View Single Post
  #2  
Old 26-11-2006, 08:58 PM
qbdp's Avatar
qbdp qbdp is offline
Samster
 
Join Date: Apr 2004
Location: Milk Bar
Posts: 1,249
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
My Reputation: Points: 172 / Power: 20
qbdp is a Helpful and Caring Samsterqbdp is a Helpful and Caring Samster
Re: Manchester United's Headliners, Articles and Rumours

United can inflict lasting wound

Whether or not Chelsea succeed in their stated aim of overtaking Manchester United off the pitch as the biggest club in the world, they managed to eclipse them on the field the moment Roman Abramovich took control of Stamford Bridge on a day, heavy with symbolism, that also saw David Beckham leave Old Trafford.

Abramovich must have thought that United, who had just wrestled back the Premiership title from Arsenal and made more money than any other club on the planet, were his greatest threat.

Instead, the challenge to the new order was led by Arsene Wenger's thinly resourced but wondrously talented Arsenal side, while United picked up a couple of domestic cups as consolations.

Only in January, after their humiliation in the Champions League by Benfica sobered up the club from top to bottom, did United look like the challenge to Abramovich they ought to have been. Tomorrow, they meet at Old Trafford with United capable of inflicting a lasting wound on the champions.

"In the last two years Chelsea have been in a fantastic position, nine and 10 points ahead of us," the United manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, said yesterday. "We did our best last season in terms of coming in with a late run but we were not quick enough out of the box at the start of the season. This time we are in front and have the prospect of going six points clear and have them chase us." When asked how Chelsea might respond to that, his face split into a wry grin. "Well, they might go out and buy six players."

That might cause Jose Mourinho more problems than it solves. Chelsea may be a less fluent force this season because Mourinho is attempting to shoehorn Michael Ballack and Andrei Shevchenko into an already successful unit and Ferguson reiterated his belief that this season their priority had to be the European Cup rather than a third Premiership title.

United's squad is rather weaker and is unlikely to be significantly strengthened in the January transfer window. There is an acceptance at Old Trafford that they are unlikely to land either of their principal targets, Owen Hargreaves from Bayern Munich and Fernando Torres from Atletico Madrid. And although Ferguson's first XI is man for man as talented as anything Mourinho can field on a football pitch and is playing rather better, they cannot afford major injuries.

This season United have faltered at Crewe, Southend and Copenhagen. In all these matches Ferguson put his trust in his reserve players and found them wanting. Tuesday night's defeat at Parkhead was, however, inflicted on a virtually full-strength side.

"When you lose a game, you sometimes need to go into the dressing room and address some things," Ferguson said. "I didn't have to do that this time because we played exceptionally well.

"What they did was forget they were playing in a competition against an opponent. They started to enjoy it, relax, controlled the match and lost it. What can you say in that situation?"

Nevertheless, given their reliance on Louis Saha, comments by the Celtic captain, Neil Lennon, that Gary Neville had confided in him that the Frenchman's "head had gone" would have been disturbing. "I don't give much credence to Lennon's comments," said Ferguson. "The Celtic players were high on adrenalin and got carried away."

Head-to-head battles

Michael Carrick v Frank Lampard
Still to properly show his Tottenham form for United, Carrick needs a good game against his England team-mate. As a holding midfielder, he must keep an eye out for his opponent's clever runs before trying to set the tempo when he gets the ball himself. Suspended for the Champions League defeat to Werder Bremen, Lampard should be full of running from the word go. Interesting to see if Sir Alex Ferguson bolsters that area to avoid getting over-run.

Nemanja Vidic v Didier Drogba

Sore ankle permitting, Drogba is central to Chelsea's attacking threat. If the muscular forward is on song, Vidic will need every ounce of his undoubted fighting qualities to combat his man. Rio Ferdinand, of course, must play his part too. Their ever-improving partnership doesn't leak many goals. For Vidic, however, this is fairly new territory. He'll certainly be hoping things go better than his only other experience of Chelsea, last April's 3-0 thumping at Stamford Bridge.

Cristiano Ronaldo v Ashley Cole

Always a cracking contest, this, dating back to the night when England's left-back stood up magnificently to the threat posed by Portugal's flying winger at Euro 2004. Ronaldo is in great form, showing more consistency for United than ever before, and will be keen to come out on top in this thoroughbred duel. Yet if Cole can repeat his Lisbon heroics he will go a long way towards helping Chelsea avoid defeat.
__________________
iGod