Dec 15
Manchester United vs Wolverhampton Wanderers: Preview
Betfair is the official Manchester United betting partner and we here at Red Rants have partnered with them to offer a free £25 bet when you register. Unlike other betting sites, Betfair allows you to place bets when the game is running and choose the odds at which you want to play. What allows you to do these things is you’re betting against other fans, not the bookie, so if you want better odds than are currently available, for example, you can place an order for a better price (but bear in mind that if your price is unrealistic your bet is unlikely to be accepted). So, give this a run if you’re up for it.
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The greatest tonic for a shock defeat is a relatively straightforward fixture as soon as possible. That’s what Manchester United have when Wolverhampton Wanderers visit Old Trafford later on this evening. After two straight wins, the first time that has happened in the top flight for 26 years, Wolves will not be short on belief especially after the 1-0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur at the weekend, and United will be looking to bounce back in emphatic fashion against the newly promoted side.
Mick McCarthy will be bringing his men up the M6 for just under 100 miles, in high spirits the victory at the weekend coupled with United’s defeat will have Wolves believing they have travelled to face United at the perfect time. The well-publicised injury crisis has ravaged the Manchester United squad, and it looks like there will be the usual 50 absentees for the game this evening.
Tomasz Kuszczak will continue in goal as Edwin van der Sar is still out with a knee injury.
The defence against Aston Villa saw Wes Brown rushed back from his latest setback and he never looked comfortable. He should continue to partner Vidic at the back despite this. Rafael could make the bench, as Darren Fletcher will reprise his role at right-back. The left side is, as always, taken by the magnificent Patrice Evra.
The latest recipient of the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Ryan Giggs will not be risked after tweaking his hamstring against Villa. I would expect Obertan to be given another start, alongside Carrick, Anderson and Valencia. Though Gibson will be looking for a recall to the team.
Michael Owen must wonder what he has to do to earn his place in the team, dropped after scoring a European hat-trick, but he should be restored to the first team against Wolves. Partnered by the ever-present Wayne Rooney, who will be looking to make amends for his horrendous attempt at diving during the game on Saturday.
Mick McCarthy was in jovial mood when asked about the game,
“They must be thinking ‘Wolves are coming and we have just been beaten by Villa… If ever there is a chance to get yourself back on track it is to slap these insolent little so and so’s coming up from the Black Country and we are going to give them the biggest doing they have ever had.”
Despite this Wolves will be without Michael Kightly and Andrew Keogh, out with ankle injuries, David Edwards will also join them on the sidelines. Former United youth player Sylvan Ebanks-Blake, will again be looking to impress his former employers, while United must be wary of Wolves’ record signing Kevin Doyle, who got the early winner against Tottenham at the weekend.
A win against Wolves would take Sir Alex Ferguson’s side level on points with Premier League leaders Chelsea for 24 hours at least. Wolves’ last win away to Manchester United came on 9 February 1980. The match will also be Sir Alex Ferguson’s 900th league match in charge of the Red Devils.
United should bounce back as they always do after a defeat and this will be no different, as in the Carling Cup match earlier on in the season where United triumphed 1-0.
Prediction: 3-0 United
Probable Line Up: Kuszczak; Fletcher, Brown, Vidic, Evra; Obertan, Carrick, Anderson, Valencia; Owen, Rooney
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Betfair is the official Manchester United betting partner and we here at RR have partnered with them to offer a free £25 bet when you register. Unlike other betting sites, Betfair allows you to place betswhen the game is running and choose the odds at which you want to play. What allows you to do these things is you’re betting against other fans, not the bookie, so if you want better odds than are currently available, for example, you can place an order for a better price (but bear in mind that if your price is unrealistic your bet is unlikely to be accepted). So, give this a run if you’re up for it.
Related items from Red Rants:
- Manchester United vs Wolverhampton Wanderers: Match Preview
- Manchester United vs Wolverhampton Wanderers: Match Preview
- Manchester United 2-1 Wolverhampton Wanderers: Park Provides Inspiration To A Poor United Side
- Man Utd v Everton: Preview
- Wolverhampton Wanderers vs Manchester United: Preview
Tags: Manchester United News
Opti (541)
Stephen (479)
RedDevilEddy (459)
Craig Mc (345)
Moscow is my heaven (272)
@Darth Red Diablo: I don’t know, perhaps you will have to ask Eddy why he took it so badly?
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@Traverse: Mate.. I would seriously not like to get Bayern.. That is one team which can harm us.. Especially given our dismal defense record this season… Ribery, Robben are going to harm us…
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@Grognard: I don’t know..
But like I said.. If he has a problem with me… He can take it up with RR.. 
By the way Groggy.. Since you follow the German League… There’s a player I’ve been dying to ask you about…..
It’s Arturo Vidal and he plays for Bayern Leverkusen…. I saw a match and he impressed me.. Do you think he’s Man Utd potential?
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@Onkar: Those were the days…
when we won squat!!!
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@Onkar: Uh, sorry to be pedantic, but I did mention it in my player ratings..
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@CraigMc: I don’t know about Nani’s assists stats this season, but on the top league stats, Giggs is of course up top with 8, but Valencia has three to his name.
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/stats/topassists?league=eng.1&year=2009&seasontype=1&cc=3888
But I agree [somewhat]. If given the same amount of minutes I bet that Nani would have had similar stats at least.
But the thing with him is that he would also have possibly lost possession in a silly ways on many other occasions in games.
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@Darth Red Diablo: Not really. But give him another half season playing the way he does and I might change my mind. He has versatility which is nice but I do not see him specializing at one position. Scores quite a bit when playing CMD
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@Grognard: Alright… But I think that if he does impress in the half year… He could be an asset, especially as he can play as a full back as well…
And we all know how much Fergie loves those versatile players.
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Douglas Costa’s asking price has been cut from the ludicrous £20mil to just £10mil. If we are in the money problems everyone talks about, this could well be the real reason behind our £10mil saving on Ljajic.
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@Traverse: link please…
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Never mind
Here!
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@Traverse: Very unlikely. While scout reports on Ljajic have been glowing all round, pundits in Brazil have been very dubious about Douglas Costa.
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@Red Ranter: When were our transfer dealings based on anything other than what they think inside United? He’s left sided, which would work with Nani’s imminent exit.
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@Traverse: I agree with you. Obertan is another example of less-publisized player we got despite world-opinion
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@ Darth
I don`t have a problem with you mate. I made a joke, the Anderson butt thing was a joke. Then it wasn`t about getting serious, I was just being honest by saying that I also think Valencia is a good player, since I thought it could be relevant to our discussion. Sorry you interpreted it wrong, didn`t mean that. Meant as a joke mate, I don`t hate you(Even if you can be a pain in the ass).
*joke*
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@NicoQB: 3 assist is not a super figure for a winger playing every games.even Ivanovic and some other frauds like Eagles,Zogbia have also provided the same number.Valencia was a good player for Wiagan but when you compare hi position with Man Utd greats like Beckham and Ronaldo,then there is only one option for us.to Laugh
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@Darth Red Diablo: listen mate you have not been here longer than I and the comment i left you was a jibe. I have been joking and ranting on redrants long enough to know how it goes but thanks for the breakdown anyway.
and on ando i just like the way the kid plays and shepherds the ball. He shits on fab mate what more do you want in a young player.
yea he cant score for shit but he is my cam any day over carrick or scholes(old not young) or gibbo unless we are trailing late. For me he is evry bit as creative with his passing as berba and has shown a few encouraging forward runs into the box when given the opportunity ie fletch playing behind him.
He will develop more as he looses his childishness(hope soon) and understands that his talent alone wont be enough. If he can score twice he can score ten and i think he will finish the season w at least a couple more for our cause and ten more assists.
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@Onkar: he could gain a few pounds too in the weight room
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@Traverse: Yes but what does it say about Douglas Costa? A drop in price like that might mean he isn’t nearly as good as we thought.
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@Red Ranter: That’s what I have read also. I’d stay away from him. This club has too many young prospects. It’s time to dabble in the market and buy some proven stars.
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@owen: well if you put it like that
but maybe he is a replacement for park/fletcher(as a r wing not cm) and not becks/ronaldo 
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@Grognard: I think i have heard Tim Vickery discuss him and didnt rate him as ready for the prem yet. but at least we didnt pay over the odds for the kid to be a dud eh.
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@owen: What about the six goals he has scored so far this season?? Is that not good enough?? Valencia has done a more than decent job for us so far this season – his debut season for us too. It is evident from his subsequent displays that he is getting better with each game. Maybe he doesn’t smile much or have that pizzaz some of the stereotypical flashy wingers possess but he is more effective. I for one like how he has began to cut into the eighteen and even make runs into the box, such as the one against wolves which resulted in that wonderful goal. That’s just one of the few aspects of his game that are improving and we will see more as the season progresses. I also like his directness, power and pace; and once he can figure out the runs of our non-existent forwards, he will become vital for us in the assist stakes.
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Btw, those criticising Rooney – even if deserved – should note that he has scored 12 goals, more than 1/3 of our goal haul in the premier league so far; and is just one behind the league’s top strikers. The next highest goal scorers for United are Valencia and Berbatov with 4 goals each. Sure his play has dipped a bit, but labelling him as the main culprit for our lacklustre displays upfront is ludicrous. I’m looking at you Craiggy!!
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Also, what the frack is going on with Nani???!!! Fergie, play that lad and spare us the embarassment of watching Park fall on his arse everytime an opposition player comes near him!!!
Park, while a very intelligent player, is a poor athlete; lacks power, balance and now it looks like speed too. I’m not cynical enough to assume he’s at United only to sell shirts in Asia but if he is, at least give him an ambassadorial position and leave space for players that actually contribute to effective play, such as scoring and assisting. 
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@Grog
I believe you wrote somewhere that Carrick can be a revelation at CB, and I totally agree with you. He is very capable at the back as he can read the game very well. Maybe his tackling is not on par with our other CB’s but he won’t need to go into too many desperate tackles if he anticipates the play like he can do. Plus, he is a brilliant passer of the ball and can spray killer counter attack balls qb-style straight from defence as opposed to Vidic’s aimless lumps upfield.
I feel he should be a mainstay in defence for us until we get our injured defenders back. Plus, it frees up spaces in midfield for our numerous midfielders. Personally, I woould like to see Anderson in more of an attacking role, or at least Giggsy. Our midfielders play too deep for my liking and although it might be because of our fragile back line, I just feel offense is the best form of defense!! Cliche, I know, but we have too much attacking talent at the club that is being blunted with this defensive approach. Heck, that is why Giggs is not playing in the middle anymore, because fergie plays two CENTRAL midfielders who rarely get into the opposition eighteen. If he’s going to do that, at least go for two box-to-boxers from a combination of Ando, Gibson or Fletch; not Carrick or Scholes.
Obertan in his MUTV interview wasn’t completely right; Our team is currently setup not to concede and everything else takes posteriority.
I wish Fergie would show some cohones and let this team loose. 
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@owen: 5 goals + 3 assists is nothing to be ashamed at.
If he reaches around doule figures for both stats, he’ll have done a decent first season.
But also, if you read my post clearly, you would see that I was supporting Nani, anyway.
Its not like he’s a Walcott or a Babel, he ‘s more than decent and delivers, its just his demeanour and lack of flash that I thinl plays against him.
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@Grognard: Or that at 17 he was stupidly over priced, nobody was going to pay it and now they are desperate or any money they can get….
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@Gabriel: Errrr Gabriel, Rene Meulenstein was on Red Cafe the other night talking about Nani, and says they haven’t been able to play him BECAUSE he is carrying an ankle injury for a while now. So maybe my calling Fergie a bastard for his continual nastiness with Nani is not quite accurate if its injury keeping him out
.
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@Gabriel: Yeah BUT THAT IS because Rooney has monopolised all the penalties, and that is where good proportion of his goals have come from
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@Gabriel: He has been a culptit in our problems up front, because the play in many a game now always breaks down when the ball gets to him. Sorry Gabriel but it is not just me that is saying that – quite a few on here and other United blogs have been talking about this problem and others in Rooney’s game. I am certain Gabriel that IF we have to continue with Rooney alone up front leading the line, we will be in trouble still!
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@Gabriel: He will NEVER become vital for us in assists mate until he learns to get the ball past the 1st defender when crossing, and when he learns to get his crosses in the box earlier instead of dallying a tad long enough to lose his opportunity. Also he is shit at getting accurate corners into the box. You gotta admit too mate that he is a miserable GIT!
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Kun Aguero is talking in the press today about his 35 million transfer to Chelsea being almost complete! He said he is born to be a BLUE
. Also Chelski have made a big offer for Sweinsteiger from Bayern and said they will bring him in in January too. It makes me when SAF is insisting he is not going to spend any money, because there is no value in the market. With this strengthening I think Chelsea will be more able to take to PL away from us this year. Also I fear we might get done over at Fulham this weekend, because they have done well at Craven Cottage against the top teams!
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Last season SAF played a 5 man MF against Fulham (away), with Berbatov as the single striker – it didn’t work.
Any chance he’ll do the same thing again??
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@Grognard: Don’t have the legs to keep up with our lot Grog???? How can that be with the kind of snooze pedestrian football we are famous for these days. Slo, slow, slow, slow, slow
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@CraigMc: Value is very subjective. What price do you put on success??
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@CraigMc: If this goes through, I’ll wager he’ll end up with more goals then Berbatov.
Comparing one with other is another way of establishing value!!
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@Grognard: I can remember Cole and Yorkie get a lot of goals from Beckham corners Bro! Ruud too – Becks and he had a thing going
. O for another Cantona eh Grog, who could leap and stay in the air like a cat until the ball got to him from a corner kick!
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@Grognard: Chartered accountant
, a comical description mate. I must FESS up now Grog, but there really is not one single player on this team that EXCITES me, and that makes me sit on the edge of my seat because of pure passion and talent – GIFTEDNESS. Can you think of one Grog? We are so in need of at least two really gifted top stars – to bring the smiles back to my face anyway! Are we likely to get them – not according to Fergie, and I don’t understand why. Anyway, I am off to bed – night all!
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@Redrich: We haven’t got a single striker that it will work with, but could give Owen a go – he won’t though!
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@Redrich: It’s not what price we put on success Rich, its what price Fergie puts on success, and his record is NOT GOOD this season
. The scousers are getting Ruud in January on a year long loan, and Parker from West Ham to Bolster their MF. Don’t know how that will affect their chances!
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@CraigMc: Yeah, there’s plenty of holes in SAF’s “no value” theory. It’s time to start picking at them!!
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How many of you you think that the combined cost of Nani, Anderson, Tosic and the Da Silva twins, at 42m, is good value??
What value are we getting out of these players when really Anderson is the only one that makes regular starts?? I’m not even talking about whether they’re any good or not, just whether they are available/capable to appear in our team!
Add to that 42m the 32m that Mr. Dimitar (deft touch) Berbatov cost and we have a cool 74m tied up in useless goods.
“I don’t see the value in it”.
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@Grognard: I understand your point mate. If the matches of utd get dull and boring and then as a supporter we do watch them and if they are playing ugly and winning matches most of the true utd fans are not caring mate and i think this has been happening since two years but ronaldo was there and he did show some of his skills and we got along. The point i make is when ronaldo was there SAF did not make signings in other areas as ronaldo was pulling us along and others were too playing well. ronaldo was an all-in-one he can do anything in attack. our team is playing so poor now coz ronnie has gone and good game changing players like carrick,nani are not playing up to their mark and think by viewing the things from saf view,he lost ronnie and tevez so bought valencia and obertan and owen(since saf has no money from the glazers). what would u do if are in a situation as saf with no money and a desire to win one more than liverpool and one CL cup. saf has done the best with what he has had and players like nani saying aganist him are only going to anger fergie as he is already playing with his full heart dedicated to utd. saf has got less tactical knowledge so with the players he has he can only do the thing “winning ugly”. that’s what he is doing now until he buys some unknown quantity & makes him a star or buys a proven player in jan. u expect to players to play upto the same mark as last year but it is not happening now. please do not blame saf for our signings coz he thought there was enough depth in the squad from previous year to make a challenge. In Football manager utd have 60m pounds for transfers &u buy u fav germans but in real life if u r the manager of utd and only have 10m to spend. what would u do?.what formation would u play? since you are concerned by SAF and man utd going dull. watch here are the some worst moments for saf & us.
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@Gabriel: The problem of course is anytime we notice a revelation like this, Fergie eventually up and kills it. Berbatov or Rooney as attacking midfielders is a perfect example or Ritchie De Laet at RB or Hargreaves at RMF have impressed in the past but never got a chance to really make those positions there’s. I seriously doubt that Fergie looks at Carrick as a long term CB.
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@Traverse: Yes he was stupidly priced but that is nothing new in today’s football market. It’s still not like a team to drop their price like that. I think the kid has become pants for them and now they are desperate to unload him.
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@CraigMc: Mate you and I both know that is complete and total bullshit. Anytime a player is benched they always come up with the injury excuse as if we were all born yesterday or had the mental capacity of a Scouser. He was lying. They all lie over there because that is the new corporate culture. They have zero respect for their fans.
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@CraigMc: Jeez mate you are really starting to sound a lot like me. That must scare the Hell out of you. That is the exact feelings I have volunteered many times in the past and was especially conveying this past summer when it looked like United were going to do very little to improve the team. How Fergie can sit there on his throne and not see that his army is almost ready to be overrun is beyond me. Naive, stupid or just a bloody liar, I don’t know, but he is certainly trying to sell us on the fact that he believes this club is built for total success. I cannot believe that the man who has managed the team for over twenty years and with so much success can look us all in the eye and tell us he believes his team needs no help and that it is set? What a load of crap. It is truly a dark period mate and a terrible time to be a United supporter as this is the beginning of the dark ages as I see it.
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@CraigMc: It’s not just keeping up, it’s got everything to do with longevity and stamina too. Milan are too old to be taken seriously. We have three old goats and EVDS. They have 10 old goats and a young Pato, it’s that simple. And they are about to get older with Grandpa Becks showing up.
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@CraigMc: Are you aware that until the Champions League final of 1999 that United had not scored a goal all that season from a corner kick? No mate, they were pretty poor at them for the most part. Sure they would score the odd goal but their production was poor in comparison to other teams.
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