Feb 23
Newcastle v Man Utd: Preview
A familiar foe awaits us at St. James’ Park. The mad Geordies have done enough to get their manager, Sam Allardyce, sacked without giving him enough time. Their messiah, and said familiar foe, Kevin Keegan hasn’t exactly had the messianic influence the fans have come to expect from him. Give him more time is their call now, apparently. Oh the irony!
But despite their horrendous season and poor recent form, we would be well advised to go and do the job to keep the pressure on Arsenal and, of course, hope they drop points. Really, we have to be doing the job of winning every game from now on if we have to entertain hopes of retaining the title.
Scott on Republik of Mancunia has done a fine job tabulating SAF’s record against Kevin Keegan and it does make interesting reading. On that evidence, they’ve squared off on 17 occasions with us winning 8, drawing 5 and losing 4. So 9 games have been points dropped which isn’t very nice to hear before today’s game. And yes, you never know with these kind of games — the Magpies were absolutely shite before they held Arsenal to a draw. So there is a good chance that they will cling for dear life as they look to arrest the downward spiral their season seems to be taking.
And so, it is essential that we get off the blocks from the word go to settle the issue early in the game — which brings us to the topic of much debate, in recent times: the formation.
There has been lots of dissenting voices criticising Fergie’s soft spot for the club’s veteran players. That is even clear now that he’s made public, his intention to keep Neville, Scholes and Giggs well beyond their playing careers at the club. Now words can’t do justice to their contribution to the United cause, but from recent performances, Scholes and Giggs have been a little off pace. This has been clear from the introduction of younger replacements during the course of the game, who have shown to be more than capable of freshening things up and bailing the team out. We have seen the urgency Anderson injects into our game every time he steps on to the pitch, and we have seen Nani turn in some mature performances of late — although, admittedly, he needs to do it more often to prove that he’s actually improved.
So the happy headache of the midfield situation would continue to dog Ferguson, so long as all are fully fit.
Since I’ve thrown in a reasonably elaborate discussion on our formation problem I’ll leave the actual formation prediction part out to you to debate on. Although, I would play a 4-4-2 with Anderson and Hargreaves/Carrick in the middle with Tevez and Rooney resuming their strike partnership. I would still play Giggs on the left (Ronaldo on the right, in case you have any doubts) because I can always bring Nani on as an impact player if things don’t go right. I guess that’s what impact players are for, aren’t they? Giggs has to either start or sit on the bench, because with his form, at the moment, he surely can’t be an impact player, can he?
And yes, I would always link to an article involving Keegan talking about what ‘might have been’. It’s the usual stuff, some things delusional, some things that partly make sense, and some repentant. Oh well, that’s Kevin for you.
Anyway, that is a longish preview, I think. So let me end it off with a prediction: United 2-0 Toon.
Come on you reds!
Related items from Red Rants:
- Update on Red Rants
- Man Utd v Stoke: Preview
- Man Utd v Newcastle: Preview
- Man Utd vs Newcastle Utd: Preview
- Man Utd v Everton: Preview
Tags: Manchester United News
Opti (541)
Stephen (479)
RedDevilEddy (459)
Craig Mc (345)
Moscow is my heaven (272)
That’s a good team. We should be up for it and we will win. COME ON YOU REDS!
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is that the real team?
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new it, kk went with 4-4-2.
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carrick and fletcher??? last time these were our two central mids we lost to west ham
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What a great feeling when Rooney scores! And to watch him hug Ronaldo!
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Glad to see nani getting a chance
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2-0 up! That’s too easy. Great pass from Carrick.
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ronaldoooooooooooo…he scored again………… Newcastle’s defence is deplorable. Maybe I can be thier center half
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everyone is playing well, no one has really stood out though.
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Well played by United just hope the players don’t drop their concentration in the second half. 1 more goal and the game is dead!
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Ferdi is having an iffy game defensively…
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It’s kinda been like a walk in the park…i do hope Newcastle pull up their socks n attack a bit more, that’ll make the 2nd half more exciting and hopefully we can win 4-0…maybe even the same 6-0!!! watsaay???
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Well I predicted Rooney and Ronaldo would score and we still have a half to go. WOW! You won’t hear me say a bad thing about Michael Carrick again if he continues to play like this. What a beautiful through ball for Ronny’s goal. OUTSTANDING! He is so much more positive than Scholes out there. He was constantly looking forward and and moving into space. Ronny has made and scored a goal but there were a few times that he was a bit selfish. Had he not shot and passed instead we coud be 4-0 up. Still, a great half and good defending too. van der Saar was a little shaky on crosses though. Fletcher and Nani have also been outstanding. Tevez missed a beautiful gimme from Nani. They look dominant and should add to their haul in the second half provided they don’t turn it off and decide to defend only.
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Fletcher has been a revelation past two matches aint he?
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Evra off, OShea on.. Injury???
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Fletcher’s been having a decent game, he hasnt put a foot wrong in this match, rather than being outstanding..Carrick’s been brilliant!
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Ronalllllllllldoooooooooooooooo
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and the treble was on…
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I’m starting to feel sorry for Newcastle.
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if only we could play them every week
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The Dynamic Duo strikes. Sooo glad to see Rooney score. Saha was a fucking bonus, he looked good had that striker’s instinct, and two goals without Ronaldo involvement! Everyone looked good really. Have nothing to complain about. Hope Vidic and Evra are okay. Any news on them? Arsenal drew!! All together perfect weekend so far now if I can get into some strange tonight…
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Wasn’t that fun? Nothing better than watching a good old fashioned drubbing. Truthfully though I think that Newcastle is in an absolutely awful state. They were horrible. Their back four could be breached easily in the Coca Cola League. The pressure is fully on Arsenal now. Keep up the good results lads.
Many positives to talk about but I have to mention two negatives before I give my player ratings and man of the match. Ronaldo is a god but there are times in the box when he is a bit of selfish god. I was happy to see Sha score a goal but you can see the signs of a striker lacking confidence. The biggest sign is that when they shoot on goal, they shoot for the middle of the goal. Even his goal was down the middle. Still, he must be commended for getting involved and getting in a good goal scoring position. Minor complaints to be sure.
RATING: out of 10
van der Sar 6/10 Looked a little uncertain out there.
Brown 7/10 Did nothing great but defended well and did his job.
Rio 7/10 Like a rock, gave nothing up.
Vidic 8/10 Was strong an physical. Hope his injury isn’t bad.
Evra 6/10 Efficient and strong in his own end. Hope he isn’t injured also.
Ronaldo 8/10 Yes he scored two great goals and set one up but he was a bit selfish for me.
Fletcher 7/10 Nothing spectacular but he worked hard and won many balls.
Carrick 8/10 Made many positive passes and runs and was in total control. CONFIDENT
Nani 8/10 Was a constant thorn in the side of the Toons. Added width and penetration.
Tevez 6-10 Worked hard but just didn’t make a statement. Missed an easy header too.
Rooney 9/10 Hard work and some quality finishing for a change. 2nd goal was a cracker.
O’Shea 6/10 Not spectacular but did close down well.
Saha 7/10 Finally scored and looked interested and involved. Shooting needs work though.
Scholes 6-10 Not enough time to really judge his although he almost scored a goal
Man of the Match – WAYNE ROONEY
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Not sure what happened to Evra, but I do think Vidic is fine. Fergie took off both Ronaldo and Vidic who both happened to have 4 yellows; could have been the reason. Defense was ok today without Evra and Vidic for a long time. Van der Sar was shaky but pulled off one(?) save when it was needed. Fletcher continues to impress in the center of midfield and Carrick is a passing beast. Scholes played well when he came on also. Ronaldo and Nani are amazing on the wings, Nani is crossing like Beckham at the moment, and Ronaldo is crossing and shooting. Rooney was my MOTM, this guy is everywhere and he finally found his shooting boots! Wasn’t horribly impressed with Tevez, I think he played well, but he can play better. Congrats to Saha who actually looked like he’s seen a football before today, too bad he didn’t head in a few of Nani’s crosses.
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Abu, i’m not sure on evra bit i know that vidic was taken off because he had a minor knock and the fact that he was on 4 yellow cards.
Grognard, no team is perfect or plays the perfect match, it’s in-human!
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im sure that pissed of couple of ex-utd players, smith in particular, he must now see how he went to a side that isn’t going anywhere but down, and he left a side thats going up, losing 6-0 away and 5-1 at home is a piss take for him. im a bit dis-pleased with my self because is didnt celebrate a single goal…, i must sound like a 2 year old.
jesus, i really thought we had a leg break there, some scary stuff.
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I seriously don’t think we got out of even 3rd gear today..everything was just too easy…have NewC actually become that poor? Anyway, good to see Rooney get two goals..and all praise for his unselfish play in the final 10mins, when he could have gone for a hattrick but instead set up Saha twice. We would not expect to see Ron do that right?
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finaly rooney is in the top 15, now he needs to get to top 10!
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quite a graphic photo of thte eduardo injury.
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Eduardo – ouch!
Funny – On this match I thought for once we needed an anchor down the middle to slow a game we were totally dominating – Scholes, Ando or Hargreaves.
Attacking was decesive, Finishing excellent and Toon defense horrendous.
Fletch was just ok, but against a more serious opposition I do not see this midfield pairing as holding the house. As neither Fletch, nor Carrick bosses the midfield. Both are great players on their day but they need a general alongside them. It was no so obvious today because Toon were so piss poor in defense.
Agree with Grognard that Ronny was selfish, but damn he’s good!
And Nani!
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Absolutely great win for united…without even trying too hard. We ripped the Magpies to pieces.
TO make it even better, Arsenal seem to have lost it now.They are losing players every match and their remaining players are not looking in a stable mental state…just see Gallas.
And the scousers have become a one-man time yet again.Torres won them the match alone
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Also, did you guys notice that Scholes came in to finish the game, once the result has been in the bag?
Maybe SAF reads redrants and saw the truth of this season…
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you know, i am not even that happy about the win, i mean im happy, its a 5-1, but normally when we destroy teams i get excited, but lets be honest, it was newcastle! buhumbug i guess.
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Guys – who is better really?
Torres or Tevez?
Torres having landed in a shite team, perhaps he is more prone to adjust to the general level of play there… hey
Also I can’t remember, did Tevez cost approximately the same as Torres or was the spaniard more expensive?
Would you think Torres would have done well at Utd. given the previous interest?
Anyhow I’m just happy with the current crop of players. You might not realise it but even though most of us are pining for a new striker, right back, and cover for various positions; it seems to me we have the best squad among the title contenders. Whaddya say?
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Nico; to answer you, I for one believe Torres would be better then Tevez for United. He could pinpoint our attack and Rooney would be able to play as a supporting striker.
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tevez in my books, dont really think he suits are style of play, and i reckon he likes being the star of the show, which wouldnt go down to well with the squad.
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i know its off subject but about the tackle on eduardo i think its a shame but its everybodys fault you see its a known fact the premier league is most probably the most aggresive league in the world making people like this savage martin taylor to go down and tackle like that knowing there is a chance he might get away with it now ive read people saying he should be banned for life in my opinion he shoud be imprisoned he might as well have ended the boys career as a manchester united fan i feel sympathy for arsenal and all their fans and the the boy hope he can get back on his feet and become one of the worlds greatest wether he stays with arsenal or doesnt
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Have to disagree, Torres would probably been the better player for us. My gut feeling is that his playing style would have dovetailed more naturally with Rooney and Ronaldo than Tevez’s does. He also fits the profile of the type of striker I feel we need in the summer. In terms of cost, by the time the full fee for Tevez is paid, there will not be much difference.
Torres has shown he can adapt to English football so there is no reason to think he wouldn’t have been a success here. To be honest he never struck me as someone who hogged the limelight or wanted to be the star of the show either (Ronnie would be far more culpable of that type of thing anyway). Still we didn’t get him, so we move on. There are plenty of great players we targeted and failed to sign, Torres wasn’t the first, nor will he be the last.
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Great game…Tevez is better for us then Torres, but man Eudardo’s injury is crazy. Sometimes I would wish for player’s to get injured, but nothing like that. I hope it will not end his career and he will be back soon
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Why are we even talking about Torres. He plays for the redshite now so he can fuck off. Tevez is class and what more must he do before the haters will appreciate him.
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Yea it seemed to me too that Torres would have done well at OT- Pacy, good finish, tall – though he doesn’t seem to score headers does he?
Now, I’m not jealous and Tevez has done really well especially with people concerned that he and Roo were too alike to play together.
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Great result for Utd the arse now lead by just 3!! I think that they really cracked today as well, although i feel sorry for eduado and felt a red was deserved what was wenger going on about!! He cant ever take a bad result, he also suggested taylor should be band for life(idiot)?!! I was laughing at Gallas though, what a fool. I think we have the pschological edge on them!!
I think the squad can cope with the treble challenge, though i think you need as much luck as quality at this time in the season. On the matter of the squad are people here just out to critise the player out of form, 2 days ago rooney couldnt finish and tevez is the saviour today the roles reversed!! BOTH are quality players, look beyond there goals to game ratio this year(which is excellant) and look at the movement and hard work top-draw.
In the (Torres) signing a forward situation, It would be a bonus to sign a new CF Benzema/Hunterlaar but it wouldnt be a catasrophe keeping this years lot. With Manucho joing, Tevez improving(2nd year) and Wellbeck developing its no crisis(especially as weve out scored everyone)..
What do you guys think i think we will lose more players this summer than gain!! What do you think about the Arsenal situation as well!!
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Torres needs united more than we do him.He chose pool so hel have to suffer with the shite that goes on there He could have been great here.The rooney today was the rooney we all know and love.He had his “touch”.I hope it stays with him.I have to mention nani again.What beautifull crosses he is putting in.Their beautiful!pace and direction and curve.Its a shame tevez couldnt put it in.Carrick is looking great.Ive never seen him play this well.Arsenal seem to be in a bad spell.Hope it continues.3 points is much better than 5.Much much better.
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Oh and this media born idea that arsenal play the best football is just plain bullshit.We thrash teams much more often and with much more style.
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Just1n, we do appreciate Tevez, its just a thought on how the team could have shaped up with Torres.
And with Nani being the bastard child of Beckham (delivery)and Ronaldo (trickery), and with all these great passers that are Carrick and Andy its obvious the team needs a pure finisher, with preference for one who has some height.
But once a again I’m happy with the team and if Manucho turns out decent the need for attacking reinforcements is not as important as that of defensive backup. One injury there and we’re on the wrong foot. I would thus love to see Simmo feature more. O’Shea is clearly average at best in any position he’s asked to play.
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I’m a supporter of us getting a new out-and-out striker, but with the way that Rooney played today we may not even need one. We’ve seen he can head the ball (vs. Arsenal) and today he showed his great finishing again. If he can keep playing this way, then I don’t think a new striker will be needed. In addition, Saha had a good game, so he can always lead our attack as long as he stays fit.
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Yeah i second the Simmo comment, todays game would have been perfect though i thought newcastle might had been better. I fear for Nevs injury, Brown is off by the looks of it and Simmo and Rafael arent experianced. Sheasy is a cult hero and a must have squad player, but unless Nev makes a full recovery(age factor aswell) RB should be the prioty in summer signings!!
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Here is a new name to throw into the striker mix – Fabiano
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Question for everyone, at what point do we start giving Pique a run? He can play on the right just as well as he can play up the center. I know that he doesnt provide the same attacking qualities as a Neville or Evra from the other side, but for a young center half looking for time, I dont see how that would be bad. Especially if there is talk about him walking for more playing time, although I’ve only read about his agent talking with Barca for a return and I dont think he would get any more playing time there. I really would like to keep the lad.
That being said, we really do need some cover for the left back position. O’Shea did a good job today, but I honestly dont trust him to be a true backup for evra.
Grognard, nice comments on Carrick. Glad to see you coming around. I hope now you see that everything hinges on his passing, which is world class. But when a players game is so one sided skill wise, and when they cant seem to even do that right during a game, I trust most people would be inclined to think they’re shite also. I mean, just look at what some people on here are saying about Hargo now. “He’s not the player I thought he was!” or “Hargo sucks and he only goes backwards!” (maybe the last one was one I made up myself) but his only job in the squad is to protect the back 4, so when he goes through a period where he lacks the confidence and therefore has trouble doing his job, people hate him for it. He’ll come around too, hopefully when everyone else is in stride and we’ll be unbeatable.
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Ey comma! what i meant when i said hargo wasnt what I thought he was i meant, I expected more steel.He was bought for the champions league and to me our defense was as vulnerable as ever.I was also wondering with a defensive midfielder that cant attack doesnt that leave us being attacked all the time? as opposed to a scholes or carrick who pass well?and keep the ball?pique cant play right back because he isnt one and he has no pace.pacey wingers would kill him there.Whats wrong with brown till the end of the season?if he goes then wel replace him.Seeing so much pace in our team is so great.nani,rooney,ronaldo,anderson are quick.Benzema would complete.
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I think the league is there,staring us in the face.Just a matter of grabbing it!
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