Feb 23
United Look to Seal Europa Progress at Home
For those who’ve grown accustomed to seeing my pre-match previews, I apologize for my absence last week. However, it was an excused absence, as I was welcome my first child, a rather adorable little girl (yes, I’m biased, of course!), into the world. The last week has been quite hectic, to say the least, but I can’t say I’ve had many better weeks.
Speaking of children, it was widely expected that the current star pupil of United’s academy was going to get a start tonight against Ajax, with United having a decided advantage after last Thursday’s 2-0 win in Amsterdam. However, to my surprise and likely to the surprise of many others, not only is Paul Pogba not starting, he’s not even on the bench. It’s perhaps understandable that he isn’t starting, but you’d think that he’d at least be on the bench, given the situation. But there’s a reason why I’m behind a computer instead of in the technical area…
Selfish desires aside, the XI that will be out there will be a pretty strong one, with Nani and Phil Jones back and starting. Up front, it’s Herbatov (or Berbadez?), and at least one of those two will find the back of the net tonight, I guarantee you that. And pulling the strings in central midfield will be a former star pupil of the academy in Tom Cleverley, who’s making a second consecutive start.
Tonight should be worry-free, with an emphasis on should. Ajax aren’t a bad side in the least, and if they get an early goal, who knows what could happen? However, it’s hard to see United doing anything to throw away the great advantage they come into tonight with.
Manchester United: De Gea; Rafael, Jones, Smalling, Fabio; Nani, Park, Cleverley, Young; Berbatov, Hernandez
Subs: Amos, Evans, Evra, Carrick, Giggs, Scholes, Welbeck
Ajax: Vermeer; Van Rhijn, Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Koppers; De Jong, Anita, Eriksen; Ozbiliz, Lodeiro, Sulejmani
Subs: Cillessen, Ooijer, Blind, Serero, Aissati, Ebecilio, Klaassen
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really exciting line up
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@ash is the man: if you subbed POI for Pogba or Anderson, I would agree.
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Pogba not even on the bench—– at old trafford
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I know this is totally unrelated, but I just downloaded the FIFA 12 squad update and I noticed some Liverpool players had become 5 star skills. Evra has fallen from 4 to 3 stars, and Welbeck has lost his “flair” trait, while Charlie Adam, Henderson, Carroll, Downing and Agger have gotten 5 star skills…
Well, that was shocking! But at least I finally understand why United always are so severely underrated.
#YSB
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COME ON UNITED, Cleverley to score today!
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Obviously I am not privy to what is going on behind the scenes, but what is the point of starting a winger in CM instead of Pogba? If he wanted experience then fine, start Carrick and have Pogba on the bench. But to leave him out of the side entirely when there were rumors of him starting seem a little odd to me.
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Nice goal. Pass from Berba, touch and finish by Chicharito.
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where is pog
hope this doesnt mean he is off in summer
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HEY SMALLING! Don’t kill Eriksen please… DK needs him this summer!
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ref giving ijax every chance
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hand ball
ref is wearing baby blue
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@gator: ref is abu prolly cuz of fergis comments abt our “punishment”
time to get out of the dark ages and get technology involved. only reason not to have it is to fix matches.
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Ajax goal = handball + deflection = lucky.
However, we’re taking our feet off the pedal. Need to maintain pressure for more than 5 minutes at at eim.
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Fabio has been immense, Rafael not the same. Looks out of place without Valencia
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Berbatov is pulling the strings, I cant believe he doesnt get more game time. He is class defined………..
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@ash is the man: He had a nice assist, but other than that he hasnt been spectacular. Why isnt he getting any games? He doesnt have the talent ot influence of rooney, and Welbeck is just better than him. but I see the Berba hype machine rolls on.
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@johnsom33: There is no berba hype on my behalf but I do realise that he is a good footballer and his vision and technique is very good. I am not saying he should be starting every week but should at least get more game time. I am a huge fan of welbz and I know rooney will always have the calibre to be a better all round player than berba. However I cannot deny his skills. That was my point
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Ajax really play some great football don’t they?
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I love watching Cleverley play football. I know he’s not done too much today but his one-two touch passing is beautiful to watch. It’s like poetry in motion, simply gorgeous!
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this ref is killing us. we need to be more physical. the ref isnt giving us anything when they block progress when they are beaten with dribbling but is giving them their dives??? get physical and make the ref do his job.
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@gator: we look suspect vs 12 men
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@gator: vs. 13 — commentator
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@Opti: yep even after the match he is saying the shove in the back caused him to move his arm to the ball??? bias gonna bias anyhoo where threw
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we’re pretty poor except for a couple nice passes here and there.
We need more directness and someone to hold the ball.
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@Opti: sounds contradictory… but you know what I mean: Vally + Carrick/Scholes
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What a save!
We blow right now!
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these weed smoking wankers begging for handball on that
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This is ridiculous. United are being overrun at Old Trafford by Ajax. We cant hold on to the ball, no composure whatsoever, no pressing….wtf is going on???
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@Vivek: it’s really poor.
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We have a non existent midfield…all four of them, including Cleverly, has been totally useless
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wow at the changes how will we line up?
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@gator: scho jones in mid park to the wing
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Two things I saw as obvious in last minute:
0) Our corners are A JOKE!
1) We need to improve our heading… its pathetic!
2) Welbeck is not clinical. Poor poor pass to racing Chicharito.
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@Opti: we should be practicing corners more and both sides of them.
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Hmmmm… smells like Basel.
#disgrace!
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ref at fault for both their goals
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@gator: foul that led to their second has been hapening to nani all night and he lets them go…
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@gator: Ajax are not exactly Barcelona… we should have buried them after 30 minutes.
We’re a disgrace. The ref is just the ref and it shouldn’t be enough to jump the supposed gap between us and Ajax (6th in Eresdivision).
If we lose, I will be pissed!
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Complacecency will kill this team
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@RedDevilEddy: all 65 minutes of complacency. That performance was horrid!!!
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This is probably the worst home performance in Europe that I have seen. We made Ajax look like Barcelona. There was no desire, no composure whatsoever. Nani and Young were simply awful throughout, Cleverly and Park were were worse. We managed to keep the ball for brief periods only after Scholes came in.
And to those who are blaming the ref, I have always felt that Young and Nani need to man up a little and stop throwing themselves to the ground so often. To get bullied by that bunch of kids is simply embarrassing for a team like United.
To have any chance to retaining our title, serious changes are required…most importantly, we need Valencia back as soon as possible, he has been our only credible threat in the past few weeks.
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@Vivek: the entire team need training in mma or something to grow their sacs. we are constantly being overpowered by teams and if the ref allows it its legal. simple to correct wrestling and judo classes
im so sic of seeing our players beat the man with the ball on the floor only to be shoved off it after and then turn to the ref. refs all think united are undeserving of help and we loose 50/50s
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WOW- we were very poor, I am very surprised with this performance but I will put it down to complacency.
He has no idea how to play a simple pass or at least keep possession- he is very frustrating and I dont beleive he will ever be world class. Valencia even though he is inferior technically than nani is a better player. Full Stop
However what can I say about NANI…………. Well he hasnt really changed has he? He still wastes the ball on occasion after occasion
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What a fookin embarrassment – an Ajax HOME game on the Man Utd pitch. A team of Red youngsters who couldn’t keep or pass the ball to save their fookin lives, no pertinent wide play from us, Jonesy is no central defender, and we still have no satisfactory players in MF when Carrick/Scholesy not playing. I was ashamed when United supporters had to resort to whistling the ref to blow the whistle – we should be comfortable at home. I am sick of Fergie excuses saying it was just an off game or a blip – it isn’t our team is being weakened in top class players season on season. This is not over-reaction from me, it is happening too often that opposition teams can come to OT and take away points. Anybody who says otherwise is in denial. Our kids wouldn’t know the word comfort and composure on the ball – it is Bolton hoof and run. De Gea is not good enough, and I repeat loudly NOT GOOD ENOUGH. His one major gameplay is push the ball away and often to an opposing player. Yeah he makes the occasional magnificent save, but he does not command his area with any authority or his defence around him. What a fookin shambles and I am a United fan who is not afraid to say so. Ajax showed us what possession football is all about and they OUTMUSCLED us on every single 50-50 ball, they can count themselves unlucky tonight. Their supporters were absolutely superb.
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Just compare yesterday City performance with United and we can easily predict the result of this season… Awful.
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What a disgrace…shame on everyone trying to blame this pathetic show on the ref.not a united performance by far but this season its all too familiar.’Senior players most culpable didn’t quite put in a decent shift.Nani, Young,Park & Berba disgusting.cmon guys we supposed to be challenging for the league!
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erickson goetz rodwell
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Fergie has just admitted on TV after game, that he once again fooked up in picking so many kids in defence and I would say MF too. SAF you are always doing it, and if Ajax had a top class striker we would have deservedly been out of MINI Europe tonight. I mean MINI Europe and we can’t even put on a performance in that competition. Please don’t tell me that we performed over in Amsterdam – we didn’t it was drivel. No more excuses, either these highly played players perform or they should be moved on, and start with Ashley Young – he is worse than useless. SICK SICK SICK.
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SAF says he never uses the hairdryer any more it is long gone. Well bring it back SAF and turn it on yourself 1st and then on the whole bloody team tonight, except Evans and Scholesy and Smalling. Immature garbage from start to finish. The senior players before scholesy and Johnny came on took no responsibility on the field at all – disgrace, and they should be docked a weeks wages and the pay for the game, because they did not put in a decent shift. Hernandez worked hard and ran all game, but he had nothing around him of a supply line. Berba just remonstrates with everyone around him and pouts like a big kid and gives up when things don’t go his way. SAF needs a real good sort out in the summer. His buys have not really worked so far.
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@ Craig Mc: oh no he didn’t don’t tell me Fergie is trying to push the buck on this one.There was nothing wrong with the defence save for Jones.the twins played well and in any case the second goal came through after tactical changes.His midfield wad sh*t with young and nani unbelievably wasteful.And he sat there chewing gum.unfooking believable!!
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@vida dollar: Vida the twins defending was okay, but their runs forward and keeping possession were very poor. They won the ball and invariably immediately conceded possession.
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None of the following are United quality strikers:
Berbatov, Welbeck, Hernandez.
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@Moscow is my heaven: Hernandez ?????? are you kidding me. That lad with top class supply in the box will almost inevitably score – he is a fox in the box, that is what he does.
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@Craig Mc: Sometimes Craigy, you gotta create your own space and chances. The poacher/tap-in master has no place in modern football beyond a super-sub.
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I’m starting to grow tired of saying this, but that’s YET another goal conceded from a set-play
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This was utterly disgraceful.
Ashley Young is just terrible. Nothing he has done since joining us has convinced me he is anything more than a mediocre Premier League footballer. Totally not cut out for Europe.
Why Ferguson keeps picking Park in central midfield I have no idea. If I were Pogba I would definitely leave this summer as he’s seen Park, Rooney and Rafael all play ahead of him. Not to mention Anderson, Cleverley, Scholes, Giggs and Carrick.
Jones at center back was significantly to blame for our early exit in the Champions League and does not seem to have learnt from the experience. That is the problem with buying defenders so young before they have the chance to learn their trade. He is not really that much better in midfield either. Our best bet would be to keep him as a right back as a more solid alternative to Rafael who is very inconsistent and a bit hot headed.
Cleverley looks good in the Premier League but Europe seems a bit too advanced for him. Not his fault and he will learn but if we have learnt anything from our European escapades this season it is that there is absolutely no substitute for experience.
Our youngsters had their chance in Europe this season and they blew it.
Ferguson needs to show more respect and pick stronger teams in Europe.
Our European performances and team selections this season have been worthy of the Carling Cup.
Shaqiri was quoted in the papers as saying before the game against us he could tell that we couldn’t be bothered.
What has happened to our players to make them think that Europe is just an inconvenience?
You’d have thought after getting humiliated by Barcelona last season they’d be keen to reach the final to get a chance at revenge. Instead dumped out in the weakest Champions League group then barely scraping into the last 16 in the Europa League.
This summer we need to buy some players who will actually strengthen our first team. No more squad players like Ashley Young or Phil Jones.
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@colver: Revenge? Against Barcelona? I hope we do not face them in the foreseeable future mate. We would be annihilated.
Scholes is our best midfielder. The year is 2012
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@colver: Mate your right about SAF needing to show some respect, because his teams too often fall very short, and United have LOST the respect of even the supposed lesser teams of Europe. Few in Europe and at home respects Fergie’s teams now, and everybody believes they can come to OT and beat us. SAF needs to sharpen up his judgement again too, because he seems to think most of his players are good enough, and to be honest they are not. Some of them of course will be in a few years with more experience, but not now. United don’t buy established stars anymore
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Before you start judging our strikers Moscow consider the service they are getting.
This season in Europe our midfield has been bossed by Basel; Benfica and now Ajax.
What is wrong with Ferguson? Did he learn nothing from the Barcelona defeat? How long before he wakes up and realizes that we need to go back to playing a 4-5-1 in Europe and we need to buy an experienced central midfielder and preferably two.
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@colver: OK, so we are playing Real Madrid/Barcelona/AC Milan in the knockout stages of the Champions League. We need to pack the midfield to avoid getting slaughtered. Can any of the strikers I mentioned play up front on their own?
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Hernandez could do a job if supported by midfield. Rooney obviously would be first choice.
I’m not just talking a 4-5-1 against Real Madrid; Barcelona; AC Milan.
In all honesty we need to play a 4-5-1 against every half decent side in Europe. That is why I was so obsessed with signing Sneijder or Nasri in the summer. With a good enough midfield strikers are not really that critical. You can get some goals from midfield and that takes the pressure off the strikers.
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@colver: I wouldn’t count on Fergie’s cowardly transfer policy getting us any top class midfielders mate. That’s why I’m now thinking of strikers who can feed off scraps, but they are also the ones who are super clinical and at the top end of the market so I guess it is a hopeless case
Let’s just wait until Glazers complete their rape of this club, and hope they sell to Sheikh Mansour’s Arab rivals…
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Moscow it is a pretty sad situation. But it is made worse by Ferguson’s utter complacency. We are no longer in a position where we can afford to pick anything less than our strongest side in every single European game
Our young defense has been ruthlessly exposed in Europe this season. Any midfield that does not contain Michael Carrick gets overrun. Park is not a central midfielder and neither is Phil Jones.
Probably our strongest side in Europe for next season will be:
De Gea-Fabio, Vidic, Rio/Smalling, Evra-Valencia, Carrick, Cleverley, Nani-Rooney, Hernandez
With Giggs and/or Scholes giving a cameo
That team would probably get us to the quarter finals.
But throw in a few injuries which seems to be the norm for us and we have to bring in players such as Jones, Young, Welbeck, Anderson, Fletcher, Evans and we suddenly start to look very ordinary and vulnerable against teams that can keep possession and counter which basically describes most continental teams. Explaining why we suck so badly in Europe this season.
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I think Welbeck, Chicharito, Evans, Scholes, Smalling, and De Gea are excused from Wrath of Fhan.
Chicharito scored a classy goal and was in dangerous positions many times (welbeck should have given him a goal was it not for a poor pass). — 7 performance
Scholes brought balance to our midfield — 7 performance
Evans and Smalling were solid throughout — a 7 performance (which is 2 better than most others)
De Gea did well with everything he could impact. The goals were neither his fault nor can he be expected to save the two goals (deflection and point blank header). The one amazing save he did have should vindicate anyone from blaming him for having a poor game. Performance of 8 in my book.
Rest are 4 and 5.
The rest were poor, inconsistent, lacking compusure, and poor poor poor.
Very disappointed.
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@Opti: Okay Opti you will all think this is my Nani bias kicking in, but he should have had two assists – he got good ball into Berba who fluffed his shot, and he put another good ball in that nobody got to, plus he hit the bar with a good shot. Nani had a shot saved by their GK too in the first half, but he did not give enought supply from the wing I admit, and he was repeatedly fouled an got nothing. It is his 2nd game back so I believe he will come good again.
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@Craig Mc: Honestly, Nani was not that bad. He was just anonymous, but is not on my shit-list at all. I’d give him 6.5. He hit the bar too
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@Opti: So the player providing an incredible assist (which our midfield fails to do always) for the *match winning* goal get a rating of 4 or 5 from you!!!
Its funny how he never gets the benefit of being rusty! When was the last time he played again?
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