amateur side, Amat Palermo, before he caught the attention of Messina, to whom he transferred in 1982.
At the time, Messina were decaying in Serie C2 – the Italian fourth division, but with the help of Schillaci’s goals, they slowly improved and were eventually promoted to Serie B at the end of the 1985/86 season. The catalyst for Toto’s career was the arrival of Coach Francesco Scoglio in 1984.
Messina became Serie B stalwarts and consolidated their place in the Italian second division, but Zdeněk Zeman replaced Scoglio in 1988. The Czech tactician’s attacking style of football complimented Toto’s style of play perfectly, as he finished Serie B most prolific marksman, bagging half of Messina’s 46 goals in season 1988/89. This magnificent tally brought him to the attention of the country’s biggest club and he signed for Juventus in the summer of 1989.
Under Juve coach and footballing legend Dino Zoff, Schillaci continued his superlative goal scoring exploits throughout the 1989/90 season. The World Cup of 1990 was to be played in Italy and Toto desperately wanted to be part of Azeglio Vicini’s Azzurri squad. That season, Toto proceeded to score 15 goals as the Bianconeri won both the Coppa Italia and the UEFA Cup.
Despite his exploits many in the media expected Schillaci to leave be left out of the Azzurri squad as he already had four strikers of considerable ability and reputation ahead of him in the pecking order – Sampdoria goal twins Gianluca Vialli and Roberto Mancini, Napoli’s Andrea Carnevale, and Inter’s Aldo Serena. Even if picked he would probably only sit on the bench but, to the surprise of many Toto was called up to Italy’s World Cup squad despite having played only one game previously.
Toto started the tournament from the bench. Vicini chose to start Carnevale alongside Vialli for the opening group game against Austria. With the game poised at 0-0 and 76 minutes gone, the Juve striker was given the call to warm up. Within a few minutes of being introduced, Vialli swung the ball over from the by-line, and Toto was there to score with a bullet header to save the home nations blushes. His moment of glory arrived, Toto announced himself on the World’s biggest stage.
However, he was left out for the next game against the USA, but with Vialli’s poor form and growing public pressure, Schillaci started the last group game against Czechoslovakia where he again scored a header.
Toto scored his fifth goal of the tournament in the semi-final against Diego Maradona and Argentina; the game ended 1-1 after extra time and went to penalties. Schillaci did not take a penalty as the Azzurri crashed out in heartbreaking fashion.
He finished off his meteoric rise by scoring the winning goal in the third place play-off against England and subsequently ended as the tournament’s top scorer with six goals, thus winning the Golden Shoe award. FIFA also awarded him the Golden Ball as the tournament’s best player.
The seasons following that World Cup were disappointing and scoring only 11 goals for a Juventus side in transition brought much criticism of the Sicilian. He then incurred a series of injuries and was soon shipped out to Inter Milan in 1992.
Ignored by new Italy coach Arrigo Sacchi, continually booed by his own fans at the San Siro and even insulted outside the ground itself, called a ‘terrone’ literally meaning ‘farmer’ it is a derogatory term used by northern Italian towards their southern counterparts. He had fallen from national hero to non-person in a couple of years. Inter fans used his presence as an excuse for the teams continued poor form and results.
After Inter decided to rid themselves of Toto, he moved to the emerging J-league in Japan and signed for Jubilo Iwata in 1994. Never the same player during his time in Japan, his natural capacity for scoring goals never left him, as he ended up scoring a club record of 60 goals in three seasons.
Since his retirement, he has opened up a football academy in the island of Sicily, while he also had a short foray into politics, as he was elected as a local councillor in his home town of Palermo, more recently he took part in the reality TV show L’isola dei Famosi in 2005.
One of the greatest rollercoaster rides a player could have had, but one that will forever keep him in the hearts of all Italians. Toto, we salute you.
Toto was born on 1st December 1964 to a very poor family, and was raised in an area of Palermo, controlled by the mafia. He started his career with the local amateur side, Amat Palermo, before he caught the attention of Messina, to whom he transferred in 1982.
At the time, Messina were decaying in Serie C2 – the Italian fourth division, but with the help of Schillaci’s goals, they slowly improved and were eventually promoted to Serie B at the end of the 1985/86 season. The catalyst for Toto’s career was the arrival of Coach Francesco Scoglio in 1984.
Messina became Serie B stalwarts and consolidated their place in the Italian second division, but Zdeněk Zeman replaced Scoglio in 1988. The Czech tactician’s attacking style of football complimented Toto’s style of play perfectly, as he finished Serie B most prolific marksman, bagging half of Messina’s 46 goals in season 1988/89. This magnificent tally brought him to the attention of the country’s biggest club and he signed for Juventus in the summer of 1989.
Under Juve coach and footballing legend Dino Zoff, Schillaci continued his superlative goal scoring exploits throughout the 1989/90 season. The World Cup of 1990 was to be played in Italy and Toto desperately wanted to be part of Azeglio Vicini’s Azzurri squad. That season, Toto proceeded to score 15 goals as the Bianconeri won both the Coppa Italia and the UEFA Cup.
Despite his exploits many in the media expected Schillaci to leave be left out of the Azzurri squad as he already had four strikers of considerable ability and reputation ahead of him in the pecking order – Sampdoria goal twins Gianluca Vialli and Roberto Mancini, Napoli’s Andrea Carnevale, and Inter’s Aldo Serena. Even if picked he would probably only sit on the bench but, to the surprise of many Toto was called up to Italy’s World Cup squad despite having played only one game previously.
Toto started the tournament from the bench. Vicini chose to start Carnevale alongside Vialli for the opening group game against Austria. With the game poised at 0-0 and 76 minutes gone, the Juve striker was given the call to warm up. Within a few minutes of being introduced, Vialli swung the ball over from the by-line, and Toto was there to score with a bullet header to save the home nations blushes. His moment of glory arrived, Toto announced himself on the World’s biggest stage.
However, he was left out for the next game against the USA, but with Vialli’s poor form and growing public pressure, Schillaci started the last group game against Czechoslovakia where he again scored a header.
Toto scored his fifth goal of the tournament in the semi-final against Diego Maradona and Argentina; the game ended 1-1 after extra time and went to penalties. Schillaci did not take a penalty as the Azzurri crashed out in heartbreaking fashion.
He finished off his meteoric rise by scoring the winning goal in the third place play-off against England and subsequently ended as the tournament’s top scorer with six goals, thus winning the Golden Shoe award. FIFA also awarded him the Golden Ball as the tournament’s best player.
The seasons following that World Cup were disappointing and scoring only 11 goals for a Juventus side in transition brought much criticism of the Sicilian. He then incurred a series of injuries and was soon shipped out to Inter Milan in 1992.
Ignored by new Italy coach Arrigo Sacchi, continually booed by his own fans at the San Siro and even insulted outside the ground itself, called a ‘terrone’ literally meaning ‘farmer’ it is a derogatory term used by northern Italian towards their southern counterparts. He had fallen from national hero to non-person in a couple of years. Inter fans used his presence as an excuse for the teams continued poor form and results.
After Inter decided to rid themselves of Toto, he moved to the emerging J-league in Japan and signed for Jubilo Iwata in 1994. Never the same player during his time in Japan, his natural capacity for scoring goals never left him, as he ended up scoring a club record of 60 goals in three seasons.
Since his retirement, he has opened up a football academy in the island of Sicily, while he also had a short foray into politics, as he was elected as a local councillor in his home town of Palermo, more recently he took part in the reality TV show L’isola dei Famosi in 2005.
One of the greatest rollercoaster rides a player could have had, but one that will forever keep him in the hearts of all Italians. Toto, we salute you.
Tuesday, 19 January 2010
Manchester City vs Manchester United: Preview
The Carling Cup semi final first leg is here, its Manchester United versus Manchester City, and it promises to be a mouth-watering encounter. City are in decent form, whereas United are in a crisis according to the media, but who will come out on top? Will Carlos Tevez score against his former team? Or will we prove that there is only one team in Manchester?
Saturday, 16 January 2010
Manchester United vs Burnley: Preview
Just as the dust has almost settled after the dismal performance against Birmingham, we get the fantastic news about our financial situation. The doomsday soothsayers are out in force and every Manchester United fan in the land is slightly worried. Apparently the club are in crisis. So what better time to be facing a team that has just changed coach? Burnley visit Old Trafford later today and this could well prove the match that gets our season back on track.
Newly appointed Brain Laws will be looking to continue the good work of the departed Owen Coyle, he is of course the best pound for point manager from the Championship during the period 2006-2009. Yes folks! That’s the reason he was appointed as Burnley manager,
“The results of a Deloitte and Touche study, delivered at the club’s request, confirm that he was top of the list of Championship managers over the period 2006-2009, in terms of delivering the best results relative to financial budgets,” according to Burnley chairman, Barry Kilby.
United go into the match with the news that Edwin van der Sar is back fit and with the squad, Sir Alex Ferguson is going to make sure van der Sar feels right before making the decision on whether to start him or not. Due to the confidence he brings at the back it looks likely he will replace Tomasz Kuszczak in goal.
Ferguson has stated he wants a consistent side, especially in defence. Jonny Evans and Wes Brown should continue in the heart of the defence, Patrice Evra will of course be at left-back and Rafael should start on the right side. Rio Ferdinand has made progress while training in Qatar, but the Burnley game comes a bit too early for him. Nemanja Vidic may make the bench as he is close to a full recovery.
Darren Fletcher is suspended after his red card last weekend, so Anderson may be drafted in as a replacement. Michael Carrick will be his midfield partner. Antonio Valencia will take up his usual right midfield role, with Ryan Giggs brought back into the side at the expense of Ji-Sung Park.
As usual Wayne Rooney will lead the United front line, but who will be his able assistant? DImitar Berbatov is carrying an injury that will have to be operated on, so Ferguson may decide not to risk him. Michael Owen will be itching for a start, though Mame Biram Diouf might get his first start since joining the club earlier in the month.
Burnley are also in a bit of a slump, they haven’t won in 10 games. Defender and captain Steven Caldwell looks likely to miss out with a groin strain while midfielder Jay Rodriguez should also be absent with an ankle injury. Andre Bikey has now joined up with the Cameroon side at the African Cup of Nations in Angola so is unavailable.
Defenders Stephen Jordan and Tyrone Mears should both return to the side after the pair missed the FA Cup trip to MK Dons due to suspension.
The Clarets have picked up just one point from a possible 30 away from home in the Premier League, the worst record of any team. Their last away win at Old Trafford was a 5-2 victory in September 1962. They have also conceded at least two goals in all of their Premier League away matches this season and failed to score in the last three as well. So statistics are at least on our side.
We need to win; it’s as simple as that.
Prediction: 3-1 United
Probable Line Up: van der Sar, Evra, Evans, Brown, Rafael, Giggs, Anderson, Carrick, Valencia, Rooney, Owen.
Newly appointed Brain Laws will be looking to continue the good work of the departed Owen Coyle, he is of course the best pound for point manager from the Championship during the period 2006-2009. Yes folks! That’s the reason he was appointed as Burnley manager,
“The results of a Deloitte and Touche study, delivered at the club’s request, confirm that he was top of the list of Championship managers over the period 2006-2009, in terms of delivering the best results relative to financial budgets,” according to Burnley chairman, Barry Kilby.
United go into the match with the news that Edwin van der Sar is back fit and with the squad, Sir Alex Ferguson is going to make sure van der Sar feels right before making the decision on whether to start him or not. Due to the confidence he brings at the back it looks likely he will replace Tomasz Kuszczak in goal.
Ferguson has stated he wants a consistent side, especially in defence. Jonny Evans and Wes Brown should continue in the heart of the defence, Patrice Evra will of course be at left-back and Rafael should start on the right side. Rio Ferdinand has made progress while training in Qatar, but the Burnley game comes a bit too early for him. Nemanja Vidic may make the bench as he is close to a full recovery.
Darren Fletcher is suspended after his red card last weekend, so Anderson may be drafted in as a replacement. Michael Carrick will be his midfield partner. Antonio Valencia will take up his usual right midfield role, with Ryan Giggs brought back into the side at the expense of Ji-Sung Park.
As usual Wayne Rooney will lead the United front line, but who will be his able assistant? DImitar Berbatov is carrying an injury that will have to be operated on, so Ferguson may decide not to risk him. Michael Owen will be itching for a start, though Mame Biram Diouf might get his first start since joining the club earlier in the month.
Burnley are also in a bit of a slump, they haven’t won in 10 games. Defender and captain Steven Caldwell looks likely to miss out with a groin strain while midfielder Jay Rodriguez should also be absent with an ankle injury. Andre Bikey has now joined up with the Cameroon side at the African Cup of Nations in Angola so is unavailable.
Defenders Stephen Jordan and Tyrone Mears should both return to the side after the pair missed the FA Cup trip to MK Dons due to suspension.
The Clarets have picked up just one point from a possible 30 away from home in the Premier League, the worst record of any team. Their last away win at Old Trafford was a 5-2 victory in September 1962. They have also conceded at least two goals in all of their Premier League away matches this season and failed to score in the last three as well. So statistics are at least on our side.
We need to win; it’s as simple as that.
Prediction: 3-1 United
Probable Line Up: van der Sar, Evra, Evans, Brown, Rafael, Giggs, Anderson, Carrick, Valencia, Rooney, Owen.
Tuesday, 12 January 2010
Serie A Giornata 19 - Round Up
For anyone to say Serie A is boring, needs to sit down and watch Internazionale vs. Siena. This match had it all. Siena took a shock lead that woke the league leaders up and they duly overtook the Tuscan visitors with an excellent finish from Diego Milito and a superb Wesley Sneijder free-kick. Albin Ekdal restored parity within a minute and continued to play a fine game for the following 50 minutes. Man of the match, Massimo Maccarone put the bottom side one up on 64 minutes with a lovely side footed finish from the penalty spot.
Inter looked a shadow of the side that have romped to the top of Serie A, Reginaldo, Maccarone and Ekdal were causing the Nerazzuri defence havoc, and had opportunities to wrap up the game. Jose Mourinho switched to a 4-2-4 system, his gamble paid off as Sneijder lashed in a 30 yard free kick on 88 minutes, then Walter Samuel acting as a centre forward swept home a Goran Pandev through ball in the 93rd minute. This is why Inter will win Serie A.
AC Milan visited Turin to play a beleaguered Juventus side. Leonardo took on Ciro Ferrara in a match the Italian coach needed to win to ease the pressure on himself. After the opening 10 minutes Juventus retreated and Milan dominated possession and were never really troubled by an impotent Juve strike force.
Ronaldinho manages a brace, with the help of De Ceglie and Alessandro Nesta got himself on the score sheet after taking advantage of some woeful defending by Juve. This result means Juventus’ season has gone up in flames, just as the Olimpico was on Sunday and Milan have made the Scudetto race an all Milanese affair.
Napoli continued their marvellous fun of results under Walter Mazzarri after a hard fought victory over Sampdoria, it ended 1-0 to the Partenopei at the San Paolo and subsequently Napoli have caught Juve.
Elsewhere in the peninsula Cagliari earned a surprise win over Bologna at the Stadio Renato Dall'Ara thanks to Alessandro Matri’s 66th Minute strike. One of only a few chances the Sardinians had. Livorno also earned a surprise victory over fellow promoted side Parma, who have had differing fortunes of late. Serse Cosmi has managed to galvanise this Amaranto team since his inception.
Palermo and Roma recorded 1-0 victories over Atalanta and Chievo respectively, with Luca Toni particularly impressive for the Giallorossi.
Fellow strugglers Lazio and Udinese met at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, and played out a 1-1 draw, Sergio Floccari and Antonio Di Natale continuing their impressive goal scoring exploits. Genoa beat Catania 2-0 thanks to Giandomenico Mesto and Giuseppe Sculli.
Finally, Fiorentina entertained high-flying Bari at the Artemio Franchi, in an enthralling match. Both teams were locked on 27 points prior to kick off. Fiorentina were quicker off the blocks and made a few chances, but it was Bari who took the lead against the run of play and Andrea Ranocchia's redirected header fell for Barreto to nod in unmarked from a yard. La Viola rallied and got their equaliser from Adrian Mutu. Bari came out after the interval a rejuvenated side and fashioned a number of chances, Rivas, Alvarez and Barreto were proving a real handful, but their afternoon was ruined when Sergio Almiron received his marching orders after collecting two yellow cards. Following Almiron’s dismissal Fiorentina dominated and received their reward when Jose Ignacio Castillo pounced on a Montolivo rebound.
Inter looked a shadow of the side that have romped to the top of Serie A, Reginaldo, Maccarone and Ekdal were causing the Nerazzuri defence havoc, and had opportunities to wrap up the game. Jose Mourinho switched to a 4-2-4 system, his gamble paid off as Sneijder lashed in a 30 yard free kick on 88 minutes, then Walter Samuel acting as a centre forward swept home a Goran Pandev through ball in the 93rd minute. This is why Inter will win Serie A.
AC Milan visited Turin to play a beleaguered Juventus side. Leonardo took on Ciro Ferrara in a match the Italian coach needed to win to ease the pressure on himself. After the opening 10 minutes Juventus retreated and Milan dominated possession and were never really troubled by an impotent Juve strike force.
Ronaldinho manages a brace, with the help of De Ceglie and Alessandro Nesta got himself on the score sheet after taking advantage of some woeful defending by Juve. This result means Juventus’ season has gone up in flames, just as the Olimpico was on Sunday and Milan have made the Scudetto race an all Milanese affair.
Napoli continued their marvellous fun of results under Walter Mazzarri after a hard fought victory over Sampdoria, it ended 1-0 to the Partenopei at the San Paolo and subsequently Napoli have caught Juve.
Elsewhere in the peninsula Cagliari earned a surprise win over Bologna at the Stadio Renato Dall'Ara thanks to Alessandro Matri’s 66th Minute strike. One of only a few chances the Sardinians had. Livorno also earned a surprise victory over fellow promoted side Parma, who have had differing fortunes of late. Serse Cosmi has managed to galvanise this Amaranto team since his inception.
Palermo and Roma recorded 1-0 victories over Atalanta and Chievo respectively, with Luca Toni particularly impressive for the Giallorossi.
Fellow strugglers Lazio and Udinese met at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, and played out a 1-1 draw, Sergio Floccari and Antonio Di Natale continuing their impressive goal scoring exploits. Genoa beat Catania 2-0 thanks to Giandomenico Mesto and Giuseppe Sculli.
Finally, Fiorentina entertained high-flying Bari at the Artemio Franchi, in an enthralling match. Both teams were locked on 27 points prior to kick off. Fiorentina were quicker off the blocks and made a few chances, but it was Bari who took the lead against the run of play and Andrea Ranocchia's redirected header fell for Barreto to nod in unmarked from a yard. La Viola rallied and got their equaliser from Adrian Mutu. Bari came out after the interval a rejuvenated side and fashioned a number of chances, Rivas, Alvarez and Barreto were proving a real handful, but their afternoon was ruined when Sergio Almiron received his marching orders after collecting two yellow cards. Following Almiron’s dismissal Fiorentina dominated and received their reward when Jose Ignacio Castillo pounced on a Montolivo rebound.
Saturday, 9 January 2010
Birmingham City v Manchester United: Preview
Manchester United are back in action this weekend after the midweek postponement of the Carling Cup semi-final. The F.A. Cup 3rd Round loss to Leeds United has been hard to swallow, with many of the team in for harsh criticism, so expect two things against Birmingham later today. First, a number of changes and second, the dreaded United backlash.
A week dwelling on an embarrassing defeat is almost over and the team will be looking to make amends at St. Andrews, but it will be by no means an easy match. Birmingham are unbeaten in 11 Premier League matches and have equaled the record set in 1907/08, ironically, a run which ended with a 1-0 loss to Manchester United on 29th February 1908. They have also kept nine clean sheets so far this term, only Chelsea have done better.
Sir Alex Ferguson said after the Leeds match he would be ringing the changes for the following Manchester Derby. Since it was called off, these changes will be made against the Midlands side. So it looks as if it will be the 100th consecutive game he has made changes to his starting line-up.
One constant will be Tomasz Kuszczak, who, despite his error against Leeds, will continue to keep the number one spot from Ben Foster or even Ben Amos.
The defence will have a couple of changes: Patrice Evra coming in for Fabio at left-back and the other twin, Rafael, replacing the abysmal Gary Neville at right-back. The centre-back pairing of Jonny Evans and Wes Brown was not up to standard against Leeds, but due to injuries it will remain intact for this match. Sir Alex and his fitness team have now worked out what is wrong with Nemanja Vidic; it appears he has tweaked a nerve in his leg and will be out for just over a week. Rio Ferdinand is edging closer to a comeback, but he is about two weeks away from that. John O’Shea is out for a while yet.
The midfield should look completely different from the weekends match, Antonio Valencia will be restored to the right side of midfield, Ryan Giggs should come in on the left, while Michael Carrick and Darren Fletcher will take up their customary roles in the heart of the midfield four. It should be expected that Anderson will see some action against Birmingham, as he was one of the better players at the weekend along with Valencia. Owen Hargreaves has stepped up his rehabilitation from his knee troubles but is only training with the reserves at the moment.
The strike force will inevitably be Wayne Rooney and one other. Dimitar Berbatov was atrocious and it is also rumored he is carrying an injury that needs operating on. Berbatov has scored six league goals so far this season, but none of those have come against a side higher than 10th in the current table. Birmingham are 8th. Will Michael Owen get a chance to start? He should, given the Bulgarians form.
We have not lost to the Blues since 1978 and Paul Scholes is confident we can get back on track, “We’ve been written off so many times before and come back and proved people wrong, so hopefully we can do that again,” he said.
Alex McLeish’s team should remain unchanged for the ninth successive league match. Look out for the centre back pairing of Roger Johnson and Scott Dann, who have both been imperious this term, and behind them Joe Hart is staking a serious claim to be England’s number one goalkeeper at the World Cup. Lee Carsley, Stuart Parnaby and Gregory Vignal are all ruled out through injury
Newly crowned manager of the month McLeish will be definitely be looking to get one over his mentor, as yet he has never beaten his former boss. In jovial fashion, he joked, “The big one for all of us who have played for Sir Alex is to beat him – but you’re not allowed, I’ve never done it. We lost 1-0 at Ibrox in the Champions League when I was manager of Rangers and then got thumped 3-0 down the road. I’ve lost two games since I’ve been here at Birmingham — both 1-0 — so I’m getting closer.”
Lets hope he doesn’t get any closer and 3 points are on their way back to Old Trafford.
Prediction: 1-0 United
Probable Line Up: Kuszczak, Evra, Evans, Brown, Rafael, Giggs, Fletcher, Carrick, Valencia, Rooney, Owen.
A week dwelling on an embarrassing defeat is almost over and the team will be looking to make amends at St. Andrews, but it will be by no means an easy match. Birmingham are unbeaten in 11 Premier League matches and have equaled the record set in 1907/08, ironically, a run which ended with a 1-0 loss to Manchester United on 29th February 1908. They have also kept nine clean sheets so far this term, only Chelsea have done better.
Sir Alex Ferguson said after the Leeds match he would be ringing the changes for the following Manchester Derby. Since it was called off, these changes will be made against the Midlands side. So it looks as if it will be the 100th consecutive game he has made changes to his starting line-up.
One constant will be Tomasz Kuszczak, who, despite his error against Leeds, will continue to keep the number one spot from Ben Foster or even Ben Amos.
The defence will have a couple of changes: Patrice Evra coming in for Fabio at left-back and the other twin, Rafael, replacing the abysmal Gary Neville at right-back. The centre-back pairing of Jonny Evans and Wes Brown was not up to standard against Leeds, but due to injuries it will remain intact for this match. Sir Alex and his fitness team have now worked out what is wrong with Nemanja Vidic; it appears he has tweaked a nerve in his leg and will be out for just over a week. Rio Ferdinand is edging closer to a comeback, but he is about two weeks away from that. John O’Shea is out for a while yet.
The midfield should look completely different from the weekends match, Antonio Valencia will be restored to the right side of midfield, Ryan Giggs should come in on the left, while Michael Carrick and Darren Fletcher will take up their customary roles in the heart of the midfield four. It should be expected that Anderson will see some action against Birmingham, as he was one of the better players at the weekend along with Valencia. Owen Hargreaves has stepped up his rehabilitation from his knee troubles but is only training with the reserves at the moment.
The strike force will inevitably be Wayne Rooney and one other. Dimitar Berbatov was atrocious and it is also rumored he is carrying an injury that needs operating on. Berbatov has scored six league goals so far this season, but none of those have come against a side higher than 10th in the current table. Birmingham are 8th. Will Michael Owen get a chance to start? He should, given the Bulgarians form.
We have not lost to the Blues since 1978 and Paul Scholes is confident we can get back on track, “We’ve been written off so many times before and come back and proved people wrong, so hopefully we can do that again,” he said.
Alex McLeish’s team should remain unchanged for the ninth successive league match. Look out for the centre back pairing of Roger Johnson and Scott Dann, who have both been imperious this term, and behind them Joe Hart is staking a serious claim to be England’s number one goalkeeper at the World Cup. Lee Carsley, Stuart Parnaby and Gregory Vignal are all ruled out through injury
Newly crowned manager of the month McLeish will be definitely be looking to get one over his mentor, as yet he has never beaten his former boss. In jovial fashion, he joked, “The big one for all of us who have played for Sir Alex is to beat him – but you’re not allowed, I’ve never done it. We lost 1-0 at Ibrox in the Champions League when I was manager of Rangers and then got thumped 3-0 down the road. I’ve lost two games since I’ve been here at Birmingham — both 1-0 — so I’m getting closer.”
Lets hope he doesn’t get any closer and 3 points are on their way back to Old Trafford.
Prediction: 1-0 United
Probable Line Up: Kuszczak, Evra, Evans, Brown, Rafael, Giggs, Fletcher, Carrick, Valencia, Rooney, Owen.
Sunday, 3 January 2010
Manchester United vs Leeds United: Preview
Happy New Year! With a change in year comes a change in competition, The FA Cup begins in earnest and Manchester United begin the competition with a mouth-watering third round tie against arch rivals Leeds United;
a fixture that has been off the regular calendar since 2004
However, Leeds are a side on the up and sit six points clear at the top of League One with a game in hand. Two divisions separate the teams, but come 1 PM, a proper cup-tie will ensue.
Leeds are unbeaten in 15 games in all competitions stretching back to October and boss Simon Grayson is confident in what they can achieve at Old Trafford,
“We’re in a decent run of form and we’re very confident in what we can try and achieve,” he said. “I feel we have got some talented players that can perform, certainly in the next level and hopefully the next level after that, but the proof will be in the pudding on Sunday. Hopefully we will be able to handle it. We’re going into the game with a huge amount of confidence and belief. “They will believe by the time the kick-off comes around that’s for sure. The last thing I will tell them is good luck, and make sure you win the game.”
Going into the match Leeds Defender Leigh Bromby is suspended after picking up his fifth booking of the season against Stockport, but other than that the visitors have no new injury worries and are missing only long-term absentee Ben Parker and defender Rui Marques, who is on Africa Cup of Nations duty with Angola. Jermaine Beckford is the obvious choice as danger man, the tall striker has bagged 19 goals in all competitions this season leading to speculation over his future as he is out of contract in the summer, he will most likely be looking to impress on the biggest stage.
United on the other hand will be joyful of each passing day as more and more defenders are passed fit. Sir Alex Ferguson will look to use some more of his squad giving club captain Gary Neville a starting berth as he has recovered from a groin injury. Fabio may get in ahead of Patrice Evra, giving the French left-back a well earned break, but expect Wes Brown and Nemanja Vidic to continue in the centre of defence. The game comes too soon for Rio Ferdinand, who has been doing some light jogging, but Jonny Evans could feature following a return to fitness. John O’Shea is still out.
With Edwin van der Sar on compassionate leave, Ben Foster may be given another chance to stake a claim for the number one spot, leaving Tomasz Kuszczak to watch from the bench.
The United midfield could see the return of Paul Scholes who has recovered from a hip complaint. Along side him will be Darren Fletcher or Anderson — more likely the Scot could be selected to give the midfield some added bite. Expect Gabriel Obertan and Ji-Sung Park to be given the wing berths, while Nani and Owen Hargreaves are still sidelined. Ryan Giggs and Antonio Valencia should be on the bench.
As for the strike force, the big question is will Michael Owen make his 400th appearance for an English club? If so then Dimitar Berbatov will partner him, with Wayne Rooney dropped to the bench giving the United talisman a well-earned breather.
Sir Alex underlined the importance of the game during his press conference, stating,
“I don’t need to spell out to Manchester United fans and players what Leeds games have meant over the years,” said Sir Alex, “They were fantastic, feisty occasions every time we met, there was always a tinge of hostility hovering around the game and we always told the players to behave themselves on the pitch. I used to enjoy the games – they made us perform. We had some great games at Leeds because the atmosphere was always electric and our record was good, I think we only lost once there. They were two competitive teams then, but it’s a different United team now, and we just have to make sure we play our normal game. They’re bringing 9,000 fans, so it will be a brilliant atmosphere and a fantastic cup tie.”
Let the War of the Roses commence.
Prediction: 3-1 United
Probable Line Up: Foster, Neville, Brown, Vidic, Fabio, Park, Fletcher, Scholes, Obertan, Berbatov, Owen.
a fixture that has been off the regular calendar since 2004
However, Leeds are a side on the up and sit six points clear at the top of League One with a game in hand. Two divisions separate the teams, but come 1 PM, a proper cup-tie will ensue.
Leeds are unbeaten in 15 games in all competitions stretching back to October and boss Simon Grayson is confident in what they can achieve at Old Trafford,
“We’re in a decent run of form and we’re very confident in what we can try and achieve,” he said. “I feel we have got some talented players that can perform, certainly in the next level and hopefully the next level after that, but the proof will be in the pudding on Sunday. Hopefully we will be able to handle it. We’re going into the game with a huge amount of confidence and belief. “They will believe by the time the kick-off comes around that’s for sure. The last thing I will tell them is good luck, and make sure you win the game.”
Going into the match Leeds Defender Leigh Bromby is suspended after picking up his fifth booking of the season against Stockport, but other than that the visitors have no new injury worries and are missing only long-term absentee Ben Parker and defender Rui Marques, who is on Africa Cup of Nations duty with Angola. Jermaine Beckford is the obvious choice as danger man, the tall striker has bagged 19 goals in all competitions this season leading to speculation over his future as he is out of contract in the summer, he will most likely be looking to impress on the biggest stage.
United on the other hand will be joyful of each passing day as more and more defenders are passed fit. Sir Alex Ferguson will look to use some more of his squad giving club captain Gary Neville a starting berth as he has recovered from a groin injury. Fabio may get in ahead of Patrice Evra, giving the French left-back a well earned break, but expect Wes Brown and Nemanja Vidic to continue in the centre of defence. The game comes too soon for Rio Ferdinand, who has been doing some light jogging, but Jonny Evans could feature following a return to fitness. John O’Shea is still out.
With Edwin van der Sar on compassionate leave, Ben Foster may be given another chance to stake a claim for the number one spot, leaving Tomasz Kuszczak to watch from the bench.
The United midfield could see the return of Paul Scholes who has recovered from a hip complaint. Along side him will be Darren Fletcher or Anderson — more likely the Scot could be selected to give the midfield some added bite. Expect Gabriel Obertan and Ji-Sung Park to be given the wing berths, while Nani and Owen Hargreaves are still sidelined. Ryan Giggs and Antonio Valencia should be on the bench.
As for the strike force, the big question is will Michael Owen make his 400th appearance for an English club? If so then Dimitar Berbatov will partner him, with Wayne Rooney dropped to the bench giving the United talisman a well-earned breather.
Sir Alex underlined the importance of the game during his press conference, stating,
“I don’t need to spell out to Manchester United fans and players what Leeds games have meant over the years,” said Sir Alex, “They were fantastic, feisty occasions every time we met, there was always a tinge of hostility hovering around the game and we always told the players to behave themselves on the pitch. I used to enjoy the games – they made us perform. We had some great games at Leeds because the atmosphere was always electric and our record was good, I think we only lost once there. They were two competitive teams then, but it’s a different United team now, and we just have to make sure we play our normal game. They’re bringing 9,000 fans, so it will be a brilliant atmosphere and a fantastic cup tie.”
Let the War of the Roses commence.
Prediction: 3-1 United
Probable Line Up: Foster, Neville, Brown, Vidic, Fabio, Park, Fletcher, Scholes, Obertan, Berbatov, Owen.
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