Jan 18
Saha Talks Again | Brandy Off To Swansea | Twins To OT
Louis Saha reckons he will help fire United to glory. He has said something like this for the 789th time this season. We have been waiting, and we’ll continue to wait. So let’s listen to what he’s saying:
It’s great to score goals. I’m a striker and that’s my job and now I want to concentrate on scoring more goals for the team. I’m very hard on myself and always want to do better, so I’m not very satisfied with how the season has gone so far on a personal level. I know I can do better, and hopefully I showed that against Sunderland. The manager’s always shown a lot of faith in me and that gives me a lot of confidence. I’m definitely getting there [with overcoming injuries]. I played two full games in a row over Christmas and that was the first time I’d done that for a while.
And I am going to run for President, I assure you. I have seen the injustices committed in this world and I believe I can turn things around. And I am also, like Saha, getting there.
If a player is continuously out of the team, he must work on his weaknesses and hope to allow his performances speak for themselves. I don’t really buy Saha mouthing off to all and sundry about his injury — although he is making full use of his free time afforded by injury. It gets a little annoying if a player keeps talking to the press and has nothing really to show for all of it on the pitch. A fully fit Saha would certainly be a very handy player to have. But, at the moment, the phrase fully-fit Saha makes for an oxymoron, more than anything.
Academy prospect Febian Brandy heads off to Swansea on loan.
The Telegraph, has a top article on the decision made by the FA to avoid the one minute silence. It certainly is a shame to be seeing mockery made out of an actual tragedy. It is sad to see fans, like those of Citeh, being urged to show respect; they have been reminded that a legend of theirs’ was also a victim of the tragedy. Some things in life have to be above sporting rivalry; the Sevilla-Betis derby, following Antonio Puerta’s death, was a stand-out example of solidarity shown by extremely fierce rivals. It’s a pity, and a firm indication of the levels to which England fans have stooped, that their own Football Association doesn’t trust them.
About the Fletcher news talked about yesterday, the Mirror thinks he will actually leave. Hmm… isn’t that why they are called tabloids? They do a good job of spinning stories, don’t they?
And as mentioned in the comments, a couple of days ago, the Brazilian twins are set to move to Old Trafford in a 5.2 million pound move.
Related items from Red Rants:
- In defence of Louis Saha
- Should Saha leave Manchester United?
- Roma vs Man Utd: Preview
- Brazilian Twins Spotted at Old Trafford | Neville to Play Liverpool | Anderson to Porto Fantasies | Keane Tips United Over Arsenal
- Two Reasons Why United Aren’t Looking for Fullbacks
Tags: Manchester United News
Opti (541)
Stephen (485)
RedDevilEddy (459)
Craig Mc (345)
Moscow is my heaven (272)
At MCRx3:
How many English players were injured or died in that incident? Whether they were Man United players or not is an other issue. And the Citeh fans(the ones in the stadium), I assume most of them are English?
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I thought that the game was fantastic. It was very entertaining and tense and it was very enjoyable, unlike when most bottom half sides play United and just park the bus, Reading really had a go and this was a much better match than all of those games against the bottom sides when we usually huff and puff for the whole match without much result.
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every one has there own opinnions so they shouldnt be told to shut up just because you dont agree eddie.tevez rooney and ronaldo are second strikers who are good at finishing, saha is an out and out target man striker but is injury prone we need someone like huntelaar to come off the bench in days like this and nick us a goal.
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I’m sorry I just don’t buy the idea of goalscorers coming off the bench and scoring a goal, solsjaer is the only striker i’ve ever seen do that on a regular basis, sheringham to a lesser extent.
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Sorry everyone, but I’m with Dan on this one. I think that we do need an out-and-out goal scorer like Saha active on the team. Just think of the amount of goals we could have had with a target man up front today. I’m not saying Rooney and Tevez can’t score, but that it’s not their main job. They are second strikers and are supposed to push the ball through to a target man. Conor; I do see your point that Huntelaar is no Solskjaer, but I think he could actually push for a starting spot on the team. We’ve seen this season the impact that both Rooney and Tevez have coming off of the bench. And why not start a rotation system with strikers? It will keep them rested at least.
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Eddie: Owen always injured. No difference with Saha. No doubt he will fit well in Man Utd but too injury prone.
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It is very simplistic to say ‘ohhh look we would have had loads of goals today if we had a target man’. Since RVN left we have been scoring more freely than before and the major strength of our attack since has been its flexibility, mobility and variety. Rooney, if adequately supported, is more than capable of fulfilling the role of point man in the attack.
Any new purchase needs to be carefully thought through and I would far rather we bought a good footballer capable of playing up top rather than a big lump of a target man or a goal poacher. I would definitely not welcome a return of the team primarily functioning to set up the goals for one man. That being said another striker is definitely needed, what I wouldn’t give for Samuel Eto’o even with his giant ego and general moodiness.
As for Owen he is a shadow of the player he once was. For me he is what we don’t need. Injury record aside, his pace has been heavily diminished, he lacks physical presence and he is not particulary skillful. IMO we could definitely do a lot better.
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Everybody who is calling for Huntelaar to United. Do you think he will be happy with a so called “super-sub” finisher role staying on the bench waiting for someone to get injured/or for a crisis match like this when he have lot many other European teams waiting to offer him starting 11 place…He is a young player who is trying to prove himself in the big stage..It is always good to have a big squad but it should not be making players unhappy..Fergie managed to hold on until now..Moreover Huntelaar is too costly for a super-sub role..
The best player who can take up the role is now in our team..Saha…if he start to play like he did early last season he can change a game with a ..moment of skillful finishing off the air as well as with the foot.. But as everyone else i am also not sure if he can regain that form..
But if we are looking for a replacement Benzema/Huntelaar are too costly and leave us with 3 young stirkers who would demand a place in the starting line up..
We dont want ourselves to be another Chelsea …keeping millions on the bench and wasting skillful players(SWP,Robben,..)
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im not saying are play has to be based around him, every time saha plays, is our attack based around him? no, we just need to play in the saha role, and tbh the last few matches has kinda proved rooney isnt that great of a finisher. you know it would be wierd but hargreaves COULD of BEEN a target man, he’s tall and has a great finish on him.
shyam, theres not many big teams huntelaar will goto and go straight into the first team tbh, and we wouldnt use him just for injurys and crisis games. and also we’re man utd we’re filthy rich, 12-14 million isnt much to us.
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I guess the best answer to everyone worries is find another Cristiano Ronaldo. That would solve all problems. LOLs
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Saha injured all the time, Rooney becoming injury phrone(not often, but when, serious), Tevez not a great finisher, and Ronaldo being a winger. But they score goals, dont they? All great players, fine finishers and all have great tecnique. We dont need Huntelaar, we need a young player that can head the ball well, and/or that wont complain to be on the bench. Frazier Campbell, Rossi, or someone else from our youth system would be great. And Owen is injured 2 3rds of the season, but with him and Saha on the team, both playing super sub, I wouldnt complain. BTW what are the odds for both Saha and Owen being injured at the same time. Maybe I am wrong, but if Owen wasnt injured so much, he would def be the player that would fit in well at United.
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guys all of you are missing a main point.. MANUCHO. Hes 24 and has a great leap according to sir alex. let us just wait and see how he settles in i mean adebayor wasnt a big thing and now look what hes become. you never know but manucho might be just the player you guys are talking about….
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back on the match, carrick was at least a 7.5 out of a 10! glad he had two good performances in a row. i hope it keeps up. park is consistant…. i hate it when people say he is a marketing tool, people talk about how oshea and fletch and brown just want man utd to do well and are loyal
park is of the same mould even if he is ‘newer’ than the others. give park a run and he will improve, u try playing ANY sport at the highest level in the face of coming off an injury and with superstar team mates… not very easy…
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You all tend to forget the man sitting on the bench for the last 21 years. He knows better if we need anyone or not. Our frontline is the envy of the football world, not only because of ability, but because of the lack of problems between them and with the manager. In fact, they are so good that they make that giant, Giggs, look average. Stop complaining and enjoy the ride! We need no one.
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how do YOU know he isnt thinking the same thing im thinking, fact is, none of us know what he’s thinking.
lol, has anyone else noticed that when rio is in the attacking third of the pitch he trys to play like berba, no joke we could use him as a striker.
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Yeah well pointed out Dan .. In the past 2 matches against Magpies and Reading , Both Rio and Vidic took turns in the offensive end which has never ever happened before . May be a slight addition from arse play book.
Hargo is very good defensively however in offense he covers a huge amt of ground with the ball before making a pass .
It was also very good to see Fergie trying Carrick has the alone Mid-Fielder in the dying minutes .
Carrick has started coming back to form , i thought he did very well ..
Nani also played very well in the last 2 matches setting up the goal for tevez in the magpies match…
It was great to see Ronaldo Rooney and Tevez taking the honors.
Well as i said before , we never know whom fergie will buy . However that is one position which he will never compromise by buying a Ok player.
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i just relised that huntelaar has scored the most goals in the world right now and ronny comes in second, thats great for ronny if he scores 2 next match and huntelaar dosent score in his, ronny will be top. im talking about league btw, if its overall then ronny is top.
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http://www.tribalfootball.com/article.php?id=74789
if this is true, we should accept and use the money.
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Thats a rash thing to say, Dan. Carrick is an excellent option we have in midfeild.. We would have to play Fetcher if either Anderson or Hargo gets injured (Scholes may not go on forever).. And the replacements you are talking about.. you may get CDMs in form of Mascherano but not one with Carricks passing range.. Carrick is different from all the others midfeilders we have…
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hargreaves, scholes and andy are al great passers, carrick is better than the later two but not by much, fletcher can do the biss when needed giggs can play centre, so o’shea, gibson will be around next season rooney tevez and ronny can play as attacking mids 2 so we have like 11 players who can play centre.
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You would rather, at times, to make do with out of place people(Giggs, Rooney etc),,inexperienced youngsters (Gibson) and a fellow who runs around like a headless chicken (Fletcher) than a proven Central Midfielder like Carrick who did quite well for us last season…and Andy will have a dip sometime..
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Is Anderson injured? why wasnt he on the bench yesterday? Anybody knows?
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Hey everyone do read my views on last night’s match.
http://footyreview.blogspot.com/2008/01/manchester-united-go-past-reading-to.html
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giggs has already proven he can play in the centre, heck, HE DID IT YESTERDAY!, you loan players out to get experience, and your rating fletcher way to low, he’s had a much better overall season than carrick.
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Yeah.. But considering the present balancce of the team and the versatility that Carrick adds to it.. I think its wiser to keep him… And.. Noways is Fletcher better than Carrick.. Dun get me wrong.. i used to be a great fan of his when he first came in.. but he’s just not good enough..
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carrick isnt versatile at all, he can only play cdm or cm, fletcher is tho
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Neymar da silva have anyone heard about him.looks like it is a fight between real and united to sign him.
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By versatility, i meant the ability to spray long passes around..
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Aparently Newcastle want to put in an 18 million bid for Carrick, i know i’d take it…
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THANK YOU SHANNON, this is what im trying to say, we should accept it and use it. we have a bunch of players who are cm or can play cm that are as good and better than him.
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Dan: Fletcher more versatile than Carrick??? He has played at RM at times and been utterly abysmal. He like Carrick, is a central midfielder and no more.
As for the comments about passing ability, Hargreaves has absolutely nowhere near the passing range of Carrick. Now I’m not slagging him off here as he has a different set of skills to Carrick, but to suggest his passing is of a similar level is madness.
Both Giggs and Scholes are reaching the twilight of their careers. Scholes wasn’t playing great before his injury and Giggs has been inconsistent at best. Fletcher has been just above poor this season, at best, while Hargreaves has been injury prone with us to date. Your suggestion of alternatives at CM involves us playing people out of position, unproven kids or inferior players to Carrick. We have finally got out of the dark ages of the O’Shea/Giggs/Fletcher/Smith combos in CM; I don’t see what the appeal is in going back.
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fletcher has had a great season, what fletcher are you talking about, all im saying is if we let carrick go he wont be heavily missed because we have got a bunch of cms and a few players who can play cm.
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Fletcher has had a great season?? The one I’m talking about is the one who came on yesterday for about 10 minutes, cheaply lost the ball on a couple of occasions and lost Harper for his attempt at the equaliser. I can’t think of many in the way of good performances from him this season. Roma away is the only one that springs to mind and even then he was overshadowed by Carrick. Fletcher still looks to be nowhere near fulfilling his early promise.
No you are right that we have plenty of people that can play CM, however your suggestions included:
O’Shea and Fletcher – vastly inferior players to Carrick;
Giggs, and Rooney – played out of position;
Gibson – completely unproven.
We have a long term view to take of our CM. In the long term we have Fletcher, Hargreaves, Anderson and Carrick. I am more convinced by the Carrick/Anderson combo that the Hargreaves/Anderson one. Ergo I think that selling Carrick would be a very poor decision. Now if funds are limited and you have a clear idea of who could be bought with the money, and they improve the squad overall then fair enough. Otherwise it looks like you’re up for selling him just because you don’t like him.
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oh please, for the last few matches look how many times rooney has missed but that dont mean he’s rubbish nor does losing the ball. you seem to forget carricks performences before the toon game, im sorry but i just dont agree, fletcher is more than capable as is hargreaves as is scholes and anderson. even pique can play in the centre but i dont know about his passing(and he is more than capable since thats where he played all of last season with zarazoga.
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That’s a good offer for Carrick, but I think he’s too important to the team right now to sell him. O’Shea should be used mainly as a back-up defender; Fletcher is not good enough to start for us; and Hargo is as injury-prone as Saha. One player that I do think could be a long-term replacement for Carrick is Darron Gibson. This kid is strong, can pass, and also has a great shot on him (as we saw against Glentoran in the summer). In addition to that, he’s already made his debut for the Republic of Ireland which is pretty big. I think we could think about selling Carrick in the summer, but only if Hargo can stay fit, or if Gibson shows us that he’s good enough.
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Look at it this way… Carrick has a better impact on the game.. Definately more than Fletcher.. Agreed he had a bad run in the early part but then who doesnt.. are you telling me that Anderson won’t… And when he does would you feild a Schloes/ Carrick or Scholes/ Fletcher MF.. (Assuming Either scholes or Hargreaves is injured)… Fletcher hardly has an impact in the game..
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I’m not judging Fletcher on yesterday, I was simply trying to illustrate a point. But if he is so capable give me the examples of it from this season, because I sure as hell can’t think of them.
And your right Carrick has had plenty of piss poor games this year, but he put in a number of good performances at the start of the season and seems to have regained his form and confidence in the last three games.
On Pique, we are a big club, challenging for the league and CL, we shouldn’t be putting square pegs into round holes unless we are in the middle of an horrendous injury crisis. Selling Carrick weakens the squad in both the short and long term and diminshes our chances of silverware.
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Huntelaar scored again today.
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we’re going to have to agree to disagree.
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i really think man u must not sell carrick cause he is an important CM player.his passes are very good and he is good coming back to make crucial tackles.
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Some facts:
United have not scored only three goals in a game the whole season. That is the first time in Premiership history that we have gone so long without scoring only three goals in a game. We have not won 3-0, 3-1 or 3-2 until now, witch is amazing considering our superiour goal-differnce. We have not played 3-3 or lost 4-3, 5-3 or more this season. Like i said, a new record for us in the Premier League history.
United have now played three games in a row without scoring in the first half. That is wierd considering those results: Villa 2-0, Newcastle 6-0, Reading 2-0. We have scored 10 goals(!) and none of them are in the first half. If we dont score in the first half against Spurs and Pompey, we have a first half record that is completely like at the start of the season! Those games were City 0-1, Spurs 1-0, Sunderland 1-0, Everton 1-0 and Sporting 1-0. They were all terrible games, were we had problems scoring. We dont have that now.
Wayne Rooney has only scored two Premier League goal since october. That was mainly because he was injured in a month.
Cristiano Ronaldo has scored as many goals as last season in all competitions. Last season he scored 17 in the league, 3 in Europe and 3 in the FA cup. This season he has scored 17 in the league, 5 in Europe and 1 on the FA cup. And it is only January!
9 players have scored in the Premier League for United this season. Those players are: Ronaldo(17), Tevez(10), Rooney(6), Saha(4), Giggs, Ferdinand and Nani(all 2), Scholes and Vidic(both 1).
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I think I take Dan’s side on this slightly, if we were offered 18m for Carrick it would weaken our midfield options in the short term but would allow us to possibly replace him with someone better for around the same price or buy a new defender or striker. Although I highly doubt we would be offered 18m for him so I’d be very happy keeping him here, as he is likely to play in alot of big games for us since Hargreaves is so injury prone and Scholes is getting old so he will be likely to pick up more injuries, and Carrick is definitely a better player than Fletcher.
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@Ebrahim
Man Utd, MUFC, United/…. any of these.. No Man U please…
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@Conor
Even if you get 18 million for Carrick, with whom do you replace him with.?? Mascherano and other CDMs are very limited in playing styles..
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I wud take in the 18m and add in 2-4 more and bid for either Ronaldhino or Van der Vaart! Both will prove to be better ACMs than him in long run… (i.e. if Carrick is indeed primed for Scholes role)
I think on the other hand, Fergie is probably trying to create a AC Milan kind of playing formation with 3 man midfield of Hargo-Carrick-Anderson (mirrors Gattuso-Pirlo-kaka/seedorf; not saying here one is as good as other in both teams…) Play Ronaldo-Rooney-Tevez in the front (they will be rotating with Nani,other striker etc)
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Well we got Anderson for 17m did we not? And I’m sure Miguel Veloso would cost less than that, although I’m not sure he’s much better than Carrick. Van Der Vaart is to and I think we could get him for around the same price. I wouldn’t describe Carrick as a CDM anyway, he’s more of a CM. Mascherano is a better player than Carrick but he’s more like Hargreaves so we don’t need someone like him, but even Mascherano is only valued at 17m so it shows how Carrick was and still is overpriced. I’m happy to keep him, but I’m just saying that 18m is an offer we should at least consider, but in all seriousness, I very much doubt Sir Alex is going to let Carrick leave any time soon, so we’re just talking about something that in all likelihood will never happen.
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to right conor
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Mascherano for a start would cost virtually all of Carricks money from the sale. Also equivalent players style wise, like Deco Pirlo, Xavi etc, are pretty hard to come by.
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yea
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100 bang, i think if we are offered 18 mil for carrick we should really tink about it, because(this is my point) we have more than enough players in cm and can play in cm. someone said about playing out of position, brown is a centre back playinh at right back right now so its proven it can work.
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