Re: General match thread

[DagenhamDave]

i think evra has been pretty shocking lately to be honest.

[II Capitano]

You sure, mate? I completely disagree. Since the QPR game, he has looked relatively solid, to be honest. We seen the old Evra in the Arsenal game, where he was outstanding.

[RED]

Heavy snow in London, game will most likely be called off again for the second season running.

fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuckkkkk!

[II Capitano]

Nah, it wont, not this time anyway. The Chelsea site confirmed that the game will go ahead as planned.

[RED]

Nah, it wont, not this time anyway. The Chelsea site confirmed that the game will go ahead as planned.

[RED]

how on earth are we losing this match 3-0...

[RED]

thanx gibson anyways, it was good whilst it was lasted. let's write this disaster off and concentrate on LFC next week. To be losing to that chelsea team out there is just....smh.

[RED]

unintentional reverse jinx for the win...

[Busby Babe]

De Gea's save

[RED]

De Gea's save

I bet you nothing get's said about it..it was an unbelievable save. He saved us a point there without a doubt.

[II Capitano]

WHAT A SAVE, WHAT A WIN (NOT REALLY). TROLL'D HARD.

[Busby Babe]

What a win. A part from Rio's mistake for the goal he pretty much could of been MOTM.

After all the antics that happened pre/post match we got 3 points in the end and that's what mattered.

Also, good to see Cleverley on the bench.

[Busby Babe]

Talk this morning has been all about John Terry: He is no longer England captain, but England’s former captain. This is not the first time Terry has been stripped off the England captaincy. I am sure most of us still have a vivid picture of why he was stripped off the captaincy a couple of seasons ago. Briefly, just so that this does not seem like a Terry post, this is what the FA had to say,

"Following the decision to adjourn the court case against John Terry to July, the Football Association confirm he will not captain the England team until the allegations against him are resolved."

André Villas-Boas was not too pleased with the decision that the FA have taken. Anyway, away from this issue, Chelsea will be missing two integral players on Sunday, in coincidentally Terry and Ashley Cole. Villas-Boas has apparently stated that he is injured, which is a bit odd, but my theory is that he is just protecting the player, with all the pressure he will suffer from against Manchester United. Cole, though, is suspended. Villas-Boas said that it will either be Ryan Bertrand, an experienced England u-21 left back, or Jose Bosingwa, who has not exactly set the world alight this season, playing out of position.

Will Villas-Boas play with Gary Cahill and David Luiz? We know what happened last time when Luiz played his début game for Chelsea. The Blues went onto win the fixture 2-1, thanks to a Luiz scoring a fantastic volley, which was the equaliser, and his man of the match display. I am not saying Cahill will score in emphatic fashion, he rarely gets forward from the back anyway, but we may witness another performance like Luiz’s.

But Chelsea’s main problem lies in midfield. The industrious Ramires, who normally does all of the running in midfield, is out of action for up to four weeks, which is a big blow for Chelsea. Their midfield has not been ticking this season on a consistent basis. Frank Lampard is a doubt, but reports have emerged that he is set to play. After all, Chelsea need his experience in the middle. Raul Meireles has been a poor signing – the transition from central midfield to, essentially, a holding midfielder has not gone as planned. We have to remember, also, that Meireles was one of the reasons Chelsea lost by three goals to one at Old Trafford, earlier in the season. Things wont be the same this time round.

Sir Alex Ferguson’s comments about the upcoming fixture,

"That was a crazy game. It could have been 20-18. I don’t think it will be like that on Sunday. It will be much tighter."

United also have similar problems, most notably – Anders Lindegaard is out for at least a month. The Dane has enjoyed a great streak of games under his belt, showing tremendous confidence and displacing David de Gea on the bench. Ben Amos is in contention to start, let us not forget that. He has looked relatively comfortable in the two games he has played in this season, against Crystal Palace in the Carling Cup and Stoke City in the Premier League. Nonetheless, most people expect de Gea to start this crucial fixture, but questions are still being asked of the Spaniard.

No problems in defence, as of late. Chris Smalling and Jonny Evans are hot on form, which is great to see. Rio Ferdinand should start the fixture, alongside either Smalling or Evans, either one will do, but you still get a sense that Smalling is more dominant. No questions at right back or left back, but let us hope Patrice Evra continues the fine form he has been in for the last few weeks.

The squad should be boosted with the return of Tom Cleverley, Nani, Ashley Young and Wayne Rooney. I strongly doubt that we will see Cleverley and Young start, but we will definitely see Nani and Rooney feature from the beginning. Those two are crucial, granted that they have not been in the best of form over recent weeks.

A win is crucial, we are currently level on points with City. We need to win every game leading up to the game at the Etihad, which, I know, is easier said that done, but it is not impossible. The loss of Terry and Cole is a big blow for Chelsea, and we should really be looking at taking advantage of their defensive frailties.

My latest post on my blog.

Brilliant post.

One thing I disagree with, I know this was written before the Chelsea game but I think Evra's attacking displays have been masking how defensively weak he is becoming. I think the only reason he isn't likely to get dropped is we need to have a consistent captain while Vidic is gone, and Fabio is too likely to get injured if played.

Oh and can you post the link to your blog, sorry if you have already done so in a previous post.

[RED]

Always great beating them lot. Was even better seeing Evra's celebrations at the end.

As for Suarez, this guy is single handedly destroying LFC. With every game he is becoming more and more of a stain to English football.

*bleep* him! makes me even more proud to be a United fan. The way our club and captain have conducted themselves with dignity has made me feel proud.

Top of the league! Hope it stays that way by 10pm tomorrow too.

[Nishankly]

What Evra did, You call that dignity?


Anyways enjoy your victory.

[II Capitano]

Talk this morning has been all about John Terry: He is no longer England captain, but England’s former captain. This is not the first time Terry has been stripped off the England captaincy. I am sure most of us still have a vivid picture of why he was stripped off the captaincy a couple of seasons ago. Briefly, just so that this does not seem like a Terry post, this is what the FA had to say,

"Following the decision to adjourn the court case against John Terry to July, the Football Association confirm he will not captain the England team until the allegations against him are resolved."

André Villas-Boas was not too pleased with the decision that the FA have taken. Anyway, away from this issue, Chelsea will be missing two integral players on Sunday, in coincidentally Terry and Ashley Cole. Villas-Boas has apparently stated that he is injured, which is a bit odd, but my theory is that he is just protecting the player, with all the pressure he will suffer from against Manchester United. Cole, though, is suspended. Villas-Boas said that it will either be Ryan Bertrand, an experienced England u-21 left back, or Jose Bosingwa, who has not exactly set the world alight this season, playing out of position.

Will Villas-Boas play with Gary Cahill and David Luiz? We know what happened last time when Luiz played his début game for Chelsea. The Blues went onto win the fixture 2-1, thanks to a Luiz scoring a fantastic volley, which was the equaliser, and his man of the match display. I am not saying Cahill will score in emphatic fashion, he rarely gets forward from the back anyway, but we may witness another performance like Luiz’s.

But Chelsea’s main problem lies in midfield. The industrious Ramires, who normally does all of the running in midfield, is out of action for up to four weeks, which is a big blow for Chelsea. Their midfield has not been ticking this season on a consistent basis. Frank Lampard is a doubt, but reports have emerged that he is set to play. After all, Chelsea need his experience in the middle. Raul Meireles has been a poor signing – the transition from central midfield to, essentially, a holding midfielder has not gone as planned. We have to remember, also, that Meireles was one of the reasons Chelsea lost by three goals to one at Old Trafford, earlier in the season. Things wont be the same this time round.

Sir Alex Ferguson’s comments about the upcoming fixture,

"That was a crazy game. It could have been 20-18. I don’t think it will be like that on Sunday. It will be much tighter."

United also have similar problems, most notably – Anders Lindegaard is out for at least a month. The Dane has enjoyed a great streak of games under his belt, showing tremendous confidence and displacing David de Gea on the bench. Ben Amos is in contention to start, let us not forget that. He has looked relatively comfortable in the two games he has played in this season, against Crystal Palace in the Carling Cup and Stoke City in the Premier League. Nonetheless, most people expect de Gea to start this crucial fixture, but questions are still being asked of the Spaniard.

No problems in defence, as of late. Chris Smalling and Jonny Evans are hot on form, which is great to see. Rio Ferdinand should start the fixture, alongside either Smalling or Evans, either one will do, but you still get a sense that Smalling is more dominant. No questions at right back or left back, but let us hope Patrice Evra continues the fine form he has been in for the last few weeks.

The squad should be boosted with the return of Tom Cleverley, Nani, Ashley Young and Wayne Rooney. I strongly doubt that we will see Cleverley and Young start, but we will definitely see Nani and Rooney feature from the beginning. Those two are crucial, granted that they have not been in the best of form over recent weeks.

A win is crucial, we are currently level on points with City. We need to win every game leading up to the game at the Etihad, which, I know, is easier said that done, but it is not impossible. The loss of Terry and Cole is a big blow for Chelsea, and we should really be looking at taking advantage of their defensive frailties.

My latest post on my blog.

Brilliant post.

One thing I disagree with, I know this was written before the Chelsea game but I think Evra's attacking displays have been masking how defensively weak he is becoming. I think the only reason he isn't likely to get dropped is we need to have a consistent captain while Vidic is gone, and Fabio is too likely to get injured if played.

Oh and can you post the link to your blog, sorry if you have already done so in a previous post.

http://siralexfergusonstand.wordpress.com/

[Busby Babe]

Not a great 1st-half, improved 2nd. Overall good to see a lot of players back into the side, Ashley Young and Jones especially played very well.

[II Capitano]

Brilliant second half, compared to the first half, where it was a disappointing lacklustre performance. Delighted to see Cleverley back. Unlucky for Ajax, they gave it their best shot in the first half, but quickly faded away in the second half. I was impressed once again with Eriksen, really tidy little player, who deserves to be at a better club, to be honest. Suljemani, also, looked bright, but seemed to look for the spectacular and lacked directness. I'm glad that we picked up ourselves after a nightmare of a first half, where we allowed Ajax to cross more than they should have been allowed, but thankfully Evans and Ferdinand were on their game, especially the former, who has rediscovered some form of late. Lastly, Nani needs to maintain the level of directness he set for himself last season. Far too often this season, he has frustrated me with his constant tricks. The talent is there but at times, it's going to waste.

[azzurres]

crappy win considering Valencia is now out for a month.

*bleep* hell, will the injuries ever stop

[RED]

Absolute BS that Valencia is injured..that has taken the shine completely out of tonights victory for me.

We are getting zero luck with inuries this season.

Cleverley was brilliant, considering it was his first game back. Played 2 great balls- one for Nani in the first half which he picked out with one touch, so exquisite- 2nd, a through ball to Chicha in the 2nd half. The guy is a fantastic footballer.

I thought Fabio had a great game. Defensively he was astounding. Evans continued to impress too, apart from one lapse of concentration when he played a sloppy pass which could have proved costly to us.

DDG was again brilliant. Looks more assured and confident with every game he is starting. Vital that SAF sticks with him now that he is in this kind of form.

Nani was really rusty, understandably since it's his first game back from injury. Young was poor too, looked better once he scored though.

the rest were solid. Phil Jones had a solid game too. RB or CM is his position imo. His passing and runs through the middle will be wasted at cb.

Routine win imo considering the form and problems Ajax currently have.

Valencia's injry has taken all the shine from it though.

[jibers]

So pissed off that Valencia got injured. Standard game, good to see Scholes 2.0 back. If we had him fit we would still be in the CL ffs. Everytime Valencia finds form he get *bleep* injured.

[Nishankly]

Any chance there is a Cleverly compilation against Ajax on the net?
Ill be grateful if you have a link.

[jibers]

Any chance there is a Cleverly compilation against Ajax on the net?
Ill be grateful if you have a link.

Still waiting for one Nishank, if you od find one please post it here.

[II Capitano]

That wasn't a Manchester United performance, I don't even know what that means anymore in Europe this season. Our European identity has faded away. To allow Ajax, who have been poor this year, to dominate in that manner is embarrassing. In the first half, it was fairly balanced, with Berbatov providing us with his class, but there is no point if we are not clinical and ruthless enough. Nani, in particular, has had the tendency more often than not this season, in presenting the ball to the opposition in our half. Fortunately, it went unpunished, but this problem has to be addressed. Anyway, in the second half, we dropped of completely and lost concentration. De Gea needs to be thanked for making that outstanding save, in essence, had that gone in then Ajax could have easily scored a third goal, they had more than enough time to do so. I'm just thankful that Scholes was introduced to slow down our tempo.

Certainly not happy with the performance, especially in the second half, but there are positives to take from the game. The twins managed to complete the full game with no injuries, we should be looking to extend Berbatov's contract after what he's produced in the games he has featured in and Hernandez's overall game looks to have improved, based on this game, which isn't much, I know. Credit to Ajax, though, not an easy thing to do.

[RED]

I didn't watch the match as I was out and didn't make it back till just after the match, when they were analysing the match. Was shocked to find out we lost, but when I saw the line up, I wasn't that surprised tbh.

That line up reminded me of how we lined up at Basle in CL at home. The thing is, it's not that these players are not good enough(they clearly are) it's that complacency creeps into the team. They think that just because we go ahead in a European match or are in a comfortable position, that because we're United, we'll go through. It was our downfall in the CL this season.

It's something we need to get rid of if we are to continue being dominant in Eurpe like we have in the last 5 years prior to this year.

[jibers]

Don't agree RED80s. We won our CL and reached finals because of our defence. Think back to our defending against Barca in 08. That is the greatest defensive performance we put in in the last decade. It's Jones and Evans. Rafael had a torrid time as well. We will not have another solid defence for the nest 2 seasons. Jones should not be a cb.

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