Feb 01
Manchester United vs Aston Villa: Match Preview
It has been a week of comebacks, but as entertaining as a good comeback is, lets hope for a more convincing victory from Manchester United when they play Aston Villa at Old Trafford this evening.
Still unbeaten and hopefully we can make it 29 league matches against a team, that you could say are they only opponent we have faced who have completely outplayed us over 90 minutes. One problem will be Federico Macheda isn’t on hand to save the day if need be.
The never say die attitude which has penetrated the side thus far was summed up by Rio Ferdinand:
“You never lose faith when you play for Manchester United,” Ferdinand told The Sun.
“It’s in our make-up the game’s not over until the final whistle has blown and until then you try your hardest.
“If you do that week in, week out, you get a bit of luck and you get your rewards.
“It comes from the manager – he has got that desire and will to win.”
The England captain should return to the starting line up along with Edwin van der Sar, Rafael who is available after concussion and Patrice Evra, who missed the F.A. Cup match against Southampton due to a family bereavement.
With Ryan Giggs in good form he should line up on the left side of midfield, with Nani on the right. Michael Carrick is still out with an ankle injury so Anderson, Darren Fletcher and Paul Scholes will be vying for the central midfield slots.
Top scorer Dimitar Berbatov will come back into the first eleven, but Sir Alex Ferguson will have to make a tough decision about his strike partner. The on form Javier Hernandez or Wayne Rooney.
The visitors also have a few players returning, with Richard Dunne and James Collins primed for a return to first team action. Nathan Baker is suspended after his sending off against Blackburn and Gabriel Agbonlahor faces a late fitness test.
Darren Bent, Villa’s record signing will also come back into the team after being ineligible for F.A. Cup duty.
Villa manager Gérard Houllier is hopeful of a positive result for his side after an impressive performance in the previous encounter:
“We are not the favourites, we are the underdogs,” he said. “But it will be an exciting challenge. It is always a good game against Manchester United.
“I loved the first game when we played them at home. That day I realised they had a good chance of winning the title.
“Don’t forget they were not top of the table at the time. But when you come back from 2-0 to 2-2 and the way they came back shows some experience and a real desire to win things.
“First of all every manager likes to play at Old Trafford. It is true I had a good record with my former club in England.
“But I think the game against Man Utd I remember is the one here [at Villa].
“We could have been three or four up before they came back and equalised.
If United come away with a draw or better, then the club record of 29 unbeaten league games will be equaled. Villa keeper Brad Friedel will become his club’s oldest ever player should he play.
But the visitors have only won once against United in 28 attempts and that was in last seasons corresponding match, while United are unbeaten at home this term, winning 11 out of 12.
Prediction: 3-1 United
Possible Line Up: van der Sar; Rafael, Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra; Nani, Anderson, Fletcher, Giggs; Hernandez, Berbatov.
Related items from Red Rants:
- Manchester United v Aston Villa Preview – Tougher than it looks
- Aston Villa v Manchester United: Preview/Match thread
- Aston Villa vs Manchester United: Match Preview
- Aston Villa 0-2 Manchester United: Ronaldo and Rooney complete a late win
- Aston Villa v Man Utd: Preview
Tags: Manchester United News
Opti (541)
Stephen (479)
RedDevilEddy (459)
Craig Mc (345)
Moscow is my heaven (272)
@Redrich: They can no longer go for 90 minutes mate, let alone 60. The stamina and pace is no longer there. But for 30 minutes they can be incredibly useful.
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@RMJ: The real reason we don’t play 4-5-1 is because Rooney has been in poor form and there is no need now to sit Berbatov as he is scoring for fun. 4-5-1 also matters more to Fergie if we are playing an attacking powerhouse. We haven’t faced one yet.
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@Don: Anderson has had four years to do that mate. Just how long were you expecting him to play like shite before you send him packing? Christ all mighty it amazes me sometimes how some people love to watch mediocrity.
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@Redrich: Sorry Red it’s incredibly valid. All sports are about match ups, X’s and O’s and finding an advantage on the playing field by discovering team weaknesses. The beat us two years ago in the final due to that weakness as Xavi and Iniesta were allowed to do whatever they wanted. Spain won the World Cup because no team has figured out how to match up against them and how being physical the way Inter and Chelsea have been with them is the only way that you can stop them. If we just had one midfielder in the mold of Keane we would have a chance because his intimidating physical presence would cause those girlymen to piss themselves. Problem is we haven’t got that kind of presence. Just slow footed, plodding midfielders who cannot keep up to them or win the ball from them.
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@Grognard: Ozil glides beautifully on the continental(European) planes but i don’t think he is fast enough or strong enough for the English game and highly doubt he is capable of playing central midfield in England..not impossible cos i thought similarly about Modric but now he is has adapted well these days…but highly unlikely
..that said your post about Reina…i think there’s a good chance what you said might happen..i read on a blog about this possibility(yahoo uk sports was it?not sure)..if he does come..he is capable of filling the role easily…but with Daglish back up there and confidence on a all time high in Anfield it is highly doubtful right now unless he falls on his ass…a possibility considering the formation i saw he used against Stoke…3-5-2…it can go either way easily…
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@Stephen: I’m no angel and I have been bad on occasion. But your comment wreaked of sarcasm and I for one took notice because as far as I’m concerned, Neville has to go down as one of the most overrated players of all time. Yes he was loyal, a die hard red blah blah blah blah but for me he wasn’t all that good. I still remember the hundreds of times he was found to be out of position or the many times he was skinned or even worse, the number of years he spent in the infirmary while still selfishly clutching the captains armband until Fergie finally took it away for good. Sorry, just not one of my favorites. Also, maybe I am a bit bitter because many of the players I do consider faves were unceremoniously shown the door in the manner in which I expressed. Fergie showed no love, respect or gratitude to Keano, Becks, RVN, Sparky, Stam and many others when he felt he had had enough of them. Well lets just say as a loyal fan I had my fill of Neville and all this Red Nev love on here is for me personally nauseating.
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@Owen: “Somewhere in Arab”
Let me guess mate, geography and politics are not high on your aptitude list are they? 
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@colver: Good points. Inter never had a better midfield than Barca but they were still considerably stronger than most teams and good enough to neutralize the shemale brigade of Bathelona. We don’t have to be as good but at least we need to be good enough to beat them. Right now I give us zero chance of beating them unless they are swamped with injuries and suspensions.
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@johnsom33: And again I bring up the question of just how many years do you give this mediocrity to finally get it down? It’s not as if Fergie has never been wrong you know. Far greater players like Veron and Forlan were not given nearly the same amount of time as he has been granted to turn good.
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@RMJ: If Fabregas and other skinny players can do it, so can he. Talent is there and it’s just a case of whether he can stay away from dirty tackles. He’s actually very good at avoiding vicious tackles as I have watched him for a couple of years now and I have rarely seen him even act like he is hurt. He is lightening quick mate and remember when he played England, he played against English EPL players and was the man of the match. He would be a perfect fir for a team like Arsenal or United with his style of play and the ability to also move wide left.
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@Grognard: I agree with you here. I was deeply disappointed when we failed to sign Ozil. He is quick, he is a fantastic dribbler and has a great attitude as well. And he would have been an upgrade on any central midfielder we have. Imagine him working with a player of the intelligence of Berbatov. I have to stop torturing myself!
Anyhow, what do you say about the Chelsea-Liverpool game? Do you see Torres scoring? Or do you think the Scousers will have the last laugh?
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@Grognard: The tense of your comment only proves my point – that comparisons are not valid for the present or the future, only for the past. That infamous day in 2009 proved, that, on that day, Barca swamped our MF.
I’m not saying that we have players of the quality as Iniesta and Xavi, but that alone does not determine our fate.
Barca can be beaten by a quality team on any given day, and on that day the better team will win.
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Yeah you get my point precisely Grognard! You do not need a midfield that can match Barcelona. All you need is a midfield which has the ability to stop them. Some say Inter were lucky last year. But you need a bit of luck to beat a team like Barcelona and that takes nothing away from their performance.
I agree we are missing a midfield general. People complain about our lack of a quality attacking midfielder. But that isn’t really an essential in Europe. Central midfield is never going to be a strength of ours. But with a quality defensive midfield general we would at least be able to neutralise most every other team. And then we have enough on the flanks and upfront to beat them.
It is a shame really because had Hargreaves not got injured he could have been that guy. As it is we have to keep looking.
But sadly I fear as long as Fergie is in charge we will be condemned to watching Fletcher Carrick and Anderson
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Hello, hello, hello – is there anybody out there??
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@colver: If the report that we have made an arrangement with Sunderland over Henderson is true, it could shake things up a tad.
He’s certainly not an A-List player, but the change in chemistry alone, could spark a revival of sorts.
I find it odd that Anderson could be considered as our B2B answer. He has a decent engine but his play is forced and chaotic. He also doesn’t seem to possess leadership qualities which would be essential to marshal the middle.
To me he is turning out like Veron, who never found his feet in the PL and was exposed when pressed on the ball.
At any rate, no one can argue that we need some kind of upgrade in the middle, problem is, if Ferguson keeps pulling the rabbit out of the hat, it may never happen.
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Interesting stats about our midfielders.
http://paulincesnotebook.com/2011/02/02/darron-gibson-united-player/
Look at carricks interceptions compared to everyone else.
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BTW, Fergie mentioned yesterday that he tried to do one bit of business in this transfer window but that didnt work out. Does anyone know who he tried to buy ? Didnt see it on any football sites. Was it Adam? Curious to know who he went for!
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@godzilla: I think it was Sanchez but Udinese didnt want to sell him till the summer.
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@Grognard: We have had our Keane, RVN, Stam, Hughes and the poser Becks debates many times there were many rwason for their deparchers, you only see from one perspective I see from another but one thing that continues is succes which means the manager was correct on all occaisons.
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@Stephen: Right.Glory hunter is the start?I have something for you too.Retard.
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@donibrasco: Your team needs to win today against West Brom if they want to challenge us till the last.All the Best.
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@Owen:
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@Grognard: Also saying Gary Neville was “not all that good” is a popular misconception which many who simply dislike him use on numerous occaisons and is factually totally incorrect.
Many just see him as the player on the wain which he has been over the past few years, but during the late 90′s and early 2000′s there were not many fullbacks in the world better, he could defend and put in a superb ball which in this era is by gone art.
People don’t like him and I find it odd that United fans show distain towards him becuase he is everything which makes us United and I see is faults but love his passion and undying love for my club.
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I do like it when someone calls me a retard and himself can hardly articulate a word out that makes any sense, I have to say that is very amusing.
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@Stephen: What about the game today?1-0 ,1-1 or 0-1?
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@Owen: I think we will win 2.0 but this is the sort of game we have the ability to slip up in. Wolves will be playing it like a Cup Final which the lesser sides tend to do against us, but we are now slipping through the gears so hopefully we will whack em!!
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@Stephen: It will be Rooney on left or Rooney as Striker?
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@Owen: Fergie should be go 4-2-2 than 4-5-1 against wolves. Maybe Park might be back on the left in case Giggs does not start
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@godzilla: Park is doubtful for the match.Giggs has played a lot recently and Obertan is just not good enough to start an important away match.So 4-3-3 may be the option if Giggsy is unfit.
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@Owen: Didnt know Park is injured? i thought he played his last match around 25th Jan for Korea and was being rested after that and there was no injury as such. If he is not back, likely will be 4-3-3
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@godzilla: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1353621/Wolves-v-MANCHESTER-UNITED-Darren-Fletcher-set-starting-place-setback.html
It seems Park is not in the squad.
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@donibrasco & Stephen: Enough. Nip the beef in the bud, or at least handle it better.
It’s matchday, so let’s stay on topic. Preview will be up soon.
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@Owen: Better for Park to be sitting today, injured or not. I want him to be completely rested and ready to go next weekend.
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@Stephen: A couple of days back, I was arguing about the same thing with a friend of mine. People always say that RedNev was a very limited footballer who made up for his lack of talent by showing a lot of determination and hard work. But, funnily enough, I can think of a very few right backs in the world who would come close to Gary at his peak. Certainly I can think of no one in the Premier League. For me, he was the best right back the English game has seen for quite a few years. And even though he might not be the most naturally gifted footballer, he was not a talentless git either.
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@Kaka: When likes of Fergie,Wenger,Brucey,Beckham etc. think that RedNev was the best RB of his generation,then there must be some talent in him.Yes ,he was not as talented as Scholes but then only Zidane was as much.
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Colver, my opinion is based on certain things that I looked at and these realities justified this thinking. First I checked into facts regarding our transfer policies and history. In doing this I realised, that we have actually tried to sign the so called world class players in recent times. We couldn’t get Xavi or Iniesta whom you mentioned, but we tried to get the next best thing. We put in a bid for Sneijder last year and Inter plainly refused to negotiate with anyone. And with good reason given their status and ambition. We also made a bid for David Villa, but he went to Barca for a lesser offer simply because he was already decided about going there. Much like the Berbatov scenario with City. We put in what was widely regarded as a world record thereabouts bid for Ribery,but his club simply don’t sell. All these are confirmed and official events as opposed to the usual doom and gloom nonsense ppl feed each other with. The 2nd thing I realised was that we’re a club that applies consistency and common sense in our transfer dealings. We go after only the players we need, who fit a certain profile relative to the club and players who will actually play a relevant and significant role in our aspirations. This in contrast to other clubs who pursue and buy mega hyped players for the sake of pursuing and buying mega hyped players. Like City, Chelsea and Madrid. That’s how Chelsea end up with a midfield with Ballack,Deco,Lampard,Essien and Mikel in the same team. City end up with a strikeforce of Tevez,Adebayor,Roque Santa Cruz,Bellamy,Dzeko and Balotelli. How have some of these players been significant to these clubs? How long have the relationships lasted? When we look at a player, we think long term. That is a reasonable way of business. We thought a player called Dimitar Berbatov had a profile that easily blended with our long term plans and we paid through the nose to get him. The cost of the player is only consequential and immaterial. We thought Michael Carrick would be an important fixture in our team for years and we got him and he has been an important fixture. Price once again immaterial. We invested in a player from Mexico whom we thought fitted in the team picture for years. The price was immaterial. In the same way we got players like Vidic and Evra for small change, but the main agenda was what we thought they’d turn out to be, not what ignorant journalists portrayed them as. A brief look at earlier references and you’ll see how we got many unknowns like Forlan,Solskjaer,Heinze,Kanchelskis,Fletcher(think Rossi, Chica etc). I’m mentioning these things just to give a background that there has been absolutely no inconsistencies in our policies since the old days. Also there has been no justification in recent times to change policy having done a case study of the other clubs ppl admire and wish to emulate.
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Now about world class players in midfield that you want. First let’s look at the “world class” alternatives “out there”. Sneijder. We tried and failed. Kaka,Oezil. Real Madrid. Real impossible. VDV. We clearly didn’t want him, which means he didn’t fit the profile of the club. Forget Xaviesta. Schweinsteiger. Bayern don’t sell to anyone. Gerrard,Lampard. I personally doubt their technical efficiency but also impossible. I’m not sure how many more world class players are available in central midfield. Then let’s look at our own. Michael Carrick is rated highly by the very best midfielders and managers, particularly outside England and I’d only replace him with Bastian Schweinsteiger(better), or Mikel(stronger but less technically endowed), Yaya(same) or Alonso(better). Not with some yet to be proven flavor of the month Rihanna whom the media has hyped. Fletcher as a destroyer has played some of the best football in Europe in the last two seasons. Many blame his absence for the loss in Rome,so why replace him. We all saw the power of correct tactics against Villa when Carrick played a more playmaking role with Fletcher more defensive. Just a simple shift in roles of two players, changed the way the whole team performed. Proves both players are capable of performing at the highest level when combined effectively. On the attacking midfielder or creative midfielder part I have always maintained Anderson has the potential to be a top player. Ppl keep quoting his goal tally as the prime reason for his incompetence. Now there are very few central midfielders who score loads. David Silva has never been a regular goalscorer. Iniesta is really only scoring with regularity this season. But the reality is even then, these players were played in attacking roles throughout. We can go on about “over 100 games and only 2 goals” but it’s not likely you’ll score playing deep. Look at Alonso’s record and look at his position on the pitch. So it doesn’t matter how many games you play, the issue is about the role and position. Secondly, the same accusations were levelled against Forlan when he was at United. Check his appearances and the goals he scored as a striker. It doesn’t add up. That’s why analysis is important. Forlan rarely started games, particularly because of the lone striker system. If you find a FourFourTwo interview with him during his 1st season in Spain, you’ll realise his complaints were about how he would go thru a start stop trend. He would start 3 games in a row and score in two of them and find himself benchwise for the next 7 coming on for the remaining 10 or 5min. But the appearances chart was going up. Same with Anderson. Throughout his career, he has not had consistent selections. He has hardly ever come up with 3 or even two games in a row, let alone starts. Or the fact that his rare starts never went beyond 60min. To compound the matter, since the 1st half of his debut, he has hardly ever played in a creative or attacking capacity,bar some games this season. And in this season in every match when we’ve had a Carrick-Anderson combo, he is among the MoM and the whole team plays well. Sunderland at home. Rovers and first 30min of Birmingham. When we shift to 3 in midfield or when Fletcher is introduced, his performances drop. It’s a no brainer. Play him consistently, correctly. Two inseparable ingredients for success in football. Tom Cleverely is making waves with Wigan and has shown he has potential to be a top player. So at the end of the day from whichever angle you look at it and I mean every angle, it is clear that we really need to sort out the technical dept 1st. Inter could have released Sneijder to us but after the Berbatov debacle, you can be sure he’d have been played in strange territory given the complex nature of his role and position. We could get a flavor of the month attacking mid, who’ll proceed to be shackled and limited. So what’s the point. I say get rid of Mike Phelan,get a suitable replacement and watch the level of football go up. That’s what our midfield needs.
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@Grognard- Where would you be without my intellect and knowledge of tactics? The same place you are today.
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@Johnsom33:
very interesting breakdown of our mids…
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