Super Sub evolution

            Last night United clawed their way through to a 2-3 win at Villa Park against Aston Villa. Not one of their best nights at the Birmingham club but it showed once again that the devils are not dead even if tey have no pulse, and that they finally have a replacement for Solskjaer.

            It was the 8th time United have comeback this season and it is a clear indication that the fighting spirit in the heart of the club still lives. The same fighting spirit that, 13 years ago, dragged United to a first treble, the second ever in European History. United were Champions then after doing pretty much what the present team is doing with the only and noteworthy exception being, back in 1999 Unirted were a better unit at the defensive side of the game. It is not a coincidence that sees United have defensive problems at the time where the rest of the league has forgotten to defend. Attck has become the best form of defense and, as more teams continue to impolement it, you can be assured that the comebacks will pour in. They have just played 11 games and they already hold the record for the most comebacks in the Premier League era. It is crazy stuff.


            Back in 1999, the United defense was lead by a big man. He was debatably the best keeper to wear the United colours. Peter Schmiechel, the Great Dane, was no match for the best strikers in the world. 6ft 4in tall he was the immovable object in front of goal. And then there was Jap Stam. Superlatives are not enough to describel the dutchman's defensive contribution to the reds. His sale to Lazio was, as Sir Alex admitted, his worst ever sale. The current defensive contingent has not matured enough to match these greats. The ones who have , Ferdinand and Evra, look past their prime and you can see the shedding of pace and judgemnt affecting United's results. United have to improve at the back and they have to learn that relying on the team to get the goals back at the front is simply to risky. It is at the present still a castle of cards at United.

        Talking of goals, a figure has risen at Old Trafford. True, he has already been there for two season, but Haernandez 2 goals and 1 assist (to an own goal) yesterday showed United that they do really have a super-sub in their hands. And so rarely has there been a super-sub of such instinct and talent who, among other things, doesn't mind being called a super sub and is extremely pleased with his position in the club's structure. The last one that springs to memory was the little Norwegian goal-poacher, Ole Gunnar Soskjaer. And while comparing Herenandez and Solskjaer, simillarities are not hard to come by. Apart from the thirst for goals and the lethality in the penalty area, they have one more thing in common, the instantly likabl;e baby faces. United might just have found a replacement fo the man who won them the treble 13 years ago with a winner in the European Cup Final and then one against Liverpool in the F.A cup. Chicarito is the man for the job.

A little push to a few cameras.

           Let's take a step back from football and look at the world at large. Humans are a much evolved race from a few decades ago. The continuous negotiations between science and the human race continue. We are on the brink of finding the Higgs boson, the God particle. We have machines to look and propel life into space. We have people living in space. We have before us a more advanced population. We have technology. If we take a look back into football and see how it's being used there, we will see progress. From the ways of training , to response to an injury, to rehabilitation, to kits that focus energy, we have changed. Then if we look a little deeper into one section of the football community things look a little dusty. This section has been in the news for all the wrong reasons this past week. Football controversy begins and ends with them most of the time. Our moderators with yellow and red rectangles in their pocket and armed with just the attention drawing whistle  our referees.

            The use of the word 'just' in the previous sentence is because I think they deserve more. They stand between 22 huge egos and a ball and they, more often than not, are easily trampled. If not by the 22 souls then by the thousands who have paid money to watch them. If not them then the assailant media who will camp in their front lawns and question them about ethics. Mostly it's a combination of all this brute pressure. It may not happen every 90 minutes of the beautiful game, but it happens and when it happens it  hits hard. So why can't we help them. FIFA can but they have not yet and it is frustrating for the football fan.

          This week it was the goal West Ham should have had but instead had disallowed for offside. That would have seen them beat the champions and quiet frankly would have been the cherry on the icing for the hammers who have shown great character following their promotion under Big Sam.  Lat week's mistakes have been well publicized. The Suarez goal disallowed in the Merseyside derby took second page only to the combination of a unjust red card to former Scouser Torres (though some may argue, and fairly so, that he must have been sent off earlier), and the goal credited to United which was scored by Hernandez from an offside position. The events in London were a disgrace to the game at play and more essentially to the refereeing set-up in the world of football.

       The referee holds the remote of the game in his hands and on the field he play God, but he is, like every other person in the world, a human and it is in the nature of us humans to err. But it is also in the nature of us humans to do all we can to prevent erring again. You touch a hot plate, you burn a finger but you learn never to touch it again. And you will not approach it without protection again. But where are the protection for our referees. Why is all the goal line and video technology going to waste in a corner of FIFA's 'to implement' cabinet which is right now, for all we know, buried in the Swiss Alps. Why aren't we using technology.

     The right winged football fanatic may say it is to keep the human touch in the game, which is a fair argument except for the fact that it is not. If it was we wouldn't abuse referees when they make bad desicions or even game destroying ones, cause it all, as this argument may suggest  in the Spirit of the Game. Why keep a human when you demand non human like behaviour  I'm not suggesting totally removing the human referee. No. That would be devastating  Just imagine a robot trying to stop Roy Keane from breaking a opponents leg or negotiating with Sir Alex for stoppage time. Those robots will be blown to smithereens. All us football fans need is to keep the human touch in the game while assisting that touch with Science. It's worked for Cricket, a boring Britsh game, another British sport, so why not for football. Why will the English footballing community respond any differently. And it isn't even going to cost that much. The goal-line technology might but a camera to review the decisions is already there, and in numbers too. If we can see it in T.V why can the referee have a tablet where he too can see it. Why can't he. There seems no reason why not.

    FIFA and UEFA are walking a tight rope here over a game that is for some people a religion and they would do well to pave a broader path for themselves by connecting science and the moderators of the beautiful game. It is easy and will fulfill the wants of many and save the sanity of hundreds of referees around the globe. If done fast it will be a saviour. But for the many already affected, it may be a little too late (ex:Tom  Ovrebo who was ill-fated to referee a Chelsea v Barcelona game horribly.)  Science has begun the marathon a long time and seems a shame football has not caught up with her. But we should and we will. All it needs is a little push to a few cameras.

     

Splitting Seams: The Portuguese wingman

             Nani has been an embodiment of inconsistency at Old Trafford. He flatters to deceive and the game at the Bridge in the Capital One Cup was such a game, the story of which was the story of his career in Manchester.

           Nani, when he came to United from Lisbon in 2007, was proclaimed the new Ronaldo. The young Portuguese with a €25.5 million price tag on his head scored on his debut in pre-season against Guangzhou Pharmaceutical in a 6-0 win for the Reds. On his competitive debut United won on penalties against Mourinho's Chelsea in the Community Shield  He scored his first competitive goal for the reds against Tottenham Hotspurs from 30 yards, a truly remarkable goal that gave the keeper no chance. It was one of the many he would go on to score in the Red of Manchester United. Two assists in a man of the match performance in  February against Arsenal helped United cruise to a 4-0 win against the gunners. He also was involved in a brawl with William Gallas and was sent off a few weeks later for an headbutt on West Ham player Lucas Neil. He then scored a crucial penalty against Chelsea at the shootouts in the Champions League final in Moscow, as he showed that he was too big a player to succumb to pressure. The litmus test was over, and Louis Nani was ready for the world.

        His second season, while not eventful as the first saw some great as well as disappointing performances from the winger. And then came the spotlights and with them they bought eyes of the whole footballing world. Cristiano Ronaldo had left for Madrid and it was finally time to see weather Nani was ready to step up to the position if not the class and flair of his fellow countryman. The world's weight was on his shoulders in his third season. He got a dislocated shoulder on his first day at work in the community shield  He was back in August but a string of poor performances followed. Nani vented his frustration at the gaffer, criticizing him for a lack of confidence. In spite of the outburst he was given a chance and he took it providing Rooney with an assist in a 4-0 win against Hull, shining at the Manchester derby, and then netting spectacularly against Arsenal. But Nani being Nani was sent off after four days for a lunge on Stiliyan Petrov. He scored in 3-2 win against Bayern Munich and ended the season with 7 goals in all competitions as the new Ronaldo title slowly began to wear off.

   In his third season he scored his first ever goal in a Manchester derby, netting one of the two of United goals. However his goal was overshadowed by Wayne Rooney's stunner which was voted the best goal of the Premier League era. He was included in the PFA Premier league team of the year and was voted the Player's Player of the year at OT. He had a few bad performances but he came out on to. The fout=rth season was more of the same.

     Wednesday night was also more of the same. Nani stuck a beauty, but otherwise was easy to miss. He was caught in possession all too often and one of those, when United held a 3-2 lead lead to United conceding a penalty and Chelsea equalizing to put the tie into extra time. Nani's obsession to beat his man and the take another had cost United the game and Sir Alex wasn't happy about it. Th OT faithful have appreciate Nani's contributions to the football club but how long they will tolerate his selfishness is being tested as I write. Zenit wanted him over the summer for 33million and Juventus are reportedly trying too. Either way Nani may have overstayed his welcome at OT. His form this season hasn't been great and United will be happy to us the cash to get the new play maker they desperately need.

His services for United are in no way small and United fans will always remember all his wonder-goals and the two he scored in the Community Shield against Manchester City in an awe inspiring comeback, but his days in red are coming to an end. 

Splitting seams

     A club is larger than any player. United are a large club. No individual in United is ensured of a palce is the main team. No one at this club is indispensible and over the years we have shaken off enough great players and fairly weak ones too. This new column by this blog takes a look at the players at the club who are slowly drifting away from the club.This blogger is not a betting guy but if he was he would definitely put money on these players to leave at some time over the next few seasons to graze on other pastures.

              Last night a Manchester City side lost in Amsterdam to Ajax  There is no shame to losing to Ajax. They are brilliant, young, and they did beat city neighbors United last season. There is no shame. There is shame however when you payout millions expecting to lift one trophy and seem to be getting nowhere closer. The big sheikh at the reins of the club must be shrouded in shame.

            Last night, like on every other City match, their squad, on paper looked the football equivalent of a elite Learjet. On the pitch though, they looked like a Learjet being driven by a blind pilot. City started the match showing how weak they can be as the Dutch team's attack slid open their defense like a knife slicing through thin air. Luckily for City, Samir Nasri got a goal which seemed to boost spirits for a short period of time. Ajax needed a super strike to equalise and sent City into the dressing rooms on level pegging.

             In second half, normal service was resumed for the Dutch giants but only after Aguero made an excellent dash into the Ajax penalty area only to find himself rather alone. 15 minutes of Ajax possession later a cross from Eriken found Moissander in the box to put Ajax into a much deserved lead. Then the Dane himself found a shot which took a deflection off Clichy and put Ajax in the lead.

               And then the Learjet crashed. Mancinoi's tactics went out of the window as City pushed hopelessly  Nasri was denied a rather weak penalty claim and Aguero shot just over the bar. Nothing was working out the Englishmen. And now they are at the bottom of Group D and as Mancini aptly put it, City need a miracle to qualify. Mancini's men looked terrible last night and their manager did nothing to improve the situation. He was just a blind man piloting the Learjet, and last night looked so similar to all his other
Champions League mishaps. It seems now that City are flying (however low) in spite of rather than because of the Italian in the cockpit.
              

Roo

*                    Sir Alex hasnt exactly been known for being a follower of the phrase 'forgive and forget'. However he has been known to hold loyalty and dedication above all. So when the team sheet was released last afternoon, all eyes flew down the names to see the forward line. When they didnt see the fammilliar name of talisman Wayne Rooney, minds of conspiracy theorists all over the world said one thing, EXPENDABLE.

                     Two seasons ago Wayne Rooney returned from a dissapointing world cup in south africa. In January he decided to put in a transfer request. The Rooney of two years ago felt that Manchester United lacked ambition to win anything. Every manager worth his salt had a say in the matter. Inter, City, Arsenal and big clubs all over Europe put in bids, and the United background staff went into overload trying to work out how to kkep the english striker in the theatre of dreams. In the end Rooney fell for the oldest bait in the book- MONEY. The striker 'settled' for getting paid a ludicurous 200 Grand a week and signed a new 5 year deal. Not all United fans were relieved. Most felt that the man they had bought from Everton 18 years ago then, was gettin spoilt. The fact that he became one of the highest paid [plyers in the league didnt help him.

                     A few days later United faced City. The atmosphere was tense as always. Louis Nani put United ahead before half time with a splendid goal. Edin Dzeko's back scored the ewualiserm  as the newbie Bosnian deflected a stray shot into the United goal. Then there was magic. A cross from Nani needed a head on it to be of any use to anybody, but it got more than that. It got a boot. The picture of the Roo with head below heels, suspended in mid air hitting the ball into the roof of the net, is an image no United fan would ever forget. The goal was later voted as the best goal of the Premier League era. It seemed then that all was forgiven. Even the most old school supporter agreed than United were better with the Englishman rather than without.

                   Rooney since then has proved that he is shedding off the skin of the Rooney of the old. The Rooney that played with a mad rage when offended was fading away. For all of last season Rooney just picked one booking playing in the Red colours, a yellow in the last match against Sunderland. Rooney was evidently maturing. It was then that an issue lurking in the dark was raised again. Were United relying too much on Rooney. A Rooney less United lost to Blackburn, who were by a mile the most terrible team of last season. United rosters boasted Berbatov, Hernandez, and the growing Welbeck, but none offered the steam to replace the talisman. Rooney had no threat to his position in the startin lineup, he was there by default. Some felt that he might take that for granted. And then came the dutchman.

                 When United announced that they had signed Van Persie from Arsenal, many a opinion was cast on how will he play alongside Rooney and fellow new signing Kagawa. Others pondered on the effecty it may have on the mental side. Will Kagawa feel threatened that Van Persie would wrestle him out of his position???........

                When United played against Everton and lost, the defense werent the only part of the team missing. Wayne Rooney was absent. True, he was there on the pitch, but he was hardly even a shadow of the striker who struck terror in the minds of defenses last season. So the next match he was benched and Persie took his place. Persie showed that he was worth every cent and wasnt going to be a high priced flop, scoring a goal that was truly brilliant. But in the undertone it meant that Rooney now had competition.

                Maybe its no fair to the loyalty of the likes of Hernandez, and a little troublesome to Kagawa, but the signing of Van Persie gives Rooney something to work for. At last United have leverage over their wonder-striker. It makes quite a headline, and it definitely isnt going to affect the reds in anyway, but Wayne Rooney must know he is not guaranteed a position in the top ranks. He must know he like every other player is expendable.

Vs AmaZulu

This blogger at the moment is on well earned vacation and thus you folks will see posts less frequently but before  I leave here's the squad for Pre-Season

   I hadn't heard of our opponents ever and i decide to do some research on them. They are South African obviously.  Other than that i failed to find any revelant info. However the variation of game styles could just make the game a tee bit interesting, but frankly I'm still waiting for the thankfully as yet un-hyped game against FC Barcelona.
                                       

A. LINDERGAARD
AMOS
JOHNSTONE
FERDINAND
VESELI
VERMIJIL
WOOTON
BLACKETT
VALENCIA
ANDERSON
CARRICK
SCHOLES
POWELL
KAGAWA
BEBE
TUNNICLIFFE
LINGARD
BRADY
PETRUCCI
BERBATOV
CHICARITO
MACHEDA

England- The need to rebuild

        24th June 2012. Ashley Cole walks up to the penalty spot to take England's soon to be last kick of the ball in Euro 2012. He launches it low but not quite wide enough as the once World XI keeper Buffon makes a save. Italy, Buffon's team, calmly convert the next. Hearts are broken. English fans had just started to believe that they could go all the way that tournament. But history, sadly for them, repeated itself in the most brutal manner possible. Another Quarter-Final, another Penalty Shootout, another dip into gloom.

        England started the tournament as Underdogs. Roy Hodson, their new manager, knew his short term goals pretty well. Stabilize a team, broken by ego's, torn apart regularly by scandals. The team he inherited had to be rebuilt, but for the European Championships just a few weeks away, durability to turn away opponent attacks and impermeability to block the waves of super-stars they were due to face.

        The new manager's team choice was widely criticized but to the more observant eye he had done well. The team's defense built around a core of Terry and Lescott, one a champions league winner and the other a Premier League winner. Behind they had the Golden Glove of Joe Hart, the Man City Number 1. Ashley Cole and Glen Johnson on the flanks. The Midfield was built to defend. Steven Gerrard and Scot Parker, captain and former captain, knew they had track back to defend for majority of the match. The flanks was where the counterattack was built with two men and two more for back up who would work hard and get the ball forward and at the same time defend the flanks. The strike force of Danny Welbeck, Andy Caroll, and the standby Wayne Rooney(unavailable for 2 games due to suspension) looked brutal .  England were tipped by many to fizzle out of the competition in the group stages, but they emerged as winners. However the Azzuri proved too much in the penalty shootout even though England held out attack after attack by the Italians. Roy however would do well to not disband the old guard in a hurry as that could lead to the ugly head of ego, of which English players have a lot, to rise itself again. ABV tried at Chelsea and see where that got him. No. He needs to build through them, not around the, not without them.

        Smalling, Evans, Cleverley, Jones,  Wilshere, Walker, Ruddy are prospective talents. England have a teenage Ox in the ranks and have many more such talents under the folds of Youth Academies around the country. Roy should build around them, the new talent, and by 2012 should have a team that go into the tournament as at least dark horses, but maybe with much more controlled ego's. Definitely. 

ADUIEU to another NUMBER 7

                One of those spectacular careers whose breaks were applied a little to quick due to the brutal hand of injury.This is the story of a teenage stalwart destined for greatness, momentary greatness nonetheless, but greatness. The story of a boy who'd passed his glory days before he turned Man. The story of the departing number 7 of United, the story of a star that , just for a little while, burned bright.

              On 6th May 1997, Liverpool played their last game of the 96-97 Premier League season. They were away Wimbledon and lost 2-1, but on that day a seventeen year old striker scored the solitary Red goal. 1 year later he was joint top scorer in the Premier League with 18 goals with the likes of Chris Sutton and Dion Dublin. Fast forward 14 years and the striker lay in waste in a Manchester United team in transition, making just a hand full of appearances. This story is about a row of dominoes, one event leading to another, a chaos theory some would say, to end the glow of a young flame.

            98-99 Season. Michael Owen has scored 23 goals in 40 appearances in all competitions. Liverpool are playing at Elland Road, away to Leeds. The 19 year old tore a hamstring and fell to the ground and the Kop that day saw a sight that would become a disturbingly common occurrence in the young man's career both home and abroad. The first domino had fallen.

             99-2000 Season. Owen struggles to make appearances due to reoccurring hamstring injuries but still amasses 12 goals and Liverpool qualify for the UEFA cup. The turn of the Milena also bought the Euro 2000 and English fans saw it as an opportunity for England to rise from the ashes of the 98 World Cup in France. Owen was injured. England lost out in the group stages to Portugal and Romania.

              2001 F.A Cup Final. Liverpool are on the road to winning a treble of the UEFA Cup and the two domestic cups. They faced a strong opposition in the form of Arsenal, runners-up in the league.In A open game but without any clear cut opportunities the first goal came at the 71st Minute and it was the Gunners who got their noses in front. The Kop were devastated. Gerrard Houllier made a set of attacking changes. 82nd Minute, Garry McAllister gets a free kick near the Arsenal penalty area. The kick missed but Arsenal failed to completely clear the resulting loose ball and Owen rose to the occasion equalising with a poachers goal. 88th Minute. The tie seemed doomed for Extra time. Michael Owen and Liverpool had other plans. Owen gets a wonderful ball, dribbles through a few from the flanks, cuts in and beats David Seaman at the far post. The then Scouscer got the man of the match champagne and the Final till now is known as the Michael Owen final.

         A game against Spurs and Owen is injured again. It's the troublesome hamstring. Liverpool rule him out for six-weeks. The next domino.
 
          13th August 2004. Real Madrid have successfully bid for Michael Owen, reinforcing their star studded line-up, called the Galactico-s.With a slow start to his Madrid career, he was often confined to the bench and drew criticism from fans and the Spanish press for his lack of form. A successful return to action with the England squad in October 2004 seemed to revive his morale, however, and in the first following match, he scored his first goal for the club, the winner in a 1–0 Champions League victory over Dynamo Kyiv. He ended the season with thirteen goals in La Liga, with the season's highest ratio of goals scored to number of minutes played. No injuries but he was going back to England.
   
           24th August 2005. Roughly a year after moving to Spain, Owen was moving again, this time to Tyneside to Newcastle United. December 31st. Another game against Spurs, and another injury. This time a broken metatarsal. Being ruled out for months, one can assume that the partying wasn't exactly jubilant at the Owen household that New-Years. The third Domino. Thud.


           24th March 2006. England are playing at Sweden in the first match of the 2006 World Cup in Germany. Owen is on the ground again and this time within the first minute. This time its the knee and it is a ligament tear. England rule him out for 9 months sparking a fresh Club vs Country row about who carries the liability for an injured player while on National Duty. Amongst this confusion, another Domino fell, unheard by many. The young man's career was in tatters.


           2007 February. Owen's back in training and the press is going crazy about the young man who caused such a big Hullabaloo in the footballing world.(It wasn't his fault of course). A few months forward, he was out again picking a thigh injury in pre-season. The fifth domino fell. Four fresh injuries that season meant Owen was suddenly out of the starting line-up. Rumours of a transfer loomed but no one offered.


          3rd July 2009. Sir Alex makes a surprise move to sign the free agent who was out of contract. Newcastle were out of the Premier League and Owen refused to resign a contract. So he signed for United. He scored on his debut as he had done with Liverpool, and gave united a 4-3 win against neighbours City in what the Citizens called 'Fergie Time'. 
   
           28th February 2010. Owen scores United first goal in a 2-1 victory over Aston-Villa in the League Cup Final, but subsequently pulls a hamstring. United rule Owen out for months as the ol' hamstring requires surgery. Another Domino


           2011 Season. United won the league again, and in style. Pipping Chelsea to the title in the second last week, United, already champions, were loosing at home to Blackpool in the final game. United came right back winning 4-2 with Owen scoring the final goal in trade-mark Michael Owen style.
           
            United struggled in Europe the next season and Owen pulled his thigh in a match against Romanian minnows Oetul Galati. United fell out of Europe's elite and Michael Owen lost another standing domino. United rejected a contact renewal, and now the teenage prodigy, the line of dominoes lies in transfer limbo.  Where he goes next is still a mystery but as we bid farewell to another Number 7, 
we pray and hope that there are no more falling dominoes, that the series of injury that has marred a players brilliance come to an end. We bid thee adieu MICHAEL OWEN.  

TRANSFER TARGETS.....

The season is over, and what a season it has been. The two horse race saw many hurdles on the way and though the blue horse won it's not all blue in Manchester. United still exist and this season has shown that reinforcements are needed for the age-ing legs of Ferdinand, Giggs and ol' Scholsey. Sir Alex has always turned to youth but this column struggles to see how sucessful that would be in the next few years. Out of the three reserve players tipped too be glorious Reds, Pogba has left to Turin, Morrison sent to London, leaving Fryers who has 1 league and 1 Champions league appearance to his name. The Keane brothers (Michael and Will) and Jeese Lindergaard look delightful but are a few years in the coming. So Fergie must dive into the transfer market and dive deep, as the Glazers will not put up with wasting another 10M on a player like Bebe.
 
     This column takes a look at all players that have been associated with the Reds in the last month and what they will or will not give to the club.

Name: SHINJI KAGAWA
Age   : 23
Team: Borussia Dortmund
Position: Attacking Midfielder.
Source: Various

     The young Japaneese has turned many heads in his three season in the Bundesliga and could be the missing link in United's Midfield. He isn't the next Paul Scholes but he could add a boost of stability and speed of the rather tired legs we have seen in this season's United midfield Kicker reports that Shinji Kagawa flew to Manchester with his adviser Thomas Kroth on Monday night. United are rated favourites to land the midfielder after sports director Michael Zorc admitted Borussia Dortmund's bid to keep the Japan international has failed. "Shinji told us that he will definitely not renew his contract with us," Zorc informed Bild.

Name: ROBERT LOWANDOWSKI 

Age:    23

Team:  Borussia Dortmund

Position: Striker

Source: Various

      The Polish striker has like his teammate mentioned above captured managers' sights, especially after scoring a Hat-Trick in a 5-2 win againt Bayern Munchen in the German Cup Final, which incedentally Sir Alex happened to be watching. A striker in the form of Dimitar Berbatov is leaving Old Trafford, somebody needs to step in and the Polish is wonderful for that spot. Obviously he isn't as creative as the   Berba but he is quite something. "Dortmund's offer is not good enough," said Lewandowski's agent Maik Barthel. "I can confirm that United are interested." 

Name:  MATS HUMMELS

Age   : 23 

Team : Borussia Dortmund

Position: Central Defender

Source  : VArious

      Uniited's defence this year has been shaky this season. Rio's acceleration is a=not what it was and the Smalling and Evns lack of experience showed. Thus what better to have a German internstional to take clog a few holes. He's been impressive this season and is the last of the Dortmund trio to be associated with Dortmund. It's also reported that Hummels' father was invited to Manchester recently but Dortmund will only entertain the thought of Kagawa, who has a year left on his contract, leaving.

Name: LEIGHTON BAINES
Age   : 27
Team : Everton
Position: Left Back
Source: Daily Mirror 




       Another hole in United's defence apperared at the left back position with Patrice Evra struggling against wingers for majority of the campaign. Stats will tell you otherwise and will tell you he has been the best defender this season, but stats are not all reality. The Frenhman has still looked dangerous on the attack but defending he has lost out many times, most significantly in the 2-1 loss to Liverpool in the  F.A Cup. An English international could easily clog that hle, but it depends wheteher the Tofees manager David Moyes will sell.




Name: Eden Hazard
Age   :21
Team :Lille
Position: Attacking Midfielder
Source: Various


     The man with contradicting names has a choice to make, Red or Blue. However one thing's certain, it's going to be Manchester. The Belgium international has been the number 1 target in Mancini's books and United's name doesn't come up as often as City's, but United have interest and if the younster goes to the other side, it could be dangerous for the Reds. On 28 April, for the third consecutive season, Hazard was nominated for the UNFP Player of the Year award. Two weeks later, he was awarded the prestigious honour ahead of the likes of Olivier Giroud and Younès Belhanda. He was also in the team of the year for the third time. 


Name: Nicolas Gaitan
Age   : 24
Team :Benfica
Position : Attacking Midfielder
Source: Various
  
       Probably the most probable of all transfers, Gaitan has expressed his desire to be at the right side of Manchester, so much that at the time of this article's typing, Wikipedia shows Gaitan's current club as Manchester United. Probabilty of trasfer- 99.99%..........




This is all for this edition of transfer targets, see in one months time. We will keep you posted on any rumors floating in the world of football about United.....Bye for Now

Preview...UNITED VS EVERTON

Manchester United vs Everton

22nd April 2012

Old Trafford

Referee: Mike Jones 

• Wayne Rooney will go fourth in Manchester United's all-time goalscoring list if he scores two against his former club on Sunday. He will surpass the current joint-fourth-placed Old Trafford legends Dennis Viollet and George Best.

• Everton have not beaten the Red Devils on away soil in 18 top-flight matches. United have won 15 of those, drawing with the Toffees three times.

• 82 points - the current points tally of Sir Alex Ferguson’s side - is the highest they have ever had after 34 matches.

• David Moyes’ men have not lost in four consecutive league matches, taking 10 points from an available 12. However, their momentum was dented last weekend when Liverpool scored late to beat their Merseyside rivals 2-1 in their FA Cup semi-final.

• Although they lost both European matches at Old Trafford, United have won all seven of their games at the stadium since the turn of the year.

• As of Saturday morning, Rooney (24) is three goals behind Arsenal’s Robin van Persie (27) in the Premier League top goalscorer chart. The former Everton forward is on 31 in all competitions, eight ahead of Everton’s top goalscorer, Nikica Jelavic (23), who arrived at Goodison Park from Rangers in January.

• The Goodison Park club have conceded 34 times in the top-flight this season - only Manchester United and Manchester City have a better defensive record.

• That man again: Rooney has not scored in his last six Premier League games against the club he played for until 2004.
• Darren Gibson will make his return to Old Trafford after his winter move to the Tofees. 

Air CRASH INVESTIGATION..... MUNICH 58'

          The title can be touched now, and this article will say no more. United win, City lose, and United can just reply for their derby humiliation by winning the title at The Etihad three weeks from now. Ethihad by the way means United. 


"Whenever I go to the circus, I see clowns"

- Gary Neville in refrence to Mario Ballotelli's sending off. Te best part was Mario didn't even bother to            get off the pitch fast enough.

"Why Always Me? Take a look at yourself there Mario"

-Premier Sky Sports commentary.....the best since Neville's above crack"

Balotelli- 57 games 4 reds. Javier Zanetti for Inter - 700 games 1 red

Second chances

           The title race looks all wrapped up, but before you close this window because that is what you've heard of all week, be assured this blog is not going to be talking about it, just using it as a landmark for reference. This article just asks one clear cut question, and please comment.

            Is this season been all that successful? We know that it is a unproductive activity to cry over spilt milk, but is alright to ignore it totally by pretending water is a lovely substitute? It's hardly been an ideal season and being knocked out European competitions twice, and loosing to a lower division team in the League Cup has not exactly been United's thing the past decade. (Notable exception- 2005 European campaign).

             For starters, the European form has been nothing short of dreadful. There have been just three victories in 8+4 matches, and two of them against Romanian first timers, Oetul Galti, whose name no one seems sure how to pronounce. The other one was a 2-0 win against a young Ajax side, and in all fairness to the Erikssen inspired Dutchmen, they won the return leg at Old Trafford 2-1 but failed to go through on aggregate. That brings us to another huge blip in Europe, they have won only once at home, yeah, against Galati. They lost to Basel, Ajax, Bilbao while drawing against Benfica, twice. Their defence was shambolic and their two ties against Bilbao exposed them to the fullest. Rafael strong in the counter attack, was often rendered helpless at the back. (Case in point- he stood and watched a loose ball, that had rebounded from a fantastic De Gea save, and continued watching as the lurking Munian slotted it high.). Jones got his first goal in Europe, but against United. His lack of maturity showed in his positioning, and showed that comparisons to the OT legend, Duncan Edwards were highly overrated, , but as United just as yet. Ferdinand was dreadful in the Champions League but was in Europe's second tier, he was a little better. (He got a goal against as well.). De Gea was still learning in the the Champions League, and a string of exceptional performances by the Spaniard were not enough to keep United in.    
 
    The cup runs weren't all that glorious as the Reds lost 2-1 to a Crystal Palace side that won through an extra time header. Late goals are United's style not Palace's. The performance was so dreadful and that was certified by the fact that Sir Alex apologised publicly, and when Fergie apologises, all is not well in the United camp. Macheda was particularly poor, misplacing passes and at one point trying to control a routine ball only to knock it out for a throw-in. He was not alone, however. There was the embarrassing sight of Mame Biram Diouf being penalised for a foul throw. Fábio da Silva picked up a yellow card, could have given away a penalty and limped off injured. Rafael da Silva was also forced off, a sort of deja vu for those who have followed the Brazilians' careers. Dimitar Berbatov will be sent for scans after leaving Old Trafford with a protective cast on a foot.


      So even if United go on to win their 20th title, their 37th senior trophy under Sir Alex, is the season as pretty as it is made out to been. In all fairness to the Reds, they are a team in transition. To add to that, they missed their captain Vidic for an entire season, had a shadow of the old Evra in the left wing, had Anderson injured.  The Old Trafford faithful know patience as before the Ferguson era they had to wait 26 long years for a title, but Sir Alex came and changed all that, and that even a United team in transition is challenging arguably the best City team in the Premier League era stands testimony. United have survived departures of key players and seasons without key men, walking out of them with their heads held high. Winning has become part of their DNA, and that is what this season should be remembered for. A 3-3 comeback win against Chelsea, a last gasp Giggs goal against Norwich, and even though not every one woyld agree, the pure attacking urge in the 6-1 loss to Man City. 


     So this season may be one for the record books. Ryan Giggs becoming the player with most appearances, Giggs scoring every season of the premier league and Champions League, United winning their 20th title, Sir Alex becoming the longest serving manager, but the only thing that a football season ever signifies is with United there are always second chances, there is always next season.

Lawn Rov-ing

              Last minute business? Maybe. Excellent defending? Surely. The result we needed? Definitely. Three points from this game means we go 5 points clear of Man-City, and if potentially 8 by the end of the next weekend.

               Meanwhile rumours of City cracking up are everywhere, all that remains is those waving white flags. City showed that they still had spirit, coming back from 3-1 against Sunderland , to draw 3 all. But worryingly for City fans they also demonstrated why a clash of ego's was a collision waiting to happen. The City juggernaut appears to have applied the breaks, but that was not the only thing Nigel De Jong felt like breaking on that evening, following his feud with Mancini. (Yes we are talking about the cool, calm, collected composed and a work horse by nature, De Jong) Then Super Mario showed why he was still 'untrustable' in his managers words by having his mini argument with Kolorov on a set-piece just outside the box.

                United however are coolly ahead now. They had to work for it though. Throughout the first half the Reds found no penetration despite seeing 67% of possession. Blackburn in contrast had the only clear cut shots, 3 splendidly saved by the increasingly maturing De Gea. The second half nothing changed, and Hernandez continued his trend of wasting shots from the first half. The Mexican was soon substituted for Danny Welbeck. Also Paul Scholes came off for Ashley Young and Giggs came on for ex-Rovers man Phil Jones.
 
                 United suddenly turned up a few notches quite like against Norwich City a few matches back and soon Antonio Valencia had the ball at the back of the net after taking the ball along the wing.
5 minutes later Robinson was again picking the ball out of the goal, after Ashley Young curled a pristine shot just out the range of the Keeper.

                United ahead means manythings, not least a 20th title, and for the most Optimistic fan, the Reds could well lift the title at the Ethihad.(Titbit-----Ethihad means United)

We went, we saw and we got conquered.......

       It was always going to be an uphill task. The fact that we scored 1 was always going to be overshadowed by the the fact they scored 2. Even over two legs, they were the better team. United horrendus European form set up a farewell last night, not a very unexpected one, one even many of the most optimistic travelling supporters had braced themselves for. United got what they deserved, so did Athletic.

      There are always lessons to learn from every football match, whether you win or lose," Sir Alex told Channel 5. "It's disappointing more than anything. We haven't progressed in the Champions League and now we're out of the Europa League. I think the best team went through. I don't think we can complain." The best team did win and they did in style. One wondered how long Bilbao could continue their high tempo game.....and 90 minutes they lasted. In all fairness to United they had the ball for an equal time but most of it was in defense.


     United went behind in 23 minutes, as our man to watch, Llorente was unwatched and controlled the ball beautifully with a combo of chest, shoulder and leg and lashed a sublime volley into the goal. Remember the Van Persie goal against Everton, in december i think? This was Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V. Cleverly had a legit penalty claim rejected, and Llorente went out injured.


   Bilbao looked like scoring a few times in the opening stages in the first half, but United hung on until at the 65th when Iraola escaped on the right for the umpteenth time and delivered a centre that dropped at the feet of De Marcos, who should have put Bilbao ahead in the 14th minute only to slice horribly wide after Muniain's shot had come back off the upright. This time the midfielder made no mistake and slotted it home. Roo grabbed a consolation though as he curled a ball from his right after shrugging of his man. 


 United may win the League but the Old Trafford faithful would be reminded that in Europe they have won just 3 games this season and two of those were against Oetul Galati. Bilbao decided to put up quite a show for United, and got out this tie far far better they would have predicted after the draw. United have seen that they need to improve a lot, not to face Real Madrid, but even to face a team 33 points beneath Madrid in the Liga. 


  The sole solace is that this is a United team in transition, and to be fair United shouldn't even be there at the top of the Premier League, and they wouldn't if other teams around them hadn't collapsed so disastrously. The mighty Arsenal, the solid Chelsea, and Spurs who were once title contendors, all gone. 


    But this is a team in transition, so I'd say, well done.

Super Sunday....

      What could be better than a United victory you ask???? A City loss, of course. And when both happen on the same day, and when it means United go to of the table, the average United fan easily puts the mid-week Europa disappointment behind him.

        West-Bromwich Albion under Roy Hodson look this year to cement their first top 10 place Division one finish since the glory days against Ron Atkinson in the 1978-79 season where they finished fourth behind Arsenal, Aston Villa and Ipswich. The majority of this charge was based on their superb away form and they have won eight away games. United got an early reminder of why, as at the 6 minute mark, a ball from Ridgwell almost found the unmarked Keith Andrews who at full length, couldn't get to it. But the warning was far from a sign of things to come. United had firm control of possessions and save a Andrews low-freekick there was nothing to trouble the champions.

        Rooney continued his goal scoring form as a drive from Hernandez, which almost found Foster's hands, was diverted by the frontman into the far post, and unlike the last two United fixtures, United truly deserved to score the opener. As United went into the break ahead, in Wales City were being held by an impressive Swansea side, and as things stood United would go level on points with the leaders.

       The stats spoke all this match as United saw a whooping 65%. However the lack of clear cut chances was reflected by the fact that they had only 8 shots on target to their 23 attempts. Luck helped though as Albion were wrongly denied a penalty, and United later got one, which Rooney calmly converted to score his 25th of the season in all competitions. However Hernandez was denied by the woodwork and Welbeck by the woodwork but United still sailed to a comfortable victory. At the Liberty Stadium, Swans had won the match as late onslaughts from a lack luster City side failed to negate a late opener (85th minute) by late substitute Luke Moore.

  United go top of the table but still have a mountain to climb on Thursday as they must win by 2 clear goals against a Bilbao side that trampled them.

Beat.........again...

     Old Trafford wasn't the best place for an United fan last evening. The tactical plans (If they were any) were falling apart all over the pace, Bilbao were allowed to launch attack after attack, and Manchester United eventually lost. The Spanish side were allowed a firm grasp on United's jugular throughout the match and bit in, not once but thrice.

    The side from Bilbao started the first half on the front foot and United left huge, massive gaps on the pitch uncovered, supplementing Athletic's penetration. To be fair to United, they did launch some pretty good counter attacks, and one of them lead to a goal by Wayne Rooney. The whole move was orchestrated  by Ryan Giggs who played the game in the middle of the park, but I'll get to that later. The Welshman probed into the final third, and played a splendid ball to Hernandez who swerved away from his marker and fired a low shot intended for the bottom corner. Iraizov got to it but couldn't recollect the rebound and Rooney took it in it stride to guide the ball into the net.

    Bilbao weren't demotivated, no sir. They started where they'd left of. Their quick movement proved to quick for United. Which brings this blogger to his point. Why did Sir Alex field Giggs and Park in the central mid-field position? Admittedly they are experienced, but they are slow, and against a faster three they were no match and they proved it. And as the play shifted across the field, the whole structure of United's central mid-field swayed. So did the defence, except they didn't sway, they just kept breaking. De Gea, probably United's man of the match for a few games now was the only string that prevented from Athletic handing out a real hammering.

  But even the Spaniard couldn't help when his compatriot Llorente collected the ball at the edge of the penalty area, played it wide, and ran it to convert the incoming, resulting cross, helped Bilbao comeback on level terms.

  United's attacks still had the sting in attack though and almost scored a few times themselves. Ferguson's half time team talk helped a little as United slowly saw more of the ball. More, but not enough. Athletic were still allowed to keep up their tiki-taka and in the stroke of the hour, they scored and this time through De Marcus who was offside but not given.

  United suddenly had more of the ball, but just like time and time again this season, they lacked the finishing edge. But then the tide turned as Bilbao were given a free kick in their half due to Patrice Evra's boot flying off.  Instead of customarily playing it to the keeper, the side from Spain who had been exemplary all evening decided to keep the ball.....This blogger feels that was an utter disgrace to their performance........But anyway De Marcos got it and drove it at De Gea and the shot stopper did what he does best, saved it. But Rafael who should have cleared it assumed that the Spaniard would recollect himself in a split second and reclaim the rebound, and the lurking Munian took advantage and put Athletico 3-1 ahead. United did get a Rooney goal from a penalty but have plenty to improve if they are to get to the quarter finals, which going by their European form this yer, they probably won't.

Man to Watch......

Fernando Llorente Torres......

Though born in Pamplona, Navarre, Llorente grew up in the municipality of Rincón de Soto in La Rioja. He joined Athletic de Bilbao's youth system in 1996, at the age of 11, being eligible through his Navarrese roots (Bilbao takes players of only Bilbao roots!). After many seasons in the junior levels, he joined Athletic's feeder club that played in the Fourth Division, CD Baskonia. He played 33 games and scored 12, thus earning a promotion to Bilbao Athletic, the team's reserve squad in the Third Division. He scored 4 in 16 games and was awarded a contract extension. On 16 January 2005, he made his first-team - and La Liga - debut in a 1–1 home draw against RCD Espanyol. Three days later, in a Copa del Rey match with UD Lanzarote, he scored a hat-trick in a 6–0 victory.


   This season the mid-fielder has been a big threat and in one spurt of form in the end of January he scored a hat-trick before getting a brace just 4 days later. He then scored once in the next game and netted twice in the next. In 29 appearances for the club, he has scored 19 times, 2 of them in Europe. The in-form mid-fielder is our man to watch over the two legs....

The Charge

-Rahul

The marathon is ending. The participants are tiring, and it is now or never for the two horses at front of the pack. They can’t afford to slip up but in the end, it is inevitable. Only one can get the prize, from now on it is pure jungle law, Survival of the Fittest.

   United and City at the end of last season would not have imagined themselves at this position. United surely had never expected City to turn from F.A Cup winners to Title contenders and thus title rivals in the space of lesser than a season. The city derby has never been this huge. The next time they lock horns (April 30^th ) could be the decider on which way the title is going to go.

     United’s win against third placed Tottenham showed that the champions don’t have to have to be at their best to drill out an result from even clashes of highest profile. 3-1 the score line said but like many times this season, scorelines hardly told the tale. Spurs had 52% possession and most of the game took place in United’s half. They had 18 goal attempts to United’s 6. The stand out factor was however that they only had a Shots On Target to Attempts ratio of 1:3 (33%) while United had a ratio of 5:6 (a whooping 83%). Even more significant was the clinical finishing. United converted 3 of their 5 shots on target to goals while Spurs could manage only 1 off their 6.

  This clinical finishing showed that United were still favorites to keep the trophy at The Theatre of Dreams. Another factor that could complement United’s title charge is the difficulty or rather ease of the final sprint. United have played all of the top 6 twice except City who they play on April 30^th. This means that they face only lower table teams in the final run-in. City on the other hand have to face Arsenal, Chelsea, Newcastle and Liverpool again.

  MANCHESTER UNITED FIXTURE LIST TILL THE END OF THE SEASON………(City’s?.......well it’s just tougher)

Date	Competition	Team
8th March	Europa	Athletic Bilbao
11th March	Premier League	West Bromwich Albion
15th March	Europa	Athletic Bilbao
18th March	Premier League	Wolves
26th March	Premier League	Fulham
29th March	Europa*	QF*
2nd April	Premier League	Blackburn Rovers
5th April	Europa*	QF Leg2*
8th April	Premier League	QPR
11th April	Premier League	Wigan
15th April	Premier League	Aston Villa
19th April	Europa*	SF *
22nd April	Premier League	Everton
26th April	Europa*	SF Leg2*
30th April	Premier League	MANCHESTER CITY
6th May	Premier League	Swansea
9th May	Europa*	FINAL*
13th May	Premier League	Suderland

Obviously, the closeness between Europa and League ties can have a huge impact on the team’s performance especially if United face City in any of those European ties. If it not the final, the winners of that clash will go into the April clash as favorites on paper, but with these two paper seldom matters.

 Another possibility is that even before the 30^th one of these juggernauts will falter. The more probable one to slip looks to be City, largely due to their fixture list, but as United have proved on previous occasions this season, they are not to be trusted.

 Unprectibality is thus a big factor this title race. 11 games lest in the season and the Manchester clubs look to be the only contenders. The eyes of the world will be on them; the season will be defined by how they capitalize on their opportunity. United however have been there more recently and thus are favorites…But things change, so don’t count depend on that ‘favorite’ tag for too long…Things are about to get interesting………..