Sep 27
Man Utd v Bolton: Preview
A quiet few days later, United return to a Premier League game that’s at home. The start has been gruelling for us with the injuries and the fixture list, among a few reasons, but if Fergie’s prophecy — that we’ll be fine by October — is to ring true, today would be a game we should be looking to stamp our authority.
Bolton haven’t been particularly stellar, and at home one should expect us to knock them over easily. The question, though, is how.
But before delving into team news there have been quite a few interesting quotes from Fergie ahead of today’s game that could be worth glossing over, albeit briefly.
First one is on the role he’s earmarked for Giggs this season:
“I see his role as a central player, where we played him the other night. The days of trampling up and down that touchline for Ryan, at 34 years of age, are gone. He can maybe do it occasionally, but I think that is beyond him now.”
This has been assumed to be a role of either a central, withdrawn striker or in central midfield. I honestly don’t see him in the central striking role this season, considering the headache Fergie already faces with the array of strikers at his disposal already — more on that in a bit — and even playing him in central midfield appears a stretch. It is still left wing where he stands a chance, and even that I see him occupy that role in case the wingers are struck by injury. He could play in those central positions only in Carling Cup games. Fergie will surely have ideas different from me, but in my opinion, I can’t see any other role for Giggsy.
He made another admission of the challenge he faces trying to manage the talent at his disposal up top. But he also says that players accept the fact that rotating his front line is a must. Considering how badly the likes of Tevez and Rooney want to play every game, it would be a bitter pill to swallow for either of them to be left on the bench. The only constants, for now at least, appear to be Berbatov and Ronaldo. The press all over have been speculating that Tevez might partner Berba with Rooney relegated to the bench — a thought hardly imaginable a few seasons ago.
He also let rip at that thug, and part time footballer, Kevin Davies, questioning the spirit at which he plays the game. Considering the agony young Possebon went through in midweek, Fergie’s message was loud and clear, and conscious of its timing.
In team news, Owen Hargreaves is eager to play, so I can only assume he’ll be starting. In the absence of Carrick he should start in central midfield. I’d prefer to play Anderson alongside him, but have a feeling that Fergie would continue to play his favoured son, the Ginger Prince. As much as I like Scholesy, I think Anderson and Hargreaves play better together, whereas Scholes and Hargreaves will be a very defensive setup. Ronaldo should start and possibly Nani. Berbatov and Tevez will be my picks up front, not because I don’t rate Rooney, but because I think Tevez’s form must be rewarded. Berba should start because we need him to get games and get a feel for our system at home. Simple as.
In defence, we’ll have Brown (I hope), Vidic, Rio and Evra. However, I am not really sure if young Ben Amos will be thrown into the deep end. He had a decent outing against Boro in midweek, and if EVDS and Kuszczak aren’t sufficiently recovered from their respective knocks it will be Amos’ full Premier League debut. According to reports though, EVDS looks fit to start. Even if he’s half fit I think Fergie will play him over an 18 year old ‘keeper.
So there goes the preview, feel free to discuss lineups and your thoughts on today’s game in the comments.
Prediction: 2-0 to United. Berbatov to open his United account.
Related items from Red Rants:
- Rooney Out For A Month
- Man Utd v Stoke: Preview
- Man Utd v Everton: Preview
- Bolton vs Man Utd: Preview
- Man Utd 2-0 Bolton: Ronaldo Usurps Best
Tags: Game Preview
September 27th, 2008 at 10:41
hope we get off to a good start today. hoping for an early goal again but this time we need to build on it…. hoping to kick off our 4-0 winning run today.
starting:
——EVDS——
BROWN–VIDIC–RIO–EVRA
HARGREAVES–ANDERSON
RONALDO————-TEVEZ
ROONEY—-BERBATOV
September 27th, 2008 at 11:29
i agree. i wouldnt mind if evans gets a run out in place of vidic… i think andy should start, and nani. i think rooney should be benched…wake up call me thinks.
September 27th, 2008 at 11:36
I reckon your team selection would be our strongest bet as well. it is either Ando/Hargo pairing or the Scholes/Carrick Pairing. it is clear as day that the pairs cannot be mixed up.
With wingers too i reckon Nani and Ronnie would be good together. i would still prefer rooney and berba, because i think rooney is the more creative player from roovez… BUT its my unqualified opinion. haha
oh well, heres to the beginning of the winning run for us..
September 27th, 2008 at 11:54
4-0 to United…
Berba, Ronaldo on scoresheet…
September 27th, 2008 at 12:02
is pig injured? if yes, how in this feckin world did he get injured?!
September 27th, 2008 at 12:11
@cheeseburger o’shea: it’s a groin injury!! How we can have three potential 1st choice keepers injured at the same time is beyond me…. i feel sorry for Kusczy and Foster though, as any of them who featured for VDS while he was out would probably have gotten the nod from Fergie to keep on playing ahead of VDS this season.
September 27th, 2008 at 12:23
This game I think will be the turning point of our season.
We could use a comfortable win under our belts and players like Berbatov and Rooney (I think?) would do well to break their ducks this season.
It will be a physical game so Id start with Hargreaves and Fletcher in the middle. If Hargreaves tires we can replace him with Anderson. If we need a bit more creativity and ball retention we can bring on Scholes.
On the wings I would play Ronaldo and Nani. Both are capable of scoring and will give us some penetration. Losing possession against Bolton isn’t such a big deal because they can’t hurt us the way the big teams can, and as it is at Old Trafford they will sit back and defend anyway.
Up front Tevez and Berbatov I agree is the best combination. Later in the game we can bring on Rooney who can inject some energy into the game. I remember against Aston Villa (or was it Newcastle) last season Rooney came on as a sub and turned the game.
I really think this season we need to reward Tevez’s form. Berbatov by virtue of being number 9 will probably start when fit. So it really is a scrap between Rooney and Tevez for the support striker role. For me Tevez is winning it at this point in the season.
September 27th, 2008 at 12:30
My team:
VDS
Brown Rio Vidic Evra
Ronaldo Hargo Andy Nani
Tevez Berba
subs: Amos, Rafael, Neville, Scholes, Giggs, Park, Rooney. But then we have Fletcher. I donnu, I just HOPE Fergie picks that squad, I love the Andy and Owen partnership, I think its the best CM partership we have. Plus, Andy and Owen needs games unlike Scholes who has got plenty! I hope we attack Bolton, we havent done that in a PL game since West Ham last season. When I mean attack, I mean continue to attack even after scoring! Or is that new to United now? Long time since United continued to Attack after leadin, so it will be interestin to see if we are really going for the win. Hopefully Berba starts next to Tevez so we can see that partnership. It worked well against Liverpool in the first half.
Prediction: 4-0 to United. Ronaldo, Berbatov(2) and Tevez to score.
COME ON YOU REDS!!!
September 27th, 2008 at 12:36
The Carling Cup 4th round draw has just come been done – we play QPR at our home, so that’s nice! Best match of the round? Spurs vs. Liverpool
September 27th, 2008 at 12:39
We play QPR at Old Trafford in the next round of the Carling Cup.
September 27th, 2008 at 12:40
@antsBoy: oh, you beat me to it.
September 27th, 2008 at 12:44
Any Aussies here? If so, how is the FIFA 09? Is Berba on the team? How much points does Ronaldo, Tevez and Anderson have?
September 27th, 2008 at 12:47
It’s been a bit quiet in here for a matchday…C’mon people! Where are y’all?!?! My prediction for the match: 3-1, with Berba scoring his debut goal.
September 27th, 2008 at 12:52
Eh, Ive preordered the FIFA 09. Anybody knows what day it might come, Ive heard it arrives some days earlier?
September 27th, 2008 at 12:52
Rooney and Berba did not play against Boro and I think both will start against Bolton, and I would not be surprised to see Tevez joining them in the starting lineup with Ronaldo on the bench. Something similar as against Liverpool. Anyway, I think Fergie will face problems with squad selection, as I can not see neither of big four to be happy with sub role, while all 4 can not play together as we would be fucked up defensively. Even Nani and Ronaldo, with two upfront would be problem for our defence.
September 27th, 2008 at 13:09
watching everton vs the dippers i can not believe how liverpool biased mike reily is. refusing to book the scumbags for arguing, kicking the ball away, blatent fouls, yet ronaldo gets carded for saying look at the stud marks in my leg. twunt.
September 27th, 2008 at 13:17
MY team:
VDS
BROWN VIDIC RIO EVRA
FLETCHER HARGREAVES ANDERSON
ROONEY
RONALDO BERBATOV
any thoughts?
September 27th, 2008 at 13:21
i hope the dippers lose. im on everton on this one. go saha!
September 27th, 2008 at 14:13
TEAM NEWS?
September 27th, 2008 at 14:16
Team News:
GK: VDS
RB: Neville
CB: Ferdinand
CB: Vidic
LB: Evra
RM: Ronaldo
CM: Fletcher
CM: Anderson
LM: Park
ST: Berbatov
ST: Tevez
Subs: Amos, O’Shea, Evans, Scholes, Rooney, Nani, Giggs
September 27th, 2008 at 14:18
thank god, rooneys on thte bench, but, wheres hargreaves
September 27th, 2008 at 14:24
where the heck is brown???
Is fergie suffering from amnesia? Somebody gotta remind him that Brown is a Man Utd player and he didn’t score that OG…
He is not even on the bench this time! Neville behind Ronaldo!?!?! beyond me…
September 27th, 2008 at 14:29
Guys, relax. We have a gigantic squad this year. Not all of them can play, or be on the bench. It’s gonna be a long season.
September 27th, 2008 at 14:32
I like that team!
Thankfully Anderson plays, reason Brown and Hargo isnt in that squad is because of CL game in midweek, remember? United to win 4-0, Ronaldo, Berbatov(2) and Tevez to score. COME ON YOU REDS! 
September 27th, 2008 at 14:36
@RedDevilEddy: If I am not wrong its been 2 weeks since brown played for full 90 minutes… Anyway team looks solid…
September 27th, 2008 at 14:38
Anybody have a link to the match?
September 27th, 2008 at 14:39
whats the best link? http://myp2p.eu/broadcast.php?matchid=19396&part=sports which is the best to use? no TVU im afraid.
September 27th, 2008 at 14:44
bar wes brown, thats our strongest possible lineup. Go United!
prediction: 3-0 united.
September 27th, 2008 at 15:51
First Half……One word…….RUBBISH!
September 27th, 2008 at 15:52
its been a good half for us, scholes nani and giggs should come on next half, because they can pick a pass. thats what we are lacking, a player that can pick a pass.
September 27th, 2008 at 15:55
I just keep wondering what our CBs think when they send long balls to Park!!!
September 27th, 2008 at 15:56
@dan(u-ol): You really have got a grudge against Rooney now
September 27th, 2008 at 15:58
All I say is Nani in for Park. Then the goals will por.
September 27th, 2008 at 16:03
14 shots on target in 45 minutes is not rubbish!
September 27th, 2008 at 16:04
I would prefer anyone for anderson. He looks crap. Is a good talent, loads of potential, but i would rate him under Fletcher right now.
September 27th, 2008 at 16:09
Need to pull Park off the left. I like him but he provides no delivery from there. Either swithc he and Ronaldo or sub him off.
We’ve been let off twice this match already.
September 27th, 2008 at 16:15
Didn’t see 1st half. Clearly we are so much better without Rooney though
. Rooney better come on soon.
September 27th, 2008 at 16:17
Does Anderson know that he doesen’t HAVE to take a short corner every time? We’ve got some good height in the box, put it in there and let Berba, Rio and Vidic go get it.
September 27th, 2008 at 16:19
Penalty!!! Thanks Rob Stiles haha
September 27th, 2008 at 16:20
Goal! Now bring on the Roon!
September 27th, 2008 at 16:21
didnt deserve that peno but I’m not complaining
. Even Lou Macari said it was disgraceful.
September 27th, 2008 at 16:21
Well that is ridiculous. No way shape or form a penalty. Credit to Ronnie for putting it in. But we shouldn’t need that. Disgusting.
September 27th, 2008 at 16:22
never a penalty. not in a million years. I’ll take it tho! Something really need to be done about the referees this season. They need to be held acountable.
September 27th, 2008 at 16:22
Doesn’t matter to me. Bolton is a cunt team they desreve everything. Viva Ronaldo
September 27th, 2008 at 16:23
Maybe the FA should try a competence for referees programme and drop the respect one
September 27th, 2008 at 16:23
It wasn’t a penalty, but I’ll take it. Maybe that will get us rolling for the last 1/2 hour.
September 27th, 2008 at 16:25
I almost want Bolton to score. This lead feels so hollow
September 27th, 2008 at 16:28
Maybe we didn’t deserve the penalty but we definitely deserved the lead.
September 27th, 2008 at 16:33
@james f: I don’t think we deserve anything more than 0-0. Bolton has created better chances than us so far. Hopefully that will change now that ROONEY is on…and there went my link.
September 27th, 2008 at 16:37
VIVA ROONEY!!!
September 27th, 2008 at 16:37
And thats why Wayne Rooney should start on a regular basis !!!…
2-0 United
September 27th, 2008 at 16:37
@Wheezy: Speak of the devil
September 27th, 2008 at 16:37
Berbatov standing at the edge of the box when Rooney puts it across isnt going to help him score. Even Park was further forward
Btw ROONEY!!!
September 27th, 2008 at 16:39
where are you now Dan?
September 27th, 2008 at 16:47
that’s how long it takes for Rooney to score while playing in his best position!
What the hell has happened to our defense? They look shaky whenever it gets near them. They have been a shadow of last years defense.
September 27th, 2008 at 16:50
Scholes is past it. I hope his Grandkids enjoy watching him play what will hopefully be his last season.
September 27th, 2008 at 16:52
@Wheezy: What? We have looked far better since he and Rooney came on.
September 27th, 2008 at 16:53
I must say, if Nani ever feels like he could give the ball up, we could be up 3 or 4 by now. some great stuff from our defense. I hope that SAF is just trying to ’scare’ brown into returning to form. I dont really like Neville back there, but he seems to be doing the job, for now.
Great passing from Berbatov. Only a matter of time before he gets selfish and puts it in the back of the net.
September 27th, 2008 at 16:55
@Liam: Gary Neville is what happened. Brown should be starting. Nothing G.Nev has done has convinced me otherwise.
September 27th, 2008 at 16:57
Yes we have looked better, but more of that had to do with the penalty goal than the Ginger. I LOVE Scholes for everything he’s done for United, but I just wish he’d go away, and take Neville and Giggsy with him. Anyway, 3 points is 3 points and I guess there isn’t really much to complain about from our point of view, other than our defense did seem a little shaky at times.
September 27th, 2008 at 16:59
@JB: I assume hes saying that because of the 2 sitters he missed. Personally, we have so many people that can and should do that for us that if he can just get the ball to them he will, for me, be the man of the match. He doesnt need to be marvelous for us anymore, just like carrick, just get it to the people that are paid to do put it in the net with his splitting passes.
As a side note, who would have thought that Carrick would have had competition when he comes back from Fletcher. Its nice to finally see him perform day in and day out.
September 27th, 2008 at 16:59
@Wheezy: Funny I though we stepped up a gear after the subs, not the goal.
September 27th, 2008 at 17:01
@Liam: i was watching the game. one goal doesnt make rooney the white pele, or even as good as you and other rooney lovers make him out to be, in my books, he is still not worth a place in the starting line-up. it was NOT him that made us play better, it was scholes, rooney scored goal, big woop, thats what he is suppose to do, that is what he was meant to be doing for the last 3 years, 1 goal will not change my opinion on him.
September 27th, 2008 at 17:03
Good performances today i felt. The Penalty clearly wasn’t a penalty and in fact i found myself cringing when it was awarded, even in real time when it happened i said “good tackle”. United were bossing the game and with or without the Penalty we were going to score eventually.
Berbatov looked a lot better today and his partnership with Rooney is developing particularly well. Nani really needs to learn when to pass, but saying that, in the 10 minutes he played i thought he managed to play really well.
Scholes showed he still has it in him to push forward and control a midfield, admittedly against a retreating Bolton.
A word for the Trotters, i thought Elmandear was really good for them and so was Gary Cahill. If they can help Cahill progress he’ll eventually become an England Senoir International, definitely one for the future.
It wasn’t quite the thrashing i had crossed my fingers for, but the positivity and ingenuity of the forward line gave me a lot of heart after some inept attacking performances this season.
Blackburn next week, It’ll be nice to go up against Ince, but I think we should win similarly comfortably
September 27th, 2008 at 17:03
@Comma (BAMF): I thought he was excellent when he came on, he linked up well with the players round him, made some top class cross field passes and was involved in a number of flowing attacking moves. He should have done better with the header but the other chance was only a half one.
One the other point, from the looks of our CM this season, if Carrick is playing well he won’t have much in the way of competition. Fletcher may be playing his way into partnering him though.
September 27th, 2008 at 17:04
i think the competition and playing as a sub may help roonys mental block and release the beast
September 27th, 2008 at 17:05
@dan(u-ol): I suppose if Liam had been arguing with you about the worth of Scholes to the team you would have told us it was Rooney that had changed the game
September 27th, 2008 at 17:09
@dan(u-ol): That certainly shows that he deserves it more than Tevez (based solely on this game) then? Since, as you put it, he ‘did what hes paid to do’ and Tevez has not. Also, as far as i know, many times on this site alone people have pointed out that Rooney has a better scoring record and more assists than tevez over the last three years.
Just so we’re clear, I did agree with SAF that rooney had to start on the bench to ‘teach him a lesson’ that he is also not bigger than the team. It seemed to work.
September 27th, 2008 at 17:13
@JB: Spot on about Scholes, absolutely a shot of life for our lot.
As for Carrick, I also agree. I think he is by far the first choice CM at this point.
September 27th, 2008 at 17:14
@dan(u-ol): Seriously Dan, selective blindness again eh?
Anywayz, like I promised Dan and Groggy I would (when Rooney assists/scores), I now remind you of what you guys said!
We looked atleast twice better when Rooney and Scholes came on. If it wasn’t for Nani’s selfishness and Berba’s UNselfishness, we would have scored 3 or 4 in the last 10min.
September 27th, 2008 at 17:14
rooney had opened his account for this season.
nani, o nani, you selfish git. pass the ball for god’s sake. dont hog the fuckn ball. the first half was rubbish, we didnt deserve the penalty, but rooney’s goal is magnificent. great passing from the slave. scholes almost scored, berba is unselfish, but he should think about cracking a goal sometimes instead of thinking about the team. 
overall, goodgame. bolton did put up a great match. 
September 27th, 2008 at 17:14
I hate Nani… such a selfish player he is!!!
September 27th, 2008 at 17:17
@Comma (BAMF): tevez did run about every loose ball out there, i think they both deserve to be on the pitch.
September 27th, 2008 at 17:19
hey Red Diablo… seems Coleen’s sex ban is working for Rooney…
September 27th, 2008 at 17:19
@dan(u-ol): Scholes and Rooney>Anderson and Tevez. We were much improved when they came on. Even Berbatov looked better despite still being sluggish and trying to pass when he had a tap in. Does Rooney have to change nationalities for you to rate him? I mean the guy is one of the worlds top players. I’m Irish so i usually don’t like English players straight away. It says a lot for Rooney that he had taken over from Keane as my favourite player. I was even saying to my brother that when Rooney comes on he will score. I was sure of it.
September 27th, 2008 at 17:23
exactly the response i expected… liam, if rooney had a different nationality, he would of been sold a long time ago.
September 27th, 2008 at 17:23
@AndyCR7: i couldnt agree more
September 27th, 2008 at 17:26
@dan(u-ol): Answer me this question, what person in their right mind would sell the second most productive player, foregin or not, in the PL over the last two years?
September 27th, 2008 at 17:26
Also, don’t you guys feel that Berba and Rooney seem to be more on the same frequency when compared to Berba and Vez-Ta?
Another thing that was noticeable today was that Berba expects the ball to be pulled back from the winger more often that not..that was why he tends to stay back a bit in the box. Also when he’s in a wide position he tends to pull back the ball expecting someone to run onto the ball. That happened once or twice today and that’s also how Tevez scored at Anfield. He does it very well but you would have thought the players around him would have expected that from him by now.
September 27th, 2008 at 17:26
also I forgot to praise Ronaldo for his pass to Rooney. He needs to do that a bit more often rather than take 20 nothing shots a game. If Ronaldo keeps passing instead of being selfish then it will hugely increase our scoring chances
September 27th, 2008 at 17:27
jaaskelainen did a pretty good job for bolton,
September 27th, 2008 at 17:29
@Liam: that way, since nani is looking up at ronaldo, nani will pass the ball often too.
September 27th, 2008 at 17:30
Well that was total crap. Thank God Rob Styles and Wayne Rooney saved our bacon. Total rubbish. We haven’t got a clue after three years of playing this style on how to break down a team that defends with ten men behind the ball. It’s all about movement off the ball and about give and go’s. yet United continue to play that static diagonal passing game that breaks down nobody. And you know why? Because our wingers are either too selfish or they cannot cross worth shit.
Ronaldo was selfish throughout but that’s OK, that’s what he’s paid for. He’s paid to create situations and score goals. Park was useless because he continually found him self in great wide positions and continually delivered crappy crosses which were either long or were blocked. Nani, well don’t get me started on him. Every time he had the ball on the left, his head went down, he went into I want to be like Ronaldo mode and he looked to do nothing but find a chance to take a shot and score. Meanwhile on three different occasions players like Berbatov were in great positions for a pass but no, Nani never saw them because he had his head down and was determined to do it all himself. Sorry Craig but the little bastard is a selfish and greedy little prick. A lot of skill and talent but a ten cent head and the team play of a Republican.
Berbatov was constantly in good positions to receive a through ball or a cross but players would constantly ignore him or work the safe ball and keep possession. He made some delightful passes and had that good header stopped but he never really got involved the way I think he wanted and the way we wanted. He needs to get better service from the wingers and those central midfielders have to occasionally offer a through ball or chip to break down the defense. Anderson played an attacking role today and for me he offered nothing in terms of skill, creativity and imagination. Fletcher did his job but also offered nothing in terms of a penetrating move or pass. Park just doesn’t do it for me guys, SORRY. He just lacks the skill and creativity to be a starter for Manchester United. What he doesn’t lack is determination, desire and a lot of heart.
Our defenders again looked shaky at times. Neville played well on the offensive end but his defending or lack of it was the cause for Bolton’s two great chances. He wasn’t marking his man and they got in. Muwamba was his man and he was just standing there watching him come in and miss a sitter. Rio and Evra I thought played well. EVDS had nothing to do because all Bolton’s chances went wide. The game turned not when Styles gave that horrible penalty but when Rooney came on. See what happens when you sit him down and send a message to him about playing better and with more focus. He came into the game with focus and desire and his goal was vintage Rooney 2004. Tremendous goal. I also like the idea of Scholes coming in as a sub instead of starting. He showed energy and a willingness to attack and nearly scored on a header. When he starts he never moves up that far and gets involved. This has been the way he should have been used for the past two seasons. Before I forget I have to say that Tevez had a disappointing game. He looked tired or a little behind the pace as did Ronaldo. Ronny is still trying to find his fitness and you can see it in his struggles to get by defenders and in his shots where his timing is just not down. It’s coming though.
Lets hope this game wakes the lads up a bit. They are still far from functioning on all cylinders but they got a win under their belt. Lets work on better and more aggressive passing and running and better finishing. And for Gods sakes Fergie, give the team a drill on corner kicks and crosses because they are just terrible at both. Very few ball of any quality in the box. You have Ronaldo and Berbatov in the box and crosses were sailing way over their heads or being blocked. Not good enough and just a disgrace at this level. And someone needs to have a talk with Nani about team play and the need to keep his head up and his options open. A team like Bolton should have been dismantled 4-0 or 5-0 at OT. No excuses, our team needs more ideas in attack and better performance from our players. Right now they are not giving their best and confidence is low. Had this been a quality team we may have even lost today. We need to wake the Hell up. At east we got the win and Rooney broke his drought and looked aggressive and positive. Now if we can get Ronaldo and Berbatov off and running we should be alright. But still, we need to provide better service from our wingers and our central midfielders need to get more involved offensively. I’d rate the team performance today a 6-10. Player of the match for me was Rio Ferdinand.
September 27th, 2008 at 17:31
Rooney did well today… may be, he didn’t get time to loose his temper…
goal was awesome… somebody pls slap Nani… there were 3-4 occasions when he should have passed ball to Berba… btw Berba passes were too good… best passer of the ball in the team atm…
September 27th, 2008 at 17:33
@JB: me
if a star CAM came in, i think everyone would change their mind about him.
September 27th, 2008 at 17:35
@Wheezy: What game were you watching???? I doubt its the same game where we had 81%-29% possession at some point and dominated from start to finish. The pen was wrong, but It’d have been a travesty if we hadn’t won by at least a goal. Besides Muwamba and the free-kick, i can hardly see any other clear-cut chance that Bolton created.
Anyway we won, thank heavens for that and its all that matters. 5 goals in 2 games should get our season rolling and hopefully we can climb back to the top.
September 27th, 2008 at 17:35
berba was great, too bad he didnt get to score. and nani is a greedy cunt.
September 27th, 2008 at 17:36
Craig, where are you Bro? Your boy Nani is getting lambasted. He needs your support and defense.
September 27th, 2008 at 17:39
@dan(u-ol): I said ‘who in there right mind’
September 27th, 2008 at 17:40
@JB:
September 27th, 2008 at 17:47
@Grognard: Calling the game “total cr@p is a little harsh. It was a good game, but good isn’t what we want from Man Utd, we expect breath-taking, however cr@p is going overboard. I agree with the bit about the defense, i don’t know why Fergie keeps starting Neville, surely he can’t still be punishing Brown for the own-goal when it wasn’t fully his fault?.
I’d say a 7 based on performance.
September 27th, 2008 at 17:53
@cheeseburger o’shea: You’re right. I didnt really mean that Tevez shouldnt play, just that you could make a case that he’s the one that should be dropped because he didnt score, which is something that dan said strikers ’should’ do. I also want to point out that that is SOLELY based on this game.
I think that Tevez has been in far better form so far this season, but that doesnt necessarily mean that hes a better talent than rooney. I consider them equal.
September 27th, 2008 at 17:53
@Rd: I doubt SAF is punishing Brown for the own goal but he may be getting it for the run around he was getting from Riera/Babel. To be fair to Neville he is gradually improving and I suppose we won’t know for sure if he is a spent force until he gets a good run of games to build up his fitness.
September 27th, 2008 at 17:56
@Grognard: he’s probably at the match
I said this a few weeks ago that Nani could be great if he just realises what his strengths are. If he stuck to the touchline and peppered in those sublime crosses of his he could be great. He needs to look at Beckham as his role model instead of Ronaldo. He’s also faster than Beckham which would help him.
September 27th, 2008 at 17:56
May be, we should off load Nani to Arsenal on season long loan deal…
Wenger will teach him how to play in a team…
Jus kidding guys… don’t shoot me…
September 27th, 2008 at 17:57
@Liam: Liam FFS bro, you would have wished Bolton to score???. Why???. You think we should be punished for refereeing error
.
We should have won by a rout of goals today. We made so many chances. Park (I love the lad), but he should never really play on the left. I was cheering him from the terraces, but he is too often lost out there. Nani should be our player on the left, feck me in ten minutes he had so many chances, and on for the whole game, he would have made his crosses count. Rooney got the kick up the arse he definately DESERVES, and I hope it continues for at least a few games. I’d push Ronnie more in the middle with Berba, and get the width and balls into the area from Nani and Park (on the right). Tev or Rooney behind the front two. I am sorry guys, but our midfield is shite. Andie is not good enough, and I think we need to strengthen our midfield in January. Otherwise, I enjoyed the game, and I couldn’t care less that we got the verdict on the penalty. That makes up for all the shite we had to put up with, and the verdicts we didn’t get at Bolton last season.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:01
@Liam:
Even if Rooney scored 30 this season and was player of the season Dan would still slate him, thats just the way some people are. They get such a hatred for someone and get blinded by it. Shame really.
Much needed 3 points – nice to see we are finally in the top half of the table!
September 27th, 2008 at 18:03
@AndyCR7: I would love to see Nani play elsewhere, and fuck United playing with whichever team he plays for, Arsenal or otherwise. I can tell you this, that Wenger would know how to bring out and use Nani’s talent. He deserves so much better than he gets from Fergie, AND some of you Know nothing about talent commentors on this blog. And I don’t give a feck if RR raps my knuckles for this assertion, cos I know I am right on this one. Please Nani, get the feck out of United Bro, because you are wasted and little appreciated by Fergie and fans here
.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:07
24 shots ON target in a game that we were totally crap!
September 27th, 2008 at 18:07
@Craig Mc: Come on Craig, you have to admit that he was taking the piss towards the end of the match with his failure to pass to anyone. And I’m a fan of him!
September 27th, 2008 at 18:07
Nani is ok …just needs a slap.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:08
@Craig Mc: I said I “almost” wish they would score. I hate undeservedly winning but I’d rather it than nothing but if Rooney didnt score I’d regard it as being a hollow victory
September 27th, 2008 at 18:08
Come May, all of you will be cheering again.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:10
@Ryan: That will never happen though mate
. Rooney 30 goals, I don’t think so, but I would appreciate it. Does this make me like Dan(u)ol a Rooney hater?. I don’t think so. The Roon has not been performing, and seems even Fergie has recognised it now. Maybe some of the blind Roon fans on here need to be more honest too. I would love to See the Roon of old, but I won’t hold my breath.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:12
@Craig Mc:
Problem is alot of fans on here expect the finished artical NOW. Like Ronaldo its gonna be a bumpy ride with Nani but he has the ability to succeed as long as he listens and learns. Im sure he will.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:12
is hargreaves injured? why didnt he played?
September 27th, 2008 at 18:12
@Rd: It was crap and I stand by that claim. Your welcome to your opinion too which I found far too generous.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:13
@Craig Mc:
Would you sell Rooney?
September 27th, 2008 at 18:13
@Craig Mc: Funny how when SAF puts Rooney on the bench he has seen the light, but he hasn’t a clue what he is doing with Nani
September 27th, 2008 at 18:14
@R: So do most of the United faithful on here
.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:15
@Ryan: oh fuck off and let it go, you really can hold a grudge cant you…get a life.
your so delightfully stupid its unbelievable, i want rooney to score 30 goals a season, but i and everyone else knows that that will never happen. thats what rooney ‘haters’ want, for him to be scoring goals and nothing else. as for you, consider this the last time a reply to you.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:17
@Craig Mc: Calm down Dude, I know Nani’s talent… but somebody gotta tell him that he is not supposed to look for a shot whenever he gets the ball… If he keeps playing like this, he will be just-yet-another-winger… Nobody hates him… who won’t love to see him playing well for United?
And didn’t you see him being selfish today???
I know you love the kid but, how do you justify his selfishness?
September 27th, 2008 at 18:17
@Craig Mc: THANK YOU CRAIG! someone finally gets it.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:20
@JB: So we see things differently, so what’s the problem. I would rather see Nani on the left wing than anybody else. You wouldn’t, and we will never come to feckin agreement about it JB. Like I said, I think Nani would blossom under somebody like Wenger. He had ten minutes, how many did Rooney have, and what did Rooney do other than score the goal laid on a plate for him by Ronnie?. I truly want Nani to move to anbother club, cos I think he will never get the credit or chance for his talent at United. I hear Andersons name chanted continually, and he is not in my opinion as good as Nani. By the way, Nani scored against Boro, and Rooney has not scored in all the full time appearances he had before today SOOOOOOOO.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:21
its not about me hating rooney, its about doing whats best for the team, and being realistic. saf finally benched rooney today, and look what happend, it was a wake up call saying he is not an automatic starter. so dont go throwing this performance in my and other rooney ‘haters’ face, because this is exactly what we have wanted for the last 1-2 years and every time we have said this, we have been met with insults and blind delusion, only to be proved right by today.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:22
@dan(u-ol):
No grudge at all, in fact Rooney is not even my favourite player but it frustrates the hell outta me that people are so blind to his talents and to say he should be sold is an embarassment to you. Do you really need to go that far to put your point across?!
He brings so much more to the team than goals, we all know how productive he is and thats him playing out of position! But there is no pleasing some people.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:23
@Craig Mc: thats so true, i agree with everything until the anderson part. i think that is literally like comparing scholes and giggs, figo and zidane, lampard and cole, i think you get my drift, 2 very different types of players.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:27
@Craig Mc: SOOOOOO we seem to be judging players on how many goals they have scored when our highest goal scorers have two out of a maximum of 7/8 games, hardly a representative sample to draw any kind of sensible conclusion as of yet.
I don’t have any problem with Nani, I wiuld have started him on the left today over Park. What I’m saying is that it isn’t very consistent to say SAF has seen the light to bench one player (Rooney) but is a fool for benching another (Nani). Personally I am inclined to trust his judgment because he has a hell of a lot of experience at bringing young players through and developing them into top class footballers. I am at a loss as to why you think he is handling Nani so badly. Nani is still young, full of talent but inconsistent therefore, due to the luxury of a strong squad, SAF is able to bring him on gradually.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:28
@Ryan: i dont care how productive he is, he is a forward, who is paid to score goals. im guessing you if you had a chose over who to sell out of ronaldo and rooney, you would pick ronaldo. if thats not insane, i dont know what is.
FACT, if ronaldo wasnt here last season, it wouldnt matter at all, if rooney was so creative and productive, we would still be scrapping 4th with livershite. we have midfielders for creativity, and forwards for goals.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:31
@Ryan: You say mate Rooney brings so much more to the team than goals. He is a striker, HE NEEDS TO BRING GOALS
. When he does his job, I’ll get off his back. Until he does, live with it.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:32
@Craig Mc: Not sarcasm, but seriously, how has he been “wasted” by Fergie? Note, I’m not one of his detractors as i see the talent he has, though i find him very selfish, but i don’t get how he has been wasted so far.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:34
@dan(u-ol):
I would sell Rooney over Ronaldo, Ronaldo is the main man at United, it would be blind to say otherwise.
Of course that would only be if Ronaldo was commited to United in the long term! Chances are he will be gone next summer.
But the ideal world they will both be here for next 10 years
The problem is we DONT have midfielders with creativity! which is why we need Rooney out there! By the way I dont count Ronaldo as a midfielder
September 27th, 2008 at 18:36
@dan(u-ol): I agree, anybody sensible would take Ronaldo over Rooney, because all round Ronaldo is a better player.
What I don’t get is the heavy criticism Rooney gets for profligacy whilst Tevez gets a by, despite virtually identical figures for the two of them.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:38
@Ryan:
so what is scholes and carrick? whats hargreaves? fletcher and anderson to a degree? possebon is even creative! the only midfielder we lack is a CAM in the gerrard, kaka role.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:41
@dan(u-ol): But we don’t have midfielders for ONLY creativity and forwards for ONLY goals..they have to have both. And considering none of our midfielders (bar Ronaldo who’s not a true midfielder) scored more than a few goals combined last season, I guess you would want all of them sold too!
There’s two things I don’t understand on this blog – that’s how Dan hates Rooney SO much and Craig loves Nani SO much
No need to justify yourself guys, I’m just thinkin aloud here…
September 27th, 2008 at 18:42
@dan(u-ol):
I dont know the figures but it would be interesting to see how many assists they all got last season(your listed players). I think Nani got more than all of them put together!!
So your saying we have those players but still need a creative CAM?? A bit of a contridiction.
Im off for the evening now but look forward to reading the rest of the discussions tomorrow at some point!
Hope you all have a good evening
September 27th, 2008 at 18:43
@JB: its because on paper, it looks like they are identical, but when you actually watch the matches they play in, its a different story.
rooney should have far more goals then tevez, because he starts a hole hell of lot more then tevez, and gets at least 2-3 one on ones with the keeper.
also, 2 important facts are that a lot of tevezs apps are from the bench, a lot of them are. and the significance of the goals scored also, we all know who is more likely to score an equalizer or the winning goal late in the FA cup final, with seconds to go.
stats can paint a completely different picture.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:43
@JB: Maybe Nani is inconsistent as you say, because he is not in the team as often as your beloved and inconsistent Rooney. Many football reporting critics have all said, including Wenger, that United haven’t really had a good record over the last few seasons for bringing players through. Nobody can say that Wenger isn’t the best at bringing young players through. I am United thru and thru, but I am not so blind as to not see that Wenger is very good at getting RAW talent and honing it into perfection. Do I think Fergie has as good a record – No I don’t. Does that mean I don’t appreciate Fergie, of course I do, but Fergie has his favourite players, and Nani isn’t in my opinion one of Fergie’s boys. Yet CQ loves him, and has promoted him into the 1st team for Portugal, and from the Portugal matches I have seen, Nani has responded to CQ’s faith in him. Regarding Rooney, he is an out and out striker – well SUPPOSEDLY
, so do I judge Nani a winger different to him on goal count, of course. That is normal. Ronnie is a one off for a winger, and everyone knows it. Wingers are not expected to score goals as much as strikers should. That’s the top and bottom of it.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:43
@dan(u-ol): Ryan makes a good point. Firstly I wouldn’t say either Hargreaves or Anderson are very creative. Secondly, although Scholes/Carrick are creative, it is from a very deep position in the putch. As you said, we don’t really have a creative influence further up the pitch (or ‘in the hole’ to quote the old cliche), therefore Rooney’s eye for a pass becomes more important. If we did have a Kaka, then you could fairly say that there would be more pressure on Rooney to score as his creativity wouldn’t be as key to us.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:44
@Craig Mc: I see your point, I do like nani too, he is under rated of course.. but is directionless at the moment, in team environment he looks lost i am afraid!! At this moment in time is he a automatic starter? Not sure about that. But i got a hunch he will be fine and a player to look forward to. On the side note Berba needs to take it easy on the arm waving, not the united way, will have to learn in time….
September 27th, 2008 at 18:45
@antsBoy: i dont hate rooney, i just think he’s an over rated pile of crap who thinks he should never be dropped just because he was onec hailed as the white pele, but aside from that, i think he’s OK
September 27th, 2008 at 18:46
@dan(u-ol): How do you know SAF benched Rooney with a punishment in mind? May be he was trying to pair Tevez and Berba and try a different combination….We’ve got a lot of matches this year.
Rooney and Berba seem to be on the same wave length and their styles complement each other… Whatever you say Rooney is one of the best creative players we’ve got.. Tevez for all his form hasn’t done anything spectacular so far and when compared to Rooney he does not bring a lot of creativity into the team…
September 27th, 2008 at 18:46
@JB: hargreaves on the wing or at rb is pretty creative.
so, if we where to buy messi for instance, and played him as a CAM, what then…
September 27th, 2008 at 18:48
@dan(u-ol): Bro you are wasting your time arguing with the Rooney faithful on this blog, cos they will NEVER admit he has failed as a striker for a while now. They should come onto the terraces, and here what many think about Roon when he has played full games of late. But perhaps some of them have been on the terraces, and if so, I don’t understand why they can’t hear or see what a lot of fans have been seeing for a while.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:48
@Krishnan: but neither has rooney…
September 27th, 2008 at 18:48
I guess the problem is that many people want the Rooney that the media had created a few years ago, which is so over-hyped…he’s this, he’s that, he’s superman.
All the hype is NOT HIS FAULT…You cannot blame a player for the hype generated over him..it’s almost as if some people feel deceived and angry that he has not delivered what was expected of him..cos they simply expected EVERYTHING! He’s still an excellent player – his stats speak for him!
If someone who’d just been born into the football world were to rate Rooney today, looking at what an all-around player he is (rather than just rate the number of goals) he would still be rated VERY HIGH. That’s all I’m saying…
September 27th, 2008 at 18:49
@dan(u-ol): Not in CM though.
We won’t buy Messi and if we did he would be on the wing
September 27th, 2008 at 18:49
@Craig Mc: its like they dont understand that rooney is a striker and all this blue collar crap is just an excuse for him not scoring the amount goals, he should be.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:50
@Krishnan: Except score against L’pool of course.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:50
@dan(u-ol): Oh, I just saw your comment now..but I was speaking “in general” about people in my comment above…
September 27th, 2008 at 18:51
@dan(u-ol): I know mate, I know
.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:52
@JB: well when he plays in the middle, he is a CDM and if he was being a creative mid, i would be having a go at him like i am at rooney. you wouldnt have thte cleaner teaching a class would you? let the cleaner do his job, and the teacher do his job.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:52
@Craig Mc: I have been on the terraces a few times and there are alot of the people there who are no more qualified to judge a player than anyone else.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:53
@antsBoy: So glad you agree mate that Rooney is overhyped, because that is what you are saying in this post
.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:54
@dan(u-ol): No, but you were talking about creativity from CM’s earlier
I wasn’t saying he should be creative, I just said he wasn’t from in there.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:55
@JB: There are a hell of a lot of fans who follow United home and away, who are able to judge a players form and contribution also.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:57
@Craig Mc: I’m not saying they aren’t but just becaue they attend a game doesn’t mean that their opinion is any better than anyone’s on here. I’ve heard as much shit spewed on the terraces as I’ve heard sensible observations.
September 27th, 2008 at 18:58
even giovanni looks like he could be the CAM i want lol joke, calm down hehe.
September 27th, 2008 at 19:00
Hull leading…
September 27th, 2008 at 19:00
@Craig Mc: I think the point antsBoy was making was that the English press unrealistically promised the ‘White Pele’. Some people were taken in by that and Rooney is now getting hammered for the unrealistic expectations built up around him.
September 27th, 2008 at 19:00
HULL FOR THE TOP 4 lol beating the arse 2-1!!!
September 27th, 2008 at 19:01
@Craig Mc: I would be lying if I said he wasn’t overhyped…almost all English players are.
But I also say in the same post that he is still an EXCELLENT PLAYER, better than Tevez IMO, but that’s gonna open another can of worms, so we’ll leave it there…
I wouldn’t wanna sell him ever, and I bet if we did even think of selling him, every club in the world with the finances to buy him would come running. That just shows what a good player he is. The only way for people to start liking him for what he is, is to clear their minds and savour it when he scores a goal (rather than go…”Ohhhh but he scored two more on his feckin debut right…so I need MORE today!!!”)
September 27th, 2008 at 19:02
@AndyCR7: Sweet jesus
Even if Arsenal comeback this is still quite funny 
September 27th, 2008 at 19:09
Go Hull Go!!
Your fairytale win is on the cards!
September 27th, 2008 at 19:21
@Craig Mc: last year my dad (a Celtic/Leeds fan) was able to hold his own talking about United to the people beside us so clearly some don’t know what’s going on other than what the media tells them.
You said earlier that Rooneys goal was laid on a plate by Ronnie. No offence but have you seen the replay? He dummies the defender and curled it into the bottom corner. Hardly a tap in
September 27th, 2008 at 19:28
1st Fulham… now Hull…
September 27th, 2008 at 19:30
Rooney will be our best player this season. Mark my words. But I think he may suit better in the team when he is playing with Berba. Tevez can only play with Rooney, as can Berba. Rooney can play with both! If Fergie plays him as a striker, then he will be our top scorer behind Berbatov.
September 27th, 2008 at 19:41
Oh, and thanks Hull!
Wenger, you still dont miss Flamini? Someone who marks players that are known for scoring goals from 30 yards. Thanks Hull and Giovani, my Arsenal-fan friend is gonna get burned tomorrow! 
September 27th, 2008 at 19:42
@AndyCR7: Geovanni’s free-kick was awesome. Too early to tell, but more games like this and i can see them staying up.
September 27th, 2008 at 19:45
HAHAHA!!!!!!On Arsenal. What a game!!!I thought Hull is gonna be massacred and they were, but what a game. They deserve everything they got.
September 27th, 2008 at 19:47
Guys, calm the feck down. We win and people are turning the chance to savour it into a defence of their bruised egos. Rooney came on and scored, fantastic. Nani was a bit selfish, but he showed glimpses of his talent, great. Tevez didn’t find the net, but worked hard, good. These are all United players, and they did good today.
Rooney was on the bench today for various reasons; he has played most of our games this season, tevez deserved a start, fergie wanted to try the bertov connection, it could be anyone. The good thing is that he came on and scored. I think people are a bit blinded by the hype the english media have built around this boy and the fact that he has been playing out of position or his injuries have hampered his goal tally, people are getting undeservedly judgemental of him. He has been playing to accomodate United’s lack of midfield creativity in attack and Ronaldo for the past two seasons, so we should all recognise that and give him some slack. He is not superman; however, his productivity (goals and assists) are among the top ten in the prem.
Nani has showed glimpses of his talents and I beleive with a little more maturity, he will develop into a brilliant player. It’s not what Fergie is doing to him, it’s when he learns from his errors that he will become better. Fergie putting him on the bench is probably an attempt to make him more focused and determined when he comes on so he can make better decisions. With time, he will get there.
Tevez has still not found his niche in our team, but whenever he plays with Rooney, Rooney helps him out with brill passes and the ol’ touch and go. He still tries to make up for this with his tenacity, but gradually, he will get there.
What the team lacks is a creative midfield attacking force and that is why our SS have to drop so deep all the time, to accommodate that defect. Maybe a coonsistent run of Anderson in that position will allow him to get back those attacking qualities he has and utilise them in that AMF position for us. Only then will our SS be able to stay up the pitch more and leave the playmaking to the midfield.
September 27th, 2008 at 19:54
Nani has talent but decision making and consistency is lacking. He needs to know when to dribble and when to release the ball. He can be a great asset with his crossing and eye for goal. But he can also be a liability.
Park is very solid. He is also a real team player. He adds some balance to our team and will never shirk his defensive abilities. Right now I think he deserves his inclusion.
Anderson had the shackles on last season. This season he is getting more freedom but I think there is some sort of mental block because I do not see any offensive qualities in him.
September 27th, 2008 at 19:56
@Gabriel: You talk far too much sense for this place
I agree whole heartly with all the points you have made.
September 27th, 2008 at 19:56
@Craig Mc: I have to agree that Nani is underappreciated in general at United, especially compared to Anderson who is looking more and more ordinary – by the way was this boy EVER an AM??? – but Craig you should admit that he should really play to his best skills, i.e. getting behind defenders and crossing.
September 27th, 2008 at 20:03
@JB: Well I’d say that also equates to this blog as well JB. But hey ho!.
September 27th, 2008 at 20:10
@Nico QB: All I’ll say to you Nico mate, is that he hasn’t had much opportunity as others this season so far. Yet if you watch Last Seasons end of season review, where he also didn’t get as many games as others, he was 2nd in assists, and he got the ball into the area for many a vital goal. So I would say he was doing his job. That is not being biased, but being honest. I seriously want the lad to move away from United, because I truly believe his contribution last year was greatly unappreciated. He would be great for any of the other top 6 clubs. I feel for the lad. Considering his contribution last year, United fans do not support him as the other Portuguese players Ronnie and Andie – Why?. Ronnie I understand, Andie I don’t.
September 27th, 2008 at 20:11
@JB: mate, I just noticed people are picking their fave players and bashing the rest, which is unfair/biased!! As a team, we have been playing around Ronaldo and his strengths for quite a while now. Players frequently out of position, an adjusted formation that doesn’t play to certain players strengths… these are some of the reasons some of our players have had diinished returns in productivity and why we have struggled without that key component to our current style, Ronaldo.
Fergie is trying to correct this, first with Berba’s purchase and maybe with Ando having a more free AMF role. This is gonna take some getting used to, as we have not played a solid 4-4-2 in ages. Anderson has been playing as a CMF since he came to United; he is not one, he is an AMF/SS, but his dogedness had us fooled. Fergie (hopefully) is trying to get him back to his roots as an attacking force, but having not played as one for sometime, he will need games.
Today’s substitutions showed we have some strength in depth and with games coming left right and centre, we need that. Hopefully Carrick and Hargo can get back to fitness sooner rather than later, as we need the formers’ creativity and the latters’ dogedness in midfield.
September 27th, 2008 at 20:14
@Rd: It wasn’t a free kick… or is it?
September 27th, 2008 at 20:15
@AndyCR7: Yes My friend! As i say! The Diablo is always right.
Ok. Here is my match analysis of the game. First of all too all you Rooney haters as well as all his Lovers. GIVE IT A BREAK! Please its been a 100 posts on this topic. Look! Tevez started. What did he do? Nothing! Lets face it. Rooney was benched for whatever Reason! But it came to his mind and he delivered a PEACH of a finish. I am just trying to say to all his lovers. Dont get so muched over hyped with him! Cause if he walls! It will be only because of your over expectations! And to all you Rooney HATERS! Come on. Give the boy a break! He just mainly single handedly silenced you all today. WHY NOT give him SOME time? Wait a month atleast and then when he has gotten his mental chemistry with Berbatov. Then see if he really is shit or not!
Guys I am just trying to be practical here!
Alrighty off to the matchly Diablo’s points.
) shot the ball instead of passing.
1. Park is Shit! For all his hardword and blah blah blah, he still cannot cross! He is good as a squad player but as a First Team starter? Sorry I am not buying it!
2. Nani needs some games! Alright he has been selfish but please remember Ronaldo in his first 2-3 Seasons! Even though I agree that he is getting NO game time than he should.
3. All this talk about a new CAM has got be shitting! And to Grognard when he said that we couldnt break up a Bolton team and we need to play a Rooney as CM or buy someone! With all due respect my master I seriously urge you to wait until a CERTAIN Michael Carrick comes back!
4. Neville is shit! Seriously bring Brown back! Brown has started to learn how to cross and Neville is shit in defence!
5. Give Rio the captaincy please! I seriously am loving the guy! HE truly is our LEADER on and off the pitch! So Neville! Please dont let Busby hit you on the way out!
6. Arsenal! HAHAHAHA! I laugh at those losers. Those chumps. Yes please Wenger keep on playing your Kids!
7. Well thats it. Just one more thing. With all respect to my master! Please reserve your judgement about the midfield and Rooney issue atleast when Carrick comes back and for a month atleast for Rooney and Berba to gel!
8. Ronaldo with all due respect. Sometimes I just think that you should cross or pass to Berba! I mean he was in great scoring positions when Mr. I am the Best(which he is
Well that sums it up!
September 27th, 2008 at 20:16
@JB: Absolutely! Hear the voice of reason talk!
And I have pointed this several times before: Tevez’s stats may be equivalent to that of Ronney’s however, Rooney brings much more in terms of keeping the flow of the game, wherea@Ryan: s Tev is a ball-hog, and rather inefficient and a crappy passer.
Yes Tevez was on great form during pre-season but this is no longer the case.
Clearly there should be no arguement as to who is the better oplayer when playing at the peak of his powers (hint: he wears no. 10) however we all know how infuriatingly irregular he can be.
And finally Ryan makes a great point: everybody knows that we lacj creativity in central midfield (what more with Carrick not playing…) People don’t mind it when Ronaldo doesn’t create for his other team mates and looks for his customary 1 goalper match. And I don’t blame him either. However, the CMs in terms of creating have not been doing their job and I for one cannot blame Rooney for taking some of this responsibility. Peter Beardsley was a support striker however he excelled in creating for others (ask Andrew Cole at Newcastle).
So if slave is soring 30+ from advanced midfield, I see no problem if Rooney scores a meager 15, but conttributing much more to the fluency of our game than Tevez who constantly chops it.
And no, this is not a rant against Tevez, but just an observation of how, for all his other skills, his teamplay is actually quite poor.
September 27th, 2008 at 20:21
@Craig Mc: Oh, I agree with everything you said here, except for one point: I, for one, don’t want him to move away!
When Ronnie is finally going to leave, be it in one or two years time, who are we going to play? Real talented wingers are nt so easy to come by, ask the dippers, however, thankfully, our scouts have always been very good at spotting them!
September 27th, 2008 at 20:22
@Liam: Thats your opinion Bro not mine!.
September 27th, 2008 at 20:24
@Nico QB: Nico, your in a minority of United fans on this blog in your opinion on Nani, but your opinion is one I agree with about Nani’s talent. Nevertheless, I truly think he would be a revelation somewhere he will be more appreciated.
September 27th, 2008 at 20:27
@antsBoy: Reading your Rooney posts, I just have to agree.
September 27th, 2008 at 20:33
Aaah, I’m overjoyed by the Arse debacle especially thinking about how French tv pundits will be crying over the result!
You’ve never heard biased commentary until you heard those bloody french commenting an Arse game!
September 27th, 2008 at 20:36
@Gabriel: So telling what we believe is the truth about certain players is BASHING them, what kind of feckin biased reasoning is that mate. I have listened to Nani bashing on this blog for quite a while, and that’s okay because it’s each person’s opinion. I will fight for the lad, because I truly believe he is a great wide player, and if he was playing anywhere else we would see that. If he is not appreciated, then everyone is entitled to say so, AS WE ARE ENTITLED to say what we feel about Rooney and Andie etc. So live with it. If Dan(u)ol and I can see some are off form, then we can say so, whether JB or you, or anyone else thinks its bashing.
.
September 27th, 2008 at 20:45
@Red Diablo: Good points there, mate.
Except I actually thought that Neville wasnt that bad defensively, except for his now usual horrendous crossing. But sure, I do trust Brown more in defence…
September 27th, 2008 at 21:02
@Craig Mc: mate, don’t get ur knickers in a twist. I didn’t point fingers at you. Ironic though, you say ‘So telling what we believe is the truth about certain players is BASHING them, what kind of feckin biased reasoning is that mate. I have listened to Nani bashing on this blog for quite a while…’
So other people saying what they believe to be the truth about nani is ‘bashing’, but you saying what you think about other players is not?
Again, i’m not advocating anyone or any players, but it seems a tad unfair that we have to hold each player in our squad against the other like it’s some kind of contest. Why can’t we all be happy when each of them do good?
You are entitled to your opinion mate, I’m just making an observation that i’m also ‘entitled’ to…
September 27th, 2008 at 21:04
@Red Diablo: I like Carrick but he has proven over two seasons that he isn’t the answer either. He’s good, we need great. Sorry young apprentice, but you know I speak the truth. It would be unwise to disagree
September 27th, 2008 at 21:10
I have to laugh over the fact that Wayne Rooney comes in as a fresh sub and scores an nice goal and all of a sudden the Messiah has returned to deliver us to the Promise Land. What a load of bollocks!
Look I’m glad he scored a goal and ended his drought but he has to do a whole lot more to prove to me that he is not expendable or that we shouldn’t think about sitting him some more. I’m still all for him playing attacking midfielder because I think he would have been much better than Anderson today. As a consistent striker or second striker, Wayne has some proving to do. The signs are their starting in the England game that he may be coming around. Lets hope he does because when he is playing well we truly are impossible to beat. Heres a vote of confidence to you Wayne. Keep it up and stop smoking.
September 27th, 2008 at 21:17
@Grognard: My master When Carrick comes back and we start the goal fest! I will remind you of your words! HAHAHAHA
Well! See you guys tommorow!
Rant OUT
September 27th, 2008 at 21:17
HA! HA! Nice to see the Gooners lose. Arsenal will never win a thing as long as Aluminum Foil Almunia is in goal. That bloke isn’t good enough for the Coca Cola League. I don’t know what Wenger was thinking by pissing of Lehmann and then not spending money to replace him with a quality keeper. Instead he plays a guy who makes Roy Carroll look like Peter Schmeichel. Unbelievable!
I honestly cannot recall ever seeing that wanker ever make a save for Arsenal when it counted most. I never saw the game today but I bet Hull only had two or three chances the whole game. Now if only fucking Liverpool and Chelsea would lay an egg once in a while, maybe we could catch them. Instead, they just win and bore us all to death in the process.
September 27th, 2008 at 21:19
@Red Diablo: Your talk is bold young one. Pray it is accurate also. We shall see if you are correct. My suspicion is that Ronaldo and Berbatov getting into shape and Rooney finding his form will have a lot more to do with their resurgence than the return of Carrick. But you can go with that, that’s OK.
September 27th, 2008 at 21:34
@Gabriel: Errr Gabriel, I was using your TERM bashing in quoting back to you NOT MINE. I have never used the term bashing, except in using it to highlight that it was your term, sorry you didn’t get that. I have used the term UNDERAPPRECIATED, with regards to Nani etc. Before you comeback with the suggestion I underappreciate Rooney, maybe pre and early season, you might have a point. Yet Rooney criticism on this board, is treated with such hysteria by His protection brigade, its laughable. Anyway, lets leave this whole discussion here okay mate, because to be honest I can’t be arsed to get into it anymore.
September 27th, 2008 at 21:45
Grog, how you feeling Bro?. I know it takes time to get over loss of a friend, but hope you are finding some respite
.
September 27th, 2008 at 22:31
United 2-0 Bolton. Ronaldo(pen) 60, Rooney 77. MOTM: Patrice Evra. Menace for Bolton, both attacking and defensive. Had some good crosses and made some chances. Brilliant header to Rooney for 2-0. Penalty: Wrong decision by the ref, but like Fergie said it: “He owes us some more”
September 27th, 2008 at 23:38
A poor miss and a lucky penalty away from a tough, tough game
September 28th, 2008 at 0:52
WOW Rooney scores and all of his fans are out. I say he was going to score sooner or later, so just keep your feets on the ground. He playing like shit for the whole season. He always does good against Bolton, unless he performs great week in and week out, I will have my doubts.
September 28th, 2008 at 1:21
@Craig Mc: It’s been tough mate. As if I never had enough to deal with when it comes to my own heart scare and United’s lack of heart, then I go lose a close friend. Very tough but I’ll get through it. Thanks for asking. A win today certainly helped. Now hopefully it’s on to bigger and better things. Hopefully we show our quality against a real minnow in the CL this week.
September 28th, 2008 at 4:11
I got to ask the utd fans on here and in general since it was only me liam and a phew others who was saying it well before his arrival that berbetov is not a good signing, are you happy with berbetov because I am not and at the moment all the things I have said about the guy has come true and fans on the phones are all saying what I predicted. he is lazy he is slow does not move much and his attitude at times is pathetic, I feel sorry for rooney that he has been benched just for this donkey to play who has been for me United’s most ineffective forward, as good as cantona you are having a laugh the only one in the united squad that can be called the new cantona is christiano ronaldo, he has just returned his second full game this season that still has not stopped christiano twice getting on the score sheet and you can take that to the bank, he has made big impacts as a sub in the villareal and Chelsea matches and ronaldo as been injured for months explain that what as berbetov done completely nothing. I read grognard craig and a phew others bash rooney to death on here yet they are reserved with their comments on berbetov who should be giving just a bigger bashing as rooney as been giving who for the past two games the roonster look’s to be getting back to his best.
On the game it is 3 pts that is it nothing great but like I said it is a bit by bit process slowly but surely united will hit the right notes, but what we have learned from this season so far is ronaldo is by a universal mile the world’s best player it is just a shame he won’t be here for long, because you look at berbertov and ronaldo the two are in different worlds it is realy embarrassing. On the plus side look at our next 5 games united win all 5 games they will be shooting up the table.
Blackburn away
West brom Home
Everton away
West ham home
Hull home
September 28th, 2008 at 5:04
Grognard
lets bit by bit take apart your commenst one step at a time your first part you said
Well that was total crap. Thank God Rob Styles and Wayne Rooney saved our bacon. Total rubbish. We haven’t got a clue after three years of playing this style on how to break down a team that defends with ten men behind the ball. It’s all about movement off the ball and about give and go’s. yet United continue to play that static diagonal passing game that breaks down nobody. And you know why? Because our wingers are either too selfish or they cannot cross worth shit.
for the past 3 years that is strange isn’t it, in the 05/06 season we ripped them apart 4 1 at old trafford came from 1 0 down to beat them 2 1 at their ground yes united found it strange to break them down, in the 06/07 season we just give bolton one of the biggest hiding’s at their ground since the 01/02 season when we beat them 4 0 that time, at old trafford we give them another beating 4 1 and the ronaldo rooney counter attack was anything but overrunning a deep lying Bolton side, last season we did not give them a hiding was probably down to players declining. Not to mention in the past 3 years united have finished premierships top scorers, I did not know beating roma 7 1 and hammering arsenal 4 0 and many other great performances where united have scored some great goals, plus Milan at home united did pretty well to come from 2 1 down to win 3 2 yes united found it hard to score goals give it time united will come good.
_________________________________________________________________________
Ronaldo was selfish throughout but that’s OK, that’s what he’s paid for. He’s paid to create situations and score goals. Park was useless because he continually found him self in great wide positions and continually delivered crappy crosses which were either long or were blocked. Nani, well don’t get me started on him. Every time he had the ball on the left, his head went down, he went into I want to be like Ronaldo mode and he looked to do nothing but find a chance to take a shot and score. Meanwhile on three different occasions players like Berbatov were in great positions for a pass but no, Nani never saw them because he had his head down and was determined to do it all himself. Sorry Craig but the little bastard is a selfish and greedy little prick. A lot of skill and talent but a ten cent head and the team play of a Republican.
The only thing I agree with you grognard which you hit the nail on the head is nani who for me is overrated and need’s to work on other areas of his game like getting the ball taking on players’ and setting up good situations creating space for the midfield and making the right decisions and getting in the box more, craig don’t call the kettle black saying we Rooney fan’s should stop defending him well you stop defending a player who at the moment is not a first 11 player and don’t forget he is a year younger then rooney. But back to grognard’s comments this is what really annoys me with fans like him sticking up for berberov when he has done very little who should be getting a hell of allot of stick because his performances have been just awful he just does not move at all it is like playing with 10 men ronaldo just makes up for his attitude because he is like two player’s in one, rooney was great against Chelsea and made the impact against Bolton as did the ginger prince and my two favourite players rooney and scholes.
________________________________________________________________________
Berbatov was constantly in good positions to receive a through ball or a cross but players would constantly ignore him or work the safe ball and keep possession. He made some delightful passes and had that good header stopped but he never really got involved the way I think he wanted and the way we wanted. He needs to get better service from the wingers and those central midfielders have to occasionally offer a through ball or chip to break down the defense. Anderson played an attacking role today and for me he offered nothing in terms of skill, creativity and imagination. Fletcher did his job but also offered nothing in terms of a penetrating move or pass. Park just doesn’t do it for me guys, SORRY. He just lacks the skill and creativity to be a starter for Manchester United. What he doesn’t lack is determination, desire and a lot of heart.
That is the main reason why united no longer need to play with a target man or a van nistlerooy type player because our wide player’s are not designed for the main frontman they are there to give space to the forward’s that is why ronaldo as so much freedom so he does not have to supply the crosses to a striker’s like rooney and tevez who are more involved in the game. anderson was not great but as young players come he is still learning the game.
______________________________________________________________________
Our defenders again looked shaky at times. Neville played well on the offensive end but his defending or lack of it was the cause for Bolton’s two great chances. He wasn’t marking his man and they got in. Muwamba was his man and he was just standing there watching him come in and miss a sitter. Rio and Evra I thought played well. EVDS had nothing to do because all Bolton’s chances went wide. The game turned not when Styles gave that horrible penalty but when Rooney came on. See what happens when you sit him down and send a message to him about playing better and with more focus. He came into the game with focus and desire and his goal was vintage Rooney 2004. Tremendous goal. I also like the idea of Scholes coming in as a sub instead of starting. He showed energy and a willingness to attack and nearly scored on a header. When he starts he never moves up that far and gets involved. This has been the way he should have been used for the past two seasons. Before I forget I have to say that Tevez had a disappointing game. He looked tired or a little behind the pace as did Ronaldo. Ronny is still trying to find his fitness and you can see it in his struggles to get by defenders and in his shots where his timing is just not down. It’s coming though.
it did not work out to badly in the past two years did it two premierships and a European cup, so the reason why tevez did not play well is because he is tired yet if rooney as a bad game he is crap perhaps it is rooney that is tired is well, what about anderson two games in a week he as more of a reason to be tired instead of tevez. Still ronaldo look’s very good and showed that destructive pace and strength that makes him an effective tool going forward.
______________________________________________________________________
Lets hope this game wakes the lads up a bit. They are still far from functioning on all cylinders but they got a win under their belt. Lets work on better and more aggressive passing and running and better finishing. And for Gods sakes Fergie, give the team a drill on corner kicks and crosses because they are just terrible at both. Very few ball of any quality in the box. You have Ronaldo and Berbatov in the box and crosses were sailing way over their heads or being blocked. Not good enough and just a disgrace at this level. And someone needs to have a talk with Nani about team play and the need to keep his head up and his options open. A team like Bolton should have been dismantled 4-0 or 5-0 at OT. No excuses, our team needs more ideas in attack and better performance from our players. Right now they are not giving their best and confidence is low. Had this been a quality team we may have even lost today. We need to wake the Hell up. At east we got the win and Rooney broke his drought and looked aggressive and positive. Now if we can get Ronaldo and Berbatov off and running we should be alright. But still, we need to provide better service from our wingers and our central midfielders need to get more involved offensively. I’d rate the team performance today a 6-10. Player of the match for me was Rio Ferdinand.
Again that is very short sited to say well we should be cake walking games like Bolton, when players are finding form fitness and gelling as a team it is not going to be easy even arsenal lost to hull for goodness sake and they are supposed to be all that they even been overhyped in the time united have won it all, and I will say it again why isn’t anyone giving berbertov stick rooney as scored more then berbertov even a christiano ronaldo just about finding his fitness as two more goals then berbertov what does that say, it is not a wakeup call it is human nature when not many of played games form is not quiet there you are not going to get the five star performences that you expect.
September 28th, 2008 at 9:21
@jason: Must have taken you some time to write that down!
September 28th, 2008 at 9:34
This blog is getting crazier by the moment!
September 28th, 2008 at 9:55
@jason: you dont think that the reason berbatov is slightly of form is because he is hardly match fit or/and because he’s at a new team? i think it was something like 10 games in when he first scored for spurs, and about 12 when he first scored for bayern(the other one). when berbatov gets back on form, he’s an automatic starter, be sure of that. its who partners him, the question.
September 28th, 2008 at 10:15
In advance of RR’s match report, I’ve published one of my own on my blog. I’ll write up some detailed player ratings later today.
September 28th, 2008 at 11:02
@Grognard: The difference in our team when Scholes came on pays testement to this. We had a world class distributor and he controlled the game and we looked far more dangerous. If Carrick had started we would have had this from the get go. I know alot of people don’t like Carrick, and mainly because of his cost, but 2 League titles and a Champions league since we bought him is one hell of a statistic. I believe he was the midfielder that played the most games in both of those seasons?
Also, is anyone pised with MOTD for showing NONE of the tricks and flicks of Berbatov? Everytime Torres sneezed in the dippers game they had it from 5 angles and Hansen whopped his cock out, yet there was some absolutely brilliant Cantonaesq moments and they ignored them. I get the feeling that the media really want Liverpool to win the league this year.
September 28th, 2008 at 12:41
@jason: Are you Wakey in disguise?
September 28th, 2008 at 12:42
@Traverse: “Everytime Torres sneezed in the dippers game they had it from 5 angles and Hansen whopped his cock out”
, i do not like that show for many reasons, and thats one of them(not hansen lol, the lack of them showing true class, instead they show the bigger names and posers to get thte ratings in). Thats how its been everytime i have watched, granted, thats a few, if that, times.
September 28th, 2008 at 13:06
http://www.goal.com/en/articolo.aspx?contenutoid=885613
is this true? are we goin to grab another striker?
September 28th, 2008 at 13:53
@jason: My God, you lost me after your 1st two paragraphs. Couldn’t be bothered wading through your epic post – sorry!.
Ronnie better than Rooney a million times.
Berba, too subtle an artist to be understood by a good few of the United fans.
Little Man Nani, please go play for a club where your talent will be appreciated and where you will get enough FULL games to be that world beater you are working your bollocks off in staying behind still training long after others have gone home
.
September 28th, 2008 at 13:54
@cheeseburger o’shea: if thats true, then rooney/tevez, manucho and campbell/welbeck will all go.
September 28th, 2008 at 13:59
We should be looking at another keeper I think. VDS is starting to show signs of his age, and Ben Foster seems to be a Saha with gloves. PIG will only ever be a back up keeper. I’m watching the Spurs/Pompey game amd I like that Gomes fella. I’m sure Tottenham would be willing to business with us again.
September 28th, 2008 at 13:59
@Grognard: Grog, glad your doing okay. What are you doing to improve your chances of warding off heart problems Bro?. Are you enjoying more exercise, better diet etc
?. Listen to me, Heart Surgeon Dr. Craig Mc 
.
With regards to our doing well against European minnows in the next game, trouble is Grog, minnows turn into SHARKS whenever they happen to be playing United
.
September 28th, 2008 at 14:02
@Orez: Hurrah – I’m with you
.
September 28th, 2008 at 14:08
@TinManUnited: “A Saha with gloves” –
.
Regarding spurs doing business with us ever again, I don’t think so mate. They are well and truly pissed with us getting their players.
September 28th, 2008 at 14:12
@Craig Mc: Yah I know. We should go anyway, sort of keeping them as our bitches to do with what we like. That’s all Spurs are good for. Looks like they’ll have another loss again today.
September 28th, 2008 at 14:26
@TinManUnited: You think so Tinman, I fancied Spurs to do Pompey today
.
September 28th, 2008 at 14:32
@Craig Mc: You would think so after the hiding they took from City, but we’ll see.
September 28th, 2008 at 14:50
@TinManUnited: you know who im impressed with, diarra, everytime i see this kid, i think to my self, how the hell did arsene let him go? he is meant to be a CDM but in all honesty, he could become world class CAM if he came to the right club, *couch*united*cough*
if he came to us, i would be so happy!
September 28th, 2008 at 15:10
@dan(u-ol): Yah, I have him on my fantasy team. Hoping he will take a few shots and get me some points…but he does look pretty solid. Don’t know where he would fit in the current United setup though.
September 28th, 2008 at 15:13
I can’t believe what I’m reading on here. I know it’s a ‘rants’ page but good lord.
1. Bolton aren’t crap defensively, they’re actually quite good. They’re big and strong and Jussi is a great keeper. So breaking them down is always difficult. We should be happy with the win.
2. Ronaldo is selfish as hell, but that’s because he’s supposed to be, as he’s our goalscorer, winger or not.
3. Berba is starting to look good, and I’m 100% confident he’ll come good. What he needs is our wingers to realise we have a big man in the middle for the first time in 2 years, and start delivering balls to him.
4. Rooney is the second best offensive player on the best team in the world. He is the second most productive player in the premiership. After Rio and Ronaldo he would be the first name on my team sheet any day. He needed a little reminder that he’s not undroppable, and game on with energy focus and a goal. I’m not sure what you people expect from him, but even in the relative ‘poor’ form he’s in, he still did more than Tevez in half the time.
5. Tevez and Park shouldn’t play together. Both perform similar roles and are useful – but both have pretty poor final balls. And that deprived of us that cutting edge.
6. Nani is a kid, who is undergoing his footballing education at the best club in the world. He’s not perfect but he’s learning. Again, what do you people expect?
Fergie needs time to see how different partnerships work on the pitch, and that’s why we’re taking a while. I thought Nani and Evra are an effective team, and also that Fletcher and Ando looked pretty good in the middle. We all kno about Rooney and Ronaldo being great together too. So for me when all the experimenting is done we’ll kick into gear. And personally I expect that to be a team with Rooney, Ronaldo and Berba as the lead 3. I guess we’ll see.
September 28th, 2008 at 15:21
@dan(u-ol): Oh Man, so much for getting me some points. Red card. He just cost me some points.
September 28th, 2008 at 15:30
@TinManUnited: hehe
September 28th, 2008 at 16:56
@dan(u-ol): Dan my boy. Just the other day you were letting somebody have it for saying some really rude remarks directed at you and me. Now you go and do the same thing. Careful mate. I don’t want you to get on Red Ranters hit list. No need to get nasty. Just some friendly advice to prevent you getting banned.
September 28th, 2008 at 17:07
@Craig Mc: Craig I too would rather see Nani on the left wing over anyone else on the team. However, how long would he last out there playing the selfish, head down game he showed us today? But I also have a theory about that. Being on the bench so much has caused Nani a lot of anxiety and so when he wants to come into a game, he so wants to impress that he feels the only way to be noticed is to go for goal. This is his mistake but honestly, how hard has Fergie (without Queiroz) instilled the need from him to look up, pass and cross more? The boy has super talent and he idolizes and wants to emulate Ronaldo. The problem is, as good as he is, he isn’t Ronaldo. Nobody is. At 17 Ronaldo was getting away with a lot of the things Nani doesn’t get away with because he was that much better. Still, a Nani that is focused and totally understanding of his job and his duties could become an awesome weapon for us.
United need to bring this out in him by playing him. Give him five matches to express himself and become the consummate team player. If he is still mentally challenged and selfish after that, then sit him down. But nobody tell me that Park or Giggs or whoever deserves to be out there over him. He has the kind of talent that if properly channeled can be dynamic to United and would help us forget our central midfield weaknesses and would open up our offense and allow Berbatov to flourish. I say give Nani a chance.
September 28th, 2008 at 17:34
@Ryan: Ryan, mate. Some of us who have suggested that Rooney be sold have taken that position because we feel or think that Wayne has reached a peak with this club and that for him to improve or become better, he needs a change of atmosphere and a manager with a different approach that doesn’t use him like a utility man. Rooney is and always will be a super talent but he is woefully inconsistent and as strikers go, he is undisciplined and erratic. His emotions are never in check and his passion often gets the better of him. He runs around and does other people’s jobs but quite often is found wanting because he neglects his job which is either to play striker, or play off of the striker. The boy also has a lifestyle that may eventually lead him out of OT as we all know that Fergie only tolerates so much. He also needs to stop smoking as this will eventually really impact his play.
I have said many times before, sit the lad down and punish him a bit. Let him realize that his place on the side is not ensured and that he has to work for it and do what the manager tells him to do. If the manager has told him to run around like a chicken with his head cut off, then Fergie deserves half of my condemnation. If not than Wayne has to fess up to his weaknesses. Sitting him down on Saturday and bringing him on as a sub seemed to stoke the proper fire in him. I for one would have sat him down for a few more games before he saw any playing time. Make him really feel it. If sitting him down for 65 minutes could get him to come out and play as well and score a pretty Rooney circa 2004 goal, then great. But I think sitting him down for a few more games will make the message sink in. If he starts the next game, nothing will have been learned.
The bottom line is that Rooney is ten times the player Carlos Tevez. Don’t get me wrong, i love Tevez but he hasn’t got the first touch, speed, vision, passing ability or even finishing ability that Wayne has. They both have great determination and desire but lets face it, we play much better as a team when Wayne is playing well rather than when Carlos is. That’s a fact. Wayne Rooney is a better player. Problem is, ever since he came back from his injury last year, he has not been a better player most of the time.
Another reason I considered letting Wayne go to another team is that our team is evolving into a style of play where Wayne seems confused. He is still a world class player but right now he still has tremendous value and worth. United have other needs and the money gained from selling a Rooney would get us the attacking midfielder we need or that permanent left winger should Nani not make the final grade. It’s really up to Rooney how long he remains a United player. He needs to wake up and smell the coffee. He needs to grow up and he needs to refocus himself and stick to the job description for his position. And in fairness, Fergie needs to start playing him in his proper position rather than moving him around.
My alternate solution to Rooney’s positional indifference is to place him and train him in the role of an attacking midfielder AMF. This would give him the room and freedom to roam the park more, come up for offense and help more on defense. He is an exceptional passer of the ball and has great vision and creativity. Even more than Paul Scholes ever had. If Scholes and even to a lesser effect Allan Smith can be converted to this position, than so can Wayne. Where he would need work is on his temper and his use of energy, which often gets him in to card trouble. If he could control that part of his personality he has the skill to become a Francesco Totti. Perhaps Fergie has already thought of this, perhaps not. Either way Wayne is at a crossroads where he needs to figure out what he is and where he is going. Truthfully, I have become tired watching him waste his immense talent doing stupid and mundane things.
I have always been a strong Rooney supporter so for me to start talking transfer or repositioning, then there must be something wrong. I’m not blind, stupid or fickle. And Wayne waking up for 20 minutes isn’t going to convince me of his return to greatness either. A simple but positive plan of attack by Fergie is needed to reassure people like me and to motivate and refocus Wayne into becoming the player I know and we all know he can be.
September 28th, 2008 at 17:46
@jason: Let me ask you something mate. I assume you have changed jobs in your life, assuming you are over 18? If not lets use that analogy of having to change schools. I doubt very much that on your first few weeks in a new environment you fit in like a perfect glove to a hand. That you had no problems fitting in or settling with your new job duties, a different way of doing things and being introduced to complete strangers. To expect the world from Berbatov who feels like a fish out of water right now is incredibly fair. Rooney has been with the team for 5 bloody seasons. Berbatov has been with us a few weeks. He came to us not in the best match fitness due to the way Tottenham were not using him and punishing him for his love and loyalty to United. Secondly, the team has played poorly around him rarely if ever providing him the service and support up front that he needs to flourish. Yet the best passes I have seen from anyone on our team in our last two league games have come from Berbatov. Get off his back and have some fucking patience for a change. The player is class personified and he will eventually pay great dividends for United. Man your comment was so incredibly unfair.
I suppose he should have known his God Damned role and scored 6 goals by now right? You said it, it’s a ” bit by bit process.”
September 28th, 2008 at 18:00
@Grognard: you know mate, your right, but he has grudge. i think it was over rooney, but before you came back, we argued and it got to much for ryan, so he had had to resort to petty insults as a lot of new people on this blog do. i didnt insult him technically, i just told him where to go, in a negative manner lol, perfect;y legal hehe.
but honestly, when they see rant in redrants, they think it gives them a license to insults.
September 28th, 2008 at 18:07
@jason: Why are you giving me stats from past years? Read what I have written. I am talking about now. The last few games we are playing. Not what we did in 2006 and 2007. God give me strength from having to endure crap like that. They are crap RIGHT NOW. They can’t finish worth shit and their play breaks down in the opposing third because they lack the inventiveness and movement off the ball they have shown in past years. One would have to be blind to not notice how static they have played. Except for the game against Middlesbrough where Fergie started a Samba loving side that moved the ball beautifully and quickly and it showed up to the point where they finished poorly or the last pass was left wanting.
Your point about our team not playing the style that suits a Berbatov or RVN is correct. Our wingers need to be less selfish and they need to pass and cross more. This is not a suggestion, this is a directive from Fergie. They never spent over 30 million to watch Nani and Ronaldo selfishly ignore Berbatov. Fergie wants our wingers to mix it up. This will take some time to drill in their heads. But heck look at Park. He must have tried a dozen crosses in the game of which 10 of them were blocked. We need to provide better service to Berbatov if we are to best utilize his gifts.
As for the rest of your tirade against my views, that’s fine. I think you are are wrong and you seem to rely far too much on stats from the past which for me is total nonsense. And for your information, United should not be trying to get into forma nd in shape 6 games into the season. They should have been in shape to start the season. This crap has happened three years in a row and I for one have to question the teams pre season training and traveling. Yes Rooney may be tired and so is Tevez but Rooney never had any international tournaments to further fatigue him this Summer. Instead he was off getting married and partying on yachts off of Italy. When I see this team suck early in the season and fall behind just like I predicted, it just further strengthens my beliefs and my case over yours. No disrespect but I don’t mind you disagreeing with me. I do particularly mind being referred to as short sighted and being lectured to in a pontificating manner. I’m sure that was not your intention but I am not an idiot and so in the future assume that I know just as much as you but that I may have a different view on things. That doesn’t make either of us wrong or right. It’s just our views. Nothing I said lacked insight, thought or common sense. I find it a little disturbing that you can find so many things wrong with what I wrote yet nobody else seemed to. And sorry but we should be destroying teams like Bolton at home. I think Fergie is thinking more like me on that one to. That is the United way. We don’t settle for mediocrity.
September 28th, 2008 at 18:12
@Traverse: I agree with you except that Scholes can’t start anymore. Before the season I suggested that the way he was used yesterday is the way Fergie should utilize him because of his age. I think I was proven correct. Carrick is a fine player but Fergie has him playing to far back to properly use his offensive passing skills to full effect. This is the primary reason why a lot of people are not won on Carrick. I say move him up more and put him next to Hargo and we will play better.
September 28th, 2008 at 18:12
@Nico QB: Sweeeeet!
September 28th, 2008 at 18:15
@Grognard: Groggy, if I could see you, i’d kiss u rite now (no homo
). That’s a fair and balanced critique of the lad. I seriously think Fergie has played or should I say, taken advantage of the boy’s versatility a bit too far. Funny thing is, I too was thinking of him becoming a Totti-esque player if Fergie decided to do so. He has all the qualities to excel in that position. He was never an out-and-out striker, however, some of his finishes might have fooled us into thinking he was.
The thing is, Rooney has had to acommodate for the team’s lack of a no.9 since ruud left and Saha began his injury woes plus the fact our main midfield attacking force (scholes) was getting impotent in that area. Ever since then, he has never played in the position he did when ruud/fit saha were around (which, coincidentally, were his wonder years). He has either gone up-front to be a no.9 or down to the wings to accomodate our european system/ronaldo or has had to drop deep to playmake due to our lack of attacking midfielders.
Fergie, i think, has tried to compensate for the constant misuse of the boy by letting his anger/disciplinary and inconsistency issues slide (although the latter can be expected, given he is usually misused). This is where Fergie might be dropping the ball, as those bad traits will become habits and might deter his progress.
Hopefully, with the purchase of Berba, plus the (hopeful) emergence of Anderson as an effective attacking midfielder, the team can get back to a more balanced, versatile formation that does not revolve around Ronaldo. Only then, will Rooney return to the position and play of the ruud/fit saha years… the years when he was referred to as the ‘white pele’…
September 28th, 2008 at 18:21
@Craig Mc: I’m still dealing with this upper repiratory problem that caused the whole problem to begin with. It probably was an allergic reaction to dust or mold when I helped my friend who just passed away move all his stuff from his old place to his new place. A lot of dust and who knows if there was mold growing there. It was a damp basements where he had all his stuff. Either that or a reaction to my neighbors cigarette smoke. My heart is fine but my friend’s passing has made me enroll in a Healthy Heart fitness and maintenance course where I will exercise and get medical checks regularly from a cardiologist. I am also eating better too. Toughest part is cutting out my salt intake. I need to get in shape and lose a lot of weight. I’m going to do it because lets face it, I was scared straight.
Thanks for asking mate.
And yes, minnows in the CL can never be taken lightly. Especially when we are playing in such static and clueless manner.
September 28th, 2008 at 18:23
@dan(u-ol): I see what your saying but Red Ranter won’t see it that way. He’ll tear you one so clean it up mate. Don’t want to lose you from this blog.
September 28th, 2008 at 18:30
@Grognard: Grog is it really fair to judge Nani on a 10 minute cameo today?. How do you think he played in the cup match against Boro?. I think he did well. But I don’t want people to judge him on the few games of this season so far. I want everybody to watch the dvd end of season review for last year. I had friends watching the dvd with me, one who utterly detests United, but he was saying “who the feck is this lad Nani?. He is involved in nearly every move leading up to a goal in the games he plays in.” They were very impressed. They wondered why he wasn’t acclaimed more at our club. A lot of the goals that were vital in affording us a win, where otherwise we would have lost the game, came from Nani assists, or Nani’s involvement somewhere in the process, IN THE GAMES HE PLAYED or had cameo sub roles. Grog, I have asked time and time again for United fans in the Nani debate, to give there UNBIASED view on the lad AFTER watching the dvd. Nobody, and I mean Nobody who argues about Nani has ever come back and given their opinion AFTER watching end of season review. One reason really I would suspect, they cannot honestly not see his UNSELFISH contribution to last seasons cause, unless they are embarrassingly biased. I comment on Rooney’s lack of present form, his poor passing average in a lot of games, and his one and ones legendary misses. I have NEVER said the Roon is selfish, because he isn’t. In fact, I think I have complained that his unselfishness has led him to spend too much time doing other peoples work on the field, and neglecting the vital role we need from him, to stay in our half of the field, and get AS MANY SHOTS ON GOAL AS HE CAN. I know all strikers have bad spells where the goals dry up, but if they are where they should be, and getting shots on target or close, I am okay with that. Anyway, people will always consider me a Rooney hater, rather than a hater of the inefficiency of his role of late. Especially when I was the most ardent admirer of the Roon he was in his first couple of seasons for us
.
September 28th, 2008 at 18:36
@Grognard: Good Grog good. You keep up your good health and wellbeing mentality Bro
.
September 28th, 2008 at 18:43
@Grognard: Red Ranters HIT LIST
. I am sure even RR will be as amused as I am at this new title, RR Redrants blog hitman 
. Bet RR feels like killing off a few of us on here sometimes. Well I have my excuse – lager braindead, especially after matches 
.
September 28th, 2008 at 18:51
@Beachryan: Ryan says, “I think Evra and Nani are an effective team”. I bloody you love you mate
. Thank God somebody sees it. Also agree with a good deal of your other points too. Your post was pretty fair Bro.
September 28th, 2008 at 19:07
if Aaron Lennon could get the best out of berbatov, certainly nani should turn him into puskas, let the boy play and watch the crosses and goals pour in,
September 28th, 2008 at 19:28
@Mr.Muhozi: true, true… Nani is a great crosser, dribbler, shooter, speedster.. he’s got everything. When he learns which of those skills to use in different situations, he will be unstoppable!! Dare I say, he could even be better than Ronaldo… can’t wait to see his development this season, cuz if his decision-making improves even just a little-bit, he will certainly be among our star-performers this season.
September 28th, 2008 at 19:37
@gabriel: i agree wholeheartedly nani has the ability to become one of the best wingers in the premier league even the world in a few years time, he will be better than ronaldo in some aspects, lets not get too ahead of ourselves, ronaldo is a once in a lifetime player and has the ability to dominate a game at will, nani has shown some flashes of brilliance with an outstanding ability to cross which has made me feel he is the best crosser on our squad which really says something about the lads ability. lets hope 2008/9 is a breakout year for him and anderson so giggs and scholes can retire in peace
September 28th, 2008 at 20:47
@Craig Mc: Not a dig at Nani or anything, but I think you have to hold up your hands to Evra and say he forms a pretty damn effective partnership with anybody playing out on the left wing. It is of great credit to his ability and work rate that he so quickly adapts to whowever is playing out wide with him.
September 28th, 2008 at 21:31
@Grognard: Grognard, My master! Are you befriending Dan-u(OL)? Do you remember that he Danified you at a time when we were fretting on thought of who our new no. 9 was going to be? My master! Let the hatred of revenge coarse through your veins! Grognify DAN!
September 28th, 2008 at 21:46
@Red Diablo:
in all honesty, me and grognard are old friends, since i started posting on the blog in fact, but we’re not afraid of an argument or 2 hehe. Same with JB, just that jb and grognard just cant get along.
September 28th, 2008 at 22:40
@Grognard: I’ve said this before. If Berbatov is just going to stroll around up front and wait for the team to function just to accomodate him then I don’t want him there. He needs to keep up with our counter attacks and also partake in them. From what I’ve seen he has been slowing down our play and his “superior aerial ability” has served as nothing more than an excuse for the CBs to lump up long balls to him. As for giving him time to settle in, that is something he shouldn’t need and one of the reasons that people were justifying his purchase were because he has played in this league for two years in one of the best attacks in the league. He is nearly 28 so at the most we will get 3 or 4 good seasons out of him as opposed to 9 or 10 for the likes of Rooney and Nani. If he can’t deal then he should have to change his style to suit us, not vice versa.
September 28th, 2008 at 22:44
Dan, Grognard and other FIFA fans. I have got the player ratings for FIFA 09! At least the Premiership sides. Ronaldo is 91, Rooney 87, so is Rio, Berba 86, Carrick 83 and Anderson 82. Well, here you go!
September 28th, 2008 at 22:59
Ronaldo: 91
Rooney: 87
Rio: 87
Berbatov: 86
Vidic: 86
Tevez: 85
Scholes: 85
Evra: 84
Hargreaves: 83
Carrick: 83
Giggs: 82
Anderson: 82
Nani: 81
Brown: 80
Neville: 79
Rafael: 67
Fabio: 64
And so on…
September 28th, 2008 at 23:15
@Liam: Berbatov isn’t at fault for our CB’s lumping long balls up the field, they are perfectly capable of resorting to that when under pressure, even when there a couple of midgets to aim at up top. That criticism was pretty heavy after the Liverpool game. People seem to have red tinted specs on when comparing it to our performance in the prior year. There we did exactly the same thing, failed to retain possession and waste it by punting long balls up the field but got away with it because there because we made no defensive errors. Our defenders hoof the ball when the midfield stops function, tall striker or no tall striker and this is one of the team’s key weaknesses. Attributing it to Berbatov is completely unfair.
You also make the point about time to settle in. I know what you are getting at, he knows the league, is 28, experienced etc. And fair enough, you wouldn’t expect him to take a season, even half a season, to adjust. But in has last couple of seasons with Spurs he has taken a couple of months to get really going, same with Bayer at times. Your judgment is based on three games so far, three! How is that enough time to assess someone properly? Given a lack of pre season and time with his team mates surely he is justified more slack than that?
I know you weren’t in favor of the transfer but at least give the guy a fair crack at the whip and don’t base judge him based on your preconceptions of him.
September 29th, 2008 at 0:15
@dan(u-ol):
‘we argued and it got to much for ryan, so he had had to resort to petty insults’
Get it right, I just insulted you straight away!! But to be fair I just presumed you were 12 or 13 years old from things you say and do so that was me just getting it wrong.
Secondly the petty insult of ‘pea sized brain’ that I used, you went and said it to someone else a few days later!!
So your no angel on here and often insult people so deal with it rather than throwing your toys out your pram.
@Grognard:
Grog, sorry to hear about your pal the other day, my girlfriend just lost a friend to a heart attack and he was only 26. Its just awful and does make you think……
Regarding Wayne Rooney, how can a player reach his peak at a club when he is only 23? He still has a few years to go till we see the peak of his powers and I for one dont want to see him doing it for another club.
I wasnt impressed with his smoking over the summer either, alhough thats okay surely because from what I hear Berbatov is a heavy smoker…. im sure someone can confirm or deny that rumour?!
I think having Rooney, Tevez and Berbatov means 1 is always gonna get rested so I dont think being left on the bench was a suprise for Rooney and I think he knows that will be the case alot this season. He just brings so much to the side which only when he is missing you realise how much of a difference he makes. Wayne is not a goalscorer, never really has been, he shot himself in the foot scoring that hat trick on his debut! He is our most creative player and gets the amout of assists Gerrard, Lampard and Fabregas get in a season. Why? Because our central midfielders and so blimin deep these days he has to be the creator and Ronaldo is the goalscorer! Without Rooney on the pitch who is gonna create our chances? Berbatov maybe, but he was brought in to take the pressure off Ronaldo. Tevez is a good player but doesnt have an eye for a pass, he has the work rate of Rooney but without the special talents.
I pray that Rooney stays fit this season because he is one hell of a player who deserves more respect than he gets from united fans.
September 29th, 2008 at 1:50
@JB: the thing is that he doesnt even seem interested in playing. He barely goes faster than a jog pace. I would be a lot more welcoming if I felt that he was putting in the effort but I just don’t see that. He’s also been slowing down our counter attacks with his strolling whenever he gets the ball and seeing as how our counters are one of our greatest weapons I see that as being very serious. I still think that especially when Ronaldo is playing that Rooney and Tevez are a better option.
September 29th, 2008 at 3:12
@Craig Mc: Craig, I call it as I saw it but I also was fair and said that I think part of the problem is him not starting. He deserves to start and he needs to be given a specific role rather than just be allowed to freelance. Don’t get me wrong, I am hard on him but I like the lad and I think he is loaded with talent. They just need to kick start his brain a bit.
September 29th, 2008 at 3:15
@Red Diablo: Dan is not my enemy. He has misunderstood the power of the dark side and he will eventually join the order. I may disagree with him a bit but he is a decent bloke that just has a bit of a temper like me. I like that in all my dark allies.
September 29th, 2008 at 3:17
@Red Diablo: Now is the time for you to show me your loyalty. Let the hate pour out of you. Be consumed by the doom and the gloom. It is time to do thy bidding.
Actually that was just a test. Like I said, Dan is not the enemy. There are others who deserve our wrath more. Save it for them. BWHAHAHAH!
September 29th, 2008 at 3:18
@dan(u-ol): You are wise young Dan. That is why you are an ally.
September 29th, 2008 at 3:24
@Liam: I guess that means you’d tell Gerd Mueller, Ronaldo (Brazil), Crespo, Rossi, Shearer, Lineker, Batistuta, and countless other former world class strikers to go fuck off then Ha? They were all lethal finishers who waited and floated around waiting for that killer pass, cross or rebound. That’s what they do. Get over this new age do everything forward who burns himself out by half time and who lacks the true finish of a clinical striker. Sorry but I’ll take Berba over Tevez and those types every day of the week. He just needs better service. The blame is on the whole team for not providing it. And lets not forget his great passes top set up others. A bonus feature from the world class Bulgarian. Ahhhhh I guess you can say I disagee mate.
September 29th, 2008 at 3:25
@RedDevilEddy: Thanks mate, much appreciated.
September 29th, 2008 at 3:27
@TinManUnited: I think I remember Fergie saying something along the lines of “Foster is over his injuries”. The latest incident he had was nothing to do with the recurring injury he’s been having, he just fell badly on his ankle. I think its to early to tip him as the new Saha with gloves. Hargreaves seems to be waiting to fill that role.
@Grognard: On the part about taking too long to find our form, theres nothing we can do about that can we? It seems to be happening every season and every in 2006/2007 season when we started with a 5-1 win over Fulham, i think we still ended up with like 3 wins in 6 games.
September 29th, 2008 at 4:50
I can’t be bothered to read ALL these comments. But I think it was great to see Rooney come off the bench for a change, and his reaction was fantastic.
Just because some idiots on the blog can’t exercise some patience doesn’t mean the rest should be punished. NANI STAYS AND SHOULD GET MORE PLAY TIME! Once he gets his shot going he’ll have some crackers. His crossing is great as well so I got some time for him. Park is fine and deserves his place in the team, one bad match doesn’t make a player.
I personally thought we played well just lacked sufficient width, and I was glad Giggs didn’t play. Scholes is a master and I loved how he was used today and there maybe some merit to a Rooney CAM role and I’m sure Messi can play there too, the boy is a genius level talent.
September 29th, 2008 at 5:20
@Rd: RD, I cannot accept that. Why can’t we do something about those awful starts? Something is radically wrong with their pre season training program and it needs to be looked at. It seems to take them about 6 games to find their legs in the season and by that time our opponents build 6 or 7 point leads. Truthfully, I’m tired of chasing and I’d like them to chase us for a change.
September 29th, 2008 at 15:27
Erm, just to set the record straight, Beachryan and Ryan are two different posters