Manchester United

[Jing-jo]

Yo redrus

what has happened to Rio?

bl...ood..y good goal

I really thought he had screwed it up with his first touch

maybe he should take van the mans position as the ugliest Man utd scorer besides the obvious choice poor old now departed luke chadwick

it's so nice to beat the wife regularly

her team that is ;-P after all she is a southern scouser

[muckypups]

Perfect.. I somehow resisted the temptation to jump on the Liverpool thread and crow but I must say; great result...

I was very impressed with the team as a whole and delighted to see Vidic and Evra improving with every game.. Rio with a screamer!? and Scholesy, 500 games, a goal, and man of the match.. What more could we want...(apart from the title and Champions League trophy in May that is..)

[redrus]

Fookin get in....!

redrus

[meatgrowler]

no one cares!

stop writing to yourself!

Thankyou for caring and taking the time to post and, don't be so sore.

For every United fan that is in this world and, there are a few, there are another 5 that hate us. You all care, thats why you hate United, cos no-one cares about your club.... :D

Thankyou, and congratulations for being the subject of my 2000th post, I always knew you were special....

just watched the mighty red devils devore the pathetic fake scouse reds,cmon the ferdinand,position change soon for him and the non firing roondog......man u forever xxxx

redrus

[redrus]

Top man Growler....

redrus

[redrus]

Manchester United 2 Liverpool 0

Match report for today's home win in the early kick-off versus Liverpool

Watching England manager Steve McClaren must be hoping against hope that someone somewhere can persuade Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes to return to international football.

While Liverpool skipper and current England international Steven Gerrard floundered like a fish out of water, Scholes stamped his authority on a game the Reds of Manchester dominated.

It was Scholes' 500th appearance for United and, following his 20th European goal against FC Copenhagen at Old Trafford on Tuesday, he hit the target for the 132nd time for the Red Devils six minutes before the break.

Liverpool failed to clear Gary Neville's cross from the right. Wayne Rooney pounced to lay the ball to Ryan Giggs on the left of the Liverpool box and his cross saw Scholes connect with the ball eight yards out.

Although Liverpool goalkeeper Jose Reina blocked the initial effort, Scholes followed up to jab the ball home, leaving defender Sami Hyypia in his wake.

United effectively tied up the points after 65 minutes.

Giggs' cross from the left edge of the Liverpool box found Louis Saha, but Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher charged in to clear.

Unfortunately for Liverpool, the ball broke to Rio Ferdinand marauding on the right side of the penalty area.

The England defender, who scored the first goal of his United career in the corresponding fixture in January, collected the ball before side-stepping John Arne Riise before scoring with a sweet left-foot shot into far top corner of the net from ten yards.

It was no more than United deserved.

Liverpool's attempt to stifle United with a packed midfield was successful for the opening 20 minutes.

But slowly, United began to loosen the vice-like grip.

Reina did well to push away Saha's snapshot after the Nemanja Vidic headed on a Michael Carrick corner.

In the 24th minute, Reina did well to keep out a fierce 20-yard drive from Saha following good work by Giggs.

Liverpool, playing with Dirk Kuyt as a lone striker, created their only real chance of the game on the half hour.

Mark Gonzalez's deep cross from the left byline was met by Kuyt eight yards out at the far post, but his header went straight at United goalkeeper Edwin Van der Sar.

Scholes' goal opened up the game and Reina was forced to throw himself across goal to tip behind Saha's fierce 25-yard shot after 42 minutes.

United dominated the second half.

Saha went close with a shot from the edge of the Liverpool penalty area three minutes after the re-start.

United's second goal saw them tighten their grip on the game.

Liverpool, who had brought on Jermaine Pennant for Gonzalez in the 52nd minute, replaced Xabi Alonso with Peter Crouch 20 minutes from the end.

But the England man's only real contribution was a foul on Van der Sar which earned him a booking from referee Graham Poll.

United created a number of half-chances as they sought to rub salt into the Liverpool wounds.

But their best chance came in the 72nd minute when a mesmerizing run by Giggs saw him beat four men when he jinked across the Liverpool penalty area before chipping his shot from ten yards narrowly over the bar.

The result took United back to the top of the Premiership and they are now 11 points above a Liverpool side which will struggle to finish in the top four.

redrus

[nev]

great result had a feeling we might come unstuck in this game,but the lads did us proud.

[muckypups]

This from the Guardian.. suggest tranquilisers for any scousers bothering to read it..

United leave Liverpool's title hopes in tatters

Kevin McCarra at Old Trafford

Monday October 23, 2006

The Guardian

Liverpool's damage-limitation tactics merely ensured that their Premiership hopes were reduced to rubble. As Manchester United eased themselves back to the top of the table it was clear that the visitors, 11 points behind, are no nearer mounting a bid for the title. Despite their summer spending, it proves to be Sir Alex Ferguson's team who are developing a challenge to Chelsea.

As if success over Liverpool were not enough, United could relish an opener by Paul Scholes, on his 500th appearance for the club, and a spectacular clincher by Rio Ferdinand. This kind of command is rejuvenating and the veteran Ryan Giggs was to be seen capering boyishly past opponent after opponent inside the penalty area during one second-half surge.

There are no clues as to where Liverpool will discover revitalisation. Questioning of Rafael Benítez is approached tentatively, in view of achievements at Anfield and the Mestalla that have already made him one of the most prominent coaches of modern times, but you do wonder if tacticians, just like footballers, suffer from loss of form.

Travels in the Premiership keep taking Liverpool down culs-de-sac. Four consecutive away fixtures in the league have now been lost and 380 minutes have passed since they last scored a domestic goal on the road, their penalty equaliser at Sheffield United on opening day.

Dominant as United were, Liverpool kept on catching the eye in this defeat for the resounding wretchedness of their display. It was virtually an aberration that it could have been Benítez's team who opened the scoring, when an unmarked Dirk Kuyt rose to a Mark González cross after half an hour, but he bounced his header softly into the hands of Edwin van der Sar. When United bubbled with initiative it underlined just how inert Liverpool were.

As befitted a landmark occasion for the midfielder, Scholes' goal was absolutely characteristic of him. The fact that it was so familiar must also be treated as an indictment of the opposition. As he glanced a header to Wayne Rooney in the 39th minute, either Sami Hyypia or Momo Sissoko could have stuck with him but did not. When Giggs laid a cross to the edge of the area, Pepe Reina could only half-block his finish and Scholes forced the ball into the net.

Ferdinand's finish was a show-stopper. Giggs crossed from the left and Jamie Carragher's challenge on Louis Saha helped the ball on towards the far post. It was tamed by the centre-half who then cut back inside John Arne Riise before sweeping a left-foot drive across Reina and high into the net. This was a moment of euphoria, particularly since verve like that is supposed to be alien to a defender, but it probably would not have mattered if Ferdinand had perpetrated a terrible scuff.

Any lead would have been irrecoverable when Liverpool conducted themselves like this. United might have scored on other occasions, particularly when the roving Saha was at his most animated prior to the interval and drew an outstanding save from Reina with a 20-yarder in the 42nd minute.

United impressed in a variety of ways. Cristiano Ronaldo was kept on the bench because of illness, but the comparatively staid Darren Fletcher made the most of his opportunity to appear instead. He was energetic, dependable in his distribution and showed the occasional touch of menace that comes from a player having his best season at the club.

No such contentment exists at Liverpool, for whom all days are currently off-days when they have to travel in the Premiership. The focus has generally been on Benítez's constant alterations to the line-up, but his battle plan for the side was a greater worry at Old Trafford. He had two holding players and a trio of other midfielders ahead of them, yet their presence was never felt in the centre of the pitch, where only United's passes had a purpose.

Liverpool had no means to go on the attack and despite the numbers in midfield, no sense of security either. Steven Gerrard gave a miserable showing towards the right and it was perverse that a more central role could be assigned to the mundane Louis García. Despite that one telling cross to Kuyt, González was too flustered and rash to tax United.

Whatever Benítez had in mind, the impression was conveyed that he had staked everything on achieving a goalless draw. Once Scholes had broken the deadlock the only change in Liverpool's approach was a deterioration in standards which had been scrappy from the outset. Benítez has now lost on all three of his Premiership trips to this ground.

The attendance of 75,828 was the largest ever to watch United at Old Trafford. The home fans saw a solid win, with the promise of better to come. It can only have been loyalty that stopped Liverpool followers from turning their backs.

Man of the match Paul Scholes (Manchester United)

[mrbojangles]

I'm gonna start watching Ice Hockey. Come on Manchester Storm.

Can we start an Ice Hockey forum

[redrus]

I'm gonna start watching Ice Hockey. Come on Manchester Storm.

Can we start an Ice Hockey forum

Can you not just be graceful and admit we were bleedin great.

I'm the first to admit when even teams I hate with a passion have played out of they're skins, like we did....!

redrus

[mrbojangles]

Can you not just be graceful and admit we were bleedin great.

I didn't watch it Red, so can't really comment on the performance.

My comment on Ice Hockey, was due to my current lack of interest in football cos of our shower of <deleted>

[redrus]

Can you not just be graceful and admit we were bleedin great.

I didn't watch it Red, so can't really comment on the performance.

My comment on Ice Hockey, was due to my current lack of interest in football cos of our shower of <deleted>

I know..............

redrus

[redrus]

GLAZER WON'T SPEAK

By redissue

Tuesday 24th October 2006

No surprise there then

IMUSA and MUST are concerned by the lack of response from the Glazers after a letter was sent to them asking for a meeting.

The letter was issued by Sports Minister Richard Caborn in March this year following dialogue with the Independent Manchester United Supporters Association, who were expressing their concerns at Glazer's £790million buy-out.

IMUSA are increasingly concerned at the direction of the club, especially now directors Nick Humby and Andy Anson have tendered their resignations, which will take effect from February.

"We are astonished that a written request, that was then followed up with a telephone reminder, made by the Minister for Sport in Tony Blair's government to the owners of a Premier League football club for them to meet with representatives of the fans of their team, has not even been given the courtesy of a reply," said an IMUSA statement.

"Given the amount of time that now elapsed since this request was made, it now seems unlikely one ever will be."

IMUSA accept that Glazer, who suffered two strokes earlier this year, may not be well enough to make the trans-Atlantic trip.

However, they note business at Old Trafford appears to be continuing as normal, with a family spokesman last week suggesting United were in a robust financial shape, and cannot see why at least one member of the Glazer household could not make time in their schedule merely to answer the letter.

"If the family spokesman is to be believed, the business is thriving," continued the statement.

"We therefore do not understand, given the gravity of a written request from a Minister of State, why no other member of the Glazer family has assumed responsibility for responding to Mr Caborn's letter.

"IMUSA does not believe the Glazer family has a serious interest in communicating with fans' organisations and we feel that this shows just how far removed football is from the 'People's Game' it was once intended to be."

redrus

[redrus]

FERGUSON HAPPY WITH MIDFIELD

Tuesday 24th October 2006

The blend seems to be right so far.

Ferguson is happy with his current midfield especially after Sunday's win against the vermin.

"Michael Carrick was fantastic (oh yeah....?) and he and Paul gave us composure in the match. In the really big games you need the composure and with Ryan Giggs using his experience as well, I thought those three were fantastic.

"With the workrate of Darren Fletcher as well, I thought the midfield was an important component of the team."

United failed in their opening major test against potential Premiership rivals when they were beaten at home to Arsenal last month and his pre-match rallying call was not to let it happen again.

"I said we couldn't afford to lose a big one again and the players responded to that with their performance. It was excellent," Sir Alex added.

"The belief is there that we can win the title. It is a growing belief. We started the season with the hope, desire and intention to do well this season and so far the players haven't let us down. There is a good appetite and a great confidence.

"I would not dismiss Liverpool's chances at all but at this moment all I am looking at is United to give it a real go."

redrus

[redrus]

I DON'T WANT GOALS

Tuesday 24th October 2006

I want the league title

Wayne Rooney has said that his lack of goals this season is not a concern for him while the team is playing so well

"I'm not really concerned about not scoring,"

"I know what my job is for the team and I feel like I'm doing good enough.

"I'm getting better in each game but the most important thing is the team's doing well. That's all that matters.

"Chelsea have raised the bar of the last couple of seasons.

"They've been consistent and have won a lot of matches and everyone has had to raise their game to match them.

"But I think people are now starting to realise they can be beaten and other teams are starting to have a go at them.

"I think the title will go down to the wire."

He also wants Steven Gerrard to come to Old Trafford.

"He's probably the driving force at Liverpool and he is one of the best midfielders in the world," he added. "I think if Liverpool lost him they wouldn't be half the team they are with him.

"I can't really describe him because there isn't another player like him. I'd love to see him come to United but I don't think that will ever happen!"

redrus

[redrus]

BECKS LOVES FERGUSON

Tuesday 24th October 2006

He also misses United.

From the Guardian;

David Beckham has given his strongest hint yet that he would be prepared to bury the hatchet with Sir Alex Ferguson, opening up the possibility of a return to Old Trafford in the summer should Manchester United want him. Beckham's contract expires on June 30, 2007, when he will become available on a free transfer, aged 32.

While Real Madrid's president, Ramón Calderón, has insisted on numerous occasions that Beckham is close to signing a new deal, it is extremely unlikely that there will be any agreement before January 1, when Beckham will officially be free to talk to other clubs.

Despite Beckham's public declarations of commitment to Real Madrid, formal negotiations over a new deal simply never took place over two years of false starts and institutional chaos at Real Madrid. When talks did finally begin this month, it became clear that an important financial gap separated the two camps. Beckham has now started only one of the last six games and last weekend admitted he was growing frustrated at the Bernabéu.

"I love playing football and if I don't do that, I can't be happy," Beckham said. "I feel frustrated as a footballer. I go over it again and again and can't find an explanation. It's really hard when I don't play and I feel sad every day. My future doesn't depend on [Fabio] Capello but if he says I am not going to play, then that's different."

With Capello privately insisting that he sees Beckham as no more than a squad player, the Englishman's departure looks more likely than ever. The question now is where he could go. Ferguson's continued presence at Old Trafford has always been considered the greatest impediment to Beckham making a return to United.

Beckham has also praised Ferguson's coaching style, insisting that Madrid can succeed with Capello precisely because of his similarities to the Scot. "I like Capello because he is the coach who is most like Ferguson," he said. "He is strict in training, in the team hotel in the preparation for matches, in everything. That is how I like things to be."

"It's difficult to explain the lack of success [at Madrid] but sometimes if you are not a team then it is difficult. I was at Manchester United for 15 years and every day, in every game, every season we were a team. We won together and we lost together."

Beckham added: "Going out to eat together is very important and we don't do it enough at Madrid. At United we used to go out together every fortnight - all the players eating together, even including Ferguson and all the coaching staff sometimes. But here it is different. In the three years I have been here we have only done it four times."

redrus

[redrus]

Paul McGrath on United, suicide and booze

An interview with Paul McGrath from the Guardian

As we go down into the darkness, sinking towards the depths of Paul McGrath's harrowing story, everything slows and tilts until it seems as if we are looking out at the world through the bottom of an empty bottle. Even the name of the swish hotel in Birmingham, where the battered old Irish footballer talks so movingly of his lost life, reminds us of his demons. In the bar of the Hotel du Vin, among elegant decor punctuated by row upon row of green and black bottles, all uncorked and drained of champagne and wine, the 46-year-old alcoholic licks his lips and asks for a sparkling water.

McGrath looks what he is - a man trying to stay "dry" in a place of pitiless temptation, a man who uses the word "well" time after time to nail the life-saving need for him to stay sober. The big defender cackles softly when I suggest that the publishers of his gripping book, Back From The Brink, might have opted for a more sensitive venue for this interview. His unflinching autobiography, after all, is more concerned with a life ruined by alcoholism than celebrating his once dazzling football career. "I did notice all the bottles when I came in," McGrath says, "but drink is everywhere now. If you tried to hide from it when you're feeling well I don't think you'd be solving anything."

His story is as complex as it is moving, as vulnerable as it is brutal. For a while, even though he is by far the most thoughtful and likeable footballer I have ever met, we seem unsure where to begin. But this mutual shyness helps, allowing McGrath to ease himself into talking deeply rather than rattling through a list of questions which want him to explain glibly how an illustrious career, culminating in two World Cup finals tournaments for the Republic of Ireland and the 1993 PFA Player of the Year award, was framed by alcoholism, two divorces and four attempts to end his life.

The first of those failed suicides came in 1989, soon after he and Sir Alex Ferguson had fallen out for the last time and Manchester United sold him to Aston Villa. "I was in trouble with the club," McGrath says. "I'm drunk and ashamed, on the edge of my bed, and reaching for the knife. I remember the blood pouring across the floor and the screaming of the nanny looking after our boys."

His first wife, Claire, the mother of his three eldest sons, rushed home before the ambulance arrived. She knelt in front of her sobbing husband and tried to ask him what was wrong. It was the first time she had seen him cry, and the sounds falling from his mouth spoke of a new horror.

McGrath, however, now steps back from the feud with Ferguson which resulted in his transfer to Villa. "We were on a collision course, me and Alex, because he was out to seize control of the club by barking at everyone. He had me and Norman in the office all the time, shouting and fining us, but it didn't work. We were injured a lot of the time and we'd be at a loss after rehabilitation work in the morning, so inevitably we'd end up on a bar-stool in the afternoon saying, 'Aw, let's just go for it.'

"I'd had lots of knee operations by then and Alex thought, 'Hang on, this is a drinker with rotten knees . . . ' He was right and, if I'd been him, I'd have kicked me and Norman out a long time before then. He saved me in a way. When he let me go to Villa something welled up in me and I wanted to prove I could really play. The next five years, whenever Villa played United, we walked past each other in the corridor. And then we beat United in the [1994] League Cup final and, afterwards, Alex put his hand out and said, 'Well done, big man.' It made me wish I had gone up to him first."

Three years later an ageing McGrath, almost crippled in the knees and by the drink, was voted man of the match at Old Trafford during a shock victory for Jim Smith and McClaren's Derby County over a title-chasing United. Ferguson remembers turning to his assistant, Brian Kidd, and saying: "You have to wonder what a player McGrath should have been." He also believes that "Paul had similar problems to George Best [but] he was without doubt the most natural athlete in football you could imagine".

The reasons for McGrath's turmoil are plain. Born to a white Dublin girl, Betty McGrath, and a Nigerian father who disappeared soon after his conception, Paul was given up by his traumatised mother when he was only four weeks old. She had travelled in secret to London to have her illegitimate child - terrified that her father would find out she had become pregnant or, even worse, that she had slept with a black man. His mother would eventually track him down again, but McGrath - then called Paul Nwobilo - was still shunted from one orphanage to another.

"I would be the only black child in my class and when it came to history and they started to talk about Africa I would just shrink. I'd pray it would go as quick as possible - and that seems such a shame because I'm so interested in history these days. I'm close to my mum now, and she is a real witty old Dublin woman, but I guess when you look back there are reasons for my troubles."

His subsequent drinking never really stopped and was eventually joined by another addiction - to tranquillisers. They were used for another suicide attempt, in 1997, and yet little can prepare us for his further revelation that "towards the end of my second marriage I was so desperate for a drink that, when the cupboards were empty, I filled a pint glass with Domestos. I drank it in one and went upstairs and waited - for oblivion or death."

McGrath was suddenly filled with terror and spent the next hour drinking water in an effort to drench the terrible burning. He managed to get himself to hospital, where it was found that, miraculously, his internal organs had been relatively unscathed.

In a Manchester prison cell for the night McGrath "hit a new low. But then the shutter on the door slid back and this police officer says 'Paul, I used to watch you on the Stretford End. You were a hero of mine. I hope you get well'. Even in my quivering state, I knew someone was again trying to be decent."

For all the grisly details, I also find something irreducibly decent in Paul McGrath. He only wavers briefly when asked how long it's been since he stopped drinking. "A few months now," he says. "It might not sound that long - but it is to me." Yet I had heard that earlier this month he had checked himself into a clinic in Wexford, in Ireland, where he now lives.

"Well," McGrath hesitates, "I haven't really said to anyone where I've been. To be honest I don't want people to have to answer questions about me but, yes, I did go in somewhere and I got a lot of great help. There are special people around me in Ireland. I turn to them when I need support."

Wow. I will be making a trip to purchase Paul's book. It doesn't matter who you are, we can all suffer....

redrus

[redrus]

MATCH VIEW FROM THE BROADSHEETS

THE INDIE

A quiet man, but, in matches like these, capable of the most eloquent statements. Paul Scholes' 500th match for Manchester United, and the decisive first goal, may elicit little more than a shrug from a man who keeps his true self hidden deep away, but for the Premiership itself it was an outcome that spoke loud.

Not so much about United whose win, adorned with a fine second goal from Rio Ferdinand, takes them to the top on goal difference, but certainly for Liverpool. They are 11 points adrift of United and Chelsea and hopelessly off the pace barely three months into a season that promised so much. Are they out of title contention? Rafael Benitez seemed to indicate not, but his post-match ramblings betrayed the pressure as another Premiership season threatens to crumple before the leaves on autumn trees.

The most chilling factor for Benitez will be the recognition that United did not have to play exceptionally well to beat their bitter old enemy, although certain individuals thrived. None more so than Scholes, whose afternoon began with a presentation to mark his 500th game for the club, a silver salver handed over by Sir Bobby Charlton that he slipped back on to the table almost as quickly as he has been known to palm off the captain's armband.

That is the way with Scholes, not one for ceremony or grandstanding, which is why they cherish him so much at Old Trafford. Asked later about the significance of the day he struggled to show anything approaching enthusiasm for much beyond the result.

"It was quite special," he said, "but if it's your 500th or your first match for United, it's a big thing. It doesn't make much difference." That might even count as hyperbole in Scholes' world; he certainly needed prising out of the changing rooms to speak about his achievement. "That was a big day for us," he said, "we had to beat Liverpool to stay up with Chelsea."

Scholes may have been surprised at how meekly those three points were handed over. It never became one of those bloodthirsty battles fuelled by hatred in the stands - even Gary Neville would have struggled to find the enthusiasm for a fist-pumping, badge-clutching salute.

Liverpool rarely turn up at Old Trafford just to lie down and die but that was distinctively their mood yesterday. Benitez said later that Scholes' first goal six minutes before the interval had been decisive, that afterwards it had "become difficult to score." He was without Craig Bellamy and there will surely be changes for the visit of Aston Villa on Saturday but then he is no stranger to that, this being the 97th consecutive line-up that he has changed from the previous game.

THE TIMES

They presented paul Scholes with a silver salver before kick-off yesterday to mark his 500th appearance for Manchester United, although the midfield player barely noticed. He glanced at it, passed it straight to a club official and probably needed reminding to take it home.

Perhaps it has found use as a frisbee for the kids or a saucer for the family cat because Scholes, as we know, does not exactly revel in personal accolades. "It didn’t really make much difference," he said of the milestone occasion, giving no hint of emotion in those flat Oldham vowels.

Scholes’s attitude is extreme — particularly when a man-of-the-match display and the opening goal gave him plenty to smile about — but it should, perhaps, have served as an example in restraint for everyone connected with United. Any victory over their Merseyside rivals is to be joyously celebrated (over to you, Gary Neville) but it might be wise to wait until November 26, when Chelsea visit Old Trafford, before we predict with any certainty that Sir Alex Ferguson will still be matching José Mourinho stride for stride in six months’ time.

Lest we forget, United’s previous test against one of the top four had finished in failure against Arsenal. Yesterday they won comfortably to leapfrog Chelsea and reclaim top spot in the Barclays Premiership, but overcoming Liverpool brings nothing more than the regulation three points given the slowing — some might say reversing — in the Rafa-lution. There is no added kudos for beating a side who sit only two points ahead of Manchester City, where Stuart Pearce clings a little precariously to his job.

THE GUARDIAN

Liverpool's damage-limitation tactics merely ensured that their Premiership hopes were reduced to rubble. As Manchester United eased themselves back to the top of the table it was clear that the visitors, 11 points behind, are no nearer mounting a bid for the title. Despite their summer spending, it proves to be Sir Alex Ferguson's team who are developing a challenge to Chelsea.

As if success over Liverpool were not enough, United could relish an opener by Paul Scholes, on his 500th appearance for the club, and a spectacular clincher by Rio Ferdinand. This kind of command is rejuvenating and the veteran Ryan Giggs was to be seen capering boyishly past opponent after opponent inside the penalty area during one second-half surge.

There are no clues as to where Liverpool will discover revitalisation. Questioning of Rafael Benítez is approached tentatively, in view of achievements at Anfield and the Mestalla that have already made him one of the most prominent coaches of modern times, but you do wonder if tacticians, just like footballers, suffer from loss of form.

Travels in the Premiership keep taking Liverpool down culs-de-sac. Four consecutive away fixtures in the league have now been lost and 380 minutes have passed since they last scored a domestic goal on the road, their penalty equaliser at Sheffield United on opening day.

Dominant as United were, Liverpool kept on catching the eye in this defeat for the resounding wretchedness of their display. It was virtually an aberration that it could have been Benítez's team who opened the scoring, when an unmarked Dirk Kuyt rose to a Mark González cross after half an hour, but he bounced his header softly into the hands of Edwin van der Sar. When United bubbled with initiative it underlined just how inert Liverpool were.

As befitted a landmark occasion for the midfielder, Scholes' goal was absolutely characteristic of him. The fact that it was so familiar must also be treated as an indictment of the opposition. As he glanced a header to Wayne Rooney in the 39th minute, either Sami Hyypia or Momo Sissoko could have stuck with him but did not. When Giggs laid a cross to the edge of the area, Pepe Reina could only half-block his finish and Scholes forced the ball into the net.

Ferdinand's finish was a show-stopper. Giggs crossed from the left and Jamie Carragher's challenge on Louis Saha helped the ball on towards the far post. It was tamed by the centre-half who then cut back inside John Arne Riise before sweeping a left-foot drive across Reina and high into the net. This was a moment of euphoria, particularly since verve like that is supposed to be alien to a defender, but it probably would not have mattered if Ferdinand had perpetrated a terrible scuff.

The attendance of 75,828 was the largest ever to watch United at Old Trafford. The home fans saw a solid win, with the promise of better to come. It can only have been loyalty that stopped Liverpool followers from turning their backs.

THE TELEGRAPH

The man who hates headlines keeps making them. The man who eschews alcohol keeps being given bottles of bubbly. Silent but golden, Paul Scholes, who swept Manchester United to a richly deserved victory at a crowing Old Trafford yesterday, showed all the movement and determination, consistency and finishing lacking in an alarmingly toothless Liverpool

How fitting that on the day the Stretford End saluted the 50th anniversary of Sir Bobby Charlton's debut, United fans should revel in the 500th appearance of an heir to Charlton's rich legacy. Like Charlton in his pomp, Scholes embodies everything that is good about United: adventure, intelligence and endless application of technical excellence. If Michael Carrick is worth £18 million, Scholes must be valued at twice that.

With United's other scorer, Rio Ferdinand, dedicating his goal to his new baby who was present yesterday, the patter of tiny feet reverberated around this famous old arena. Some of Scholes' first-time passing was breathtaking, the ball guided expertly to the flanks, particularly to the left and the excellent pair of Ryan Giggs and Patrice Evra.

Sir Alex Ferguson's pace-setters were well-drilled and completely in tune with their 4-4-2 formation, while Benitez's painful fixation with rotating, either personnel or tactics, again produced an 11-man orchestra in search of a conductor and a harmony.

The decision to start in 4-2-3-1 fashion was too cautious and confused, with Dirk Kuyt often too isolated in attack. At times, Kuyt would cross from the right into an empty box as colleagues laboured to support from deep. Benitez's side have too little pace to play this way.

United moved swiftly through their many gears, constantly carrying a threat to a Liverpool defence vulnerable down the flanks. Seven minutes from the break, United's dominance began to be reflected in the scoreline and Liverpool's Premiership hope started to crumble to dust.

When Gary Neville hoisted a cross over from the right, Momo Sissoko headed out but inevitably Scholes was lurking, always eager to turn scraps into a feast. He found the increasingly influential Wayne Rooney, who slipped Giggs down the left. This was vintage United, switching the ball from one flank to another, stretching opponents.

Liverpool resembled an ageing village bobby being given the runaround by a bunch of streetwise kids. Scholes met Giggs' cross, which Jose Reina did well to save but was helpless to prevent Scholes following up to celebrate this impressive landmark in a wonderful career.

In reaching 500 appearances for United, Scholes joined the illustrious company of Charlton himself, Joe Spence, Bill Foulkes, Tony Dunne, Alex Stepney, Denis Irwin, Ryan Giggs and Gary Neville. Twelve years after scoring on his debut, Scholes is still embarrassing keepers.

The game sprinting away from them, Liverpool tried to respond, and Jermaine Pennant arrived to replace the ineffectual Mark Gonzalez. Liverpool now had a good right winger in Pennant on the left and an outstanding central midfielder in Gerrard on the right. Bizarre.

redrus

[Jing-jo]

BECKS LOVES FERGUSON

Tuesday 24th October 2006

He also misses United.

From the Guardian;

David Beckham has given his strongest hint yet that he would be prepared to bury the hatchet with Sir Alex Ferguson, opening up the possibility of a return to Old Trafford in the summer should Manchester United want him. Beckham's contract expires on June 30, 2007, when he will become available on a free transfer, aged 32.

While Real Madrid's president, Ramón Calderón, has insisted on numerous occasions that Beckham is close to signing a new deal, it is extremely unlikely that there will be any agreement before January 1, when Beckham will officially be free to talk to other clubs.

Despite Beckham's public declarations of commitment to Real Madrid, formal negotiations over a new deal simply never took place over two years of false starts and institutional chaos at Real Madrid. When talks did finally begin this month, it became clear that an important financial gap separated the two camps. Beckham has now started only one of the last six games and last weekend admitted he was growing frustrated at the Bernabéu.

"I love playing football and if I don't do that, I can't be happy," Beckham said. "I feel frustrated as a footballer. I go over it again and again and can't find an explanation. It's really hard when I don't play and I feel sad every day. My future doesn't depend on [Fabio] Capello but if he says I am not going to play, then that's different."

With Capello privately insisting that he sees Beckham as no more than a squad player, the Englishman's departure looks more likely than ever. The question now is where he could go. Ferguson's continued presence at Old Trafford has always been considered the greatest impediment to Beckham making a return to United.

Beckham has also praised Ferguson's coaching style, insisting that Madrid can succeed with Capello precisely because of his similarities to the Scot. "I like Capello because he is the coach who is most like Ferguson," he said. "He is strict in training, in the team hotel in the preparation for matches, in everything. That is how I like things to be."

"It's difficult to explain the lack of success [at Madrid] but sometimes if you are not a team then it is difficult. I was at Manchester United for 15 years and every day, in every game, every season we were a team. We won together and we lost together."

Beckham added: "Going out to eat together is very important and we don't do it enough at Madrid. At United we used to go out together every fortnight - all the players eating together, even including Ferguson and all the coaching staff sometimes. But here it is different. In the three years I have been here we have only done it four times."

redrus

no please dont let that whining media slut come back to Manchester and i'm NOT on about posh!!

DB WAS a talented footballer till posh got hold of him

now i rate him the same as her

good job he's got such a crap voice otherwise she have him in hollywood like a flash

what a waste

[redrus]

SMITH READY FOR ACTION

By Editor

Wednesday 25th October 2006

He'll be up front at Crewe tonight.

Alan Smith is looking forward to playing as a striker tonight when United play Crewe in the Carling Cup.

'There is no mental problem for me to overcome because the way I suffered the injury was so innocuous,' he told the official site.

'It was not in a tackle so when I go in for a challenge I am not thinking about my leg.

'It will be the first time I have played up there for two years and I can't wait.'

Tomasz Kuszczak, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Kieran Richardson are all certain to be involved, as are Mikael Silvestre and Gabriel Heinze.

Meanwhile Crewe forward Ryan Lowe is hoping his side can cause an upset.

He told BBC Sport: "It is more about everyone at Crewe enjoying the night.

"But you never know - it has happened before with United and if they put out a weakened team we can turn them over."

"The whole club is looking forward to it," he added. "There is a buzz around the place because United are coming.

"It would have been nicer to be going to Old Trafford to play but we have them at home and it is a big occasion for us."

redrus

[redrus]

O'SHEA WANTS TO WIN EVERYTHING

Wednesday 25th October 2006

Starting with the Carling Cup.

John O'Shea has said that United will do their best to retain the Carling Cup this season while they also try to win the Premiership.

"If you look at our targets, we want to win every competition we enter," O'Shea told Sky Sports News.

"The Premiership, we haven't won it for a couple of seasons, so we have to get that back and it will be the main aim.

"But we want to win every competition we enter and we are the holders of the Carling Cup so we have a bit of pride and we will be looking to retain it."

redrus

[redrus]

UNITED TO SIGN YOUNGSTER

Wednesday 25th October 2006

Another Portuguese player is coming.

From Sky Sports.

Manchester United are believed to have brokered a deal for 15-year-old Walsall prodigy Evandro Brandao.

According to reports in Portugal, the Under-17 international has agreed to leave The Bescot Stadium for Old Trafford on a two-year deal after the two clubs came to a financial agreement.

The deal for the striker is expected to be ratified when Brandao returns from international duty, with the teenager then set to join compatriots Carlos Queiroz and Cristiano Ronaldo at the English giants.

redrus

[redrus]

Ferguson versus Gradi

By Louise Taylor in the Guardian

Longevity

Sir Alex Ferguson is days away from his 20th anniversary of becoming manager at Manchester United but Dario Gradi has been in charge of Crewe for 23 years and tonight's home encounter against United will be his 1,198th game since taking over in 1983. They are the two longest-serving managers in English football.

Early days

Both born in 1941, Gradi, 65, is five months older than Ferguson. While Gradi's birthplace was Milan - he moved to London as a four-year-old after the death of his Italian father - Ferguson is a son of Govan. More academic, Gradi played non-league football for Sutton United and Tooting & Mitcham before going to Loughborough University to complete a degree in physical education. He played in a university first XI with Bob Wilson, the future Arsenal goalkeeper, and Barry Hines, author of the novel A Kestrel for a Knave. Ferguson, meanwhile, was combining life as an apprentice tool worker in a Clydeside shipyard with part-time football. As Gradi qualified as a teacher in 1964, Ferguson turned pro and played for Dunfermline, Rangers, Falkirk and Ayr. Management at East Stirling, St Mirren, Aberdeen and Manchester United followed. Gradi quit teaching at 29 and became assistant manager at Chelsea. Managerial and coaching positions at Sutton, Derby, Wimbledon, Crystal Palace and Leyton Orient followed before the Crewe job. He has resisted all temptations to leave, even turning down Benfica on one occasion.

Honours

Ferguson may possess a knighthood but Gradi has the MBE - as well as the distinction of a band, Dario G, being named in his honour. And town planners in Crewe have named one suburban street Dario Gradi Close. Gradi took over a Fourth Division side and, despite money being tight, turned them into a Championship side while overseeing the redevelopment of Gresty Road and a five-fold increase in attendances. Crewe are currently in League One. Ferguson has won too many trophies to mention at Old Trafford, with his 1999 treble the undoubted highlight.

Midas touch with young players

Gradi's famous Crewe graduates include David Platt, Geoff Thomas, Neil Lennon, Dean Ashton, Danny Murphy, Rob Jones, Seth Johnson, Craig Hignett and Robbie Savage. Among Ferguson's homegrown protégés are David Beckham, the Neville brothers, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs and Nicky Butt.

Agents

Ferguson's son Jason was once an agent and United have paid millions of pounds to football's fixers in commission fees down the years - Louis Saha's representative, for instance, received £750,000 to seal the striker's move from Fulham. Gradi's Crewe only made their first such - and, at £5,000, appreciably more modest - payment this year. That fee went to Charles Collymore, the agent of the Algerian Madjid Bougherra, who joined Crewe on a sixth-month loan from French second division side FC Gueugnon.

Mutual admiration

Gradi on Ferguson: "There's no feeling like building something. Sir Alex Ferguson has not just been a first-team manager. He has built a good club and I've built a good club too. They can say what they like about us but we've both built something." Ferguson on Gradi yesterday: "It's quite easy for me because I've got the motivation of being at a big club with big games every week but Dario has had to be there for over 20 years producing and selling players from his conveyor belt of talent. They've had to rely on that for financial stability but they've sold players time and time again and he still goes in every morning rebuilding. It's a fantastic job he's done, quite amazing. I'm sure he could have left Crewe millions of times so it just impresses me how lucky Crewe are to have a manager like him. He enjoys the challenge of producing young players and I think that is his main motivation."

Lifestyle

Ferguson and his wife Cathy have three sons; Gradi has never married and has no children. A genuine workaholic, Gradi rarely takes days off, let alone holidays and has insisted that he is "bored after about two-and-a-half days in the sun". Ferguson enjoys sunshine breaks, likes to summer in the south of France and enjoys a bet. He is the proud owner of a well-stocked wine cellar but his love affair with horseracing turned sour over the well documented Rock of Gibraltar affair.

Pastoral care

Infamous for once breaking up a players' party Lee Sharpe was hosting, Ferguson has always known too much about his charges for their peace of mind but, lacking staff to delegate to, Gradi has gone beyond the call of duty to ensure his players' welfare. When, for instance, Seth Johnson moved up to Crewe's academy from rural Devon at 14 and lodged with a local couple Gradi was constantly on the phone to reassure Johnson's anxious mother, a single parent, about her son's happiness and progress and he remains a firm family friend.

Two sides of Cheshire

While Ferguson inhabits the millionaire-peopled, designer-clothed Cheshire currently portrayed in the television drama Goldplated, Gradi's Crewe - a town founded on the fortunes of the Grand Junction Railways company - remains an anorak-wearing trainspotter's paradise. They may be in the same county but to the members of the perma-tanned, perma-highlighted "Cheshire set" Alderley Edge and Prestbury are the centre of the universe and Crewe might as well be a foreign country.

redrus

[redrus]

Confirmation of the starting eleven and substitutes named for the evening game away to Crewe Alexandra.

Carling League Cup, Wednesday 25th October 2006 @ 19:45

Starting Line-ups, Crewe;

1 Williams

40 Taylor

6 Cox

5 Baudet

2 Otsemobor

16 Lowe

14 Rix

39 Osbourne

11 Vaughan

12 Varney

18 Maynard

Substitutes

13 Tomlinson

37 O'Donnell

15 Bell

9 Rodgers

10 Higdon

Starting Line-up. United

29 Kuszczak

27 Silvestre

36 Gray

6 Brown

4 Heinze

49 Jones

25 Jones

23 Richardson

0 Marsh

14 Smith

20 Solskjaer

Substitutes

38 Heaton

35 Lee

34 Shawcross

0 Barnes

0 Rose

redrus

[redrus]

Crewe Alexandra 1 Manchester United 2

by Footymad

Match report for the away win in the evening clash with Crewe Alexandra

Debutant Kieran Lee spared Manchester United's blushes with a late extra-time winner at Crewe.

The 18-year-old midfielder moved on to an Alan Smith pass and finished with aplomb into the bottom corner as United escaped a lottery of penalties by just two minutes. Sir Alex Ferguson was quick to pay tribute to Dario Gradi's battling side, who were arguably better over the 120 minutes.

Ferguson fielded a mixture of fringe players and youngsters as well as those returning from injury like Gabriel Heinze and Smith, for whom it was his first start since breaking his leg early in the year, but it was Crewe who called the shots early on with Julian Baudet rifling a 25-yard free-kick into keeper Tomasz Kuszczak's arms.

The Poalnd international did well to parry away Neil Cox's header which was bound for the far corner of the net from Andy Taylor's long free-kick and Crewe thought they had gone in front in the 16th minute when Isaac Osbourne saw his shot pushed away by the keeper, with Luke Varney finishing off from close range only to turn away from his celebrations when he spotted the offside flag raised against him.

It was United who took the lead rather against the run of play at the 26th minute when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer connected with a first-time shot into the bottom corner after Richie Jones had pulled the ball back from the right wing.

Home keeper Ben Williams was glad to get some assistance from his crossbar when he tipped Kieran Richardson's volley moments later over the top.

But Crewe were still in the game and Varney was a particular handful for the United defence, going close with a swirling shot after Jon Otsemobor and Nicky Maynard had combined.

The Premiership side took a grip of the game after the break without creating much and Crewe were still able to enjoy lots of possession and they secured a deserved equaliser in the 73rd minute, when Varney latched on to Maynard's pass and drove a low right-footed shot past Kuszczak at the near post.

But Richardson should have restored United's lead in extra-time but he stroked the ball on to the foot of the post after being put clean through by Solskjaer.

With time ebbing away Crewe fancied their chances in the penalty shoot-out but it was not to be as Lee struck in the 118th minute.

Crewe were great I expected nothing less from Dario Gradi's side and, if I'm honest did not deserve that. They deserved their chance to beat us on penalties and, I reckon would've.

Thats football though and its on down to "Sarfend" for the lads in the next round.

redrus

[mrbojangles]

29 Kuszczak

His name was spelt wrong on the back of his shirt wasn't it? And 3 (i think) of the players didn't have a number on their shirts. Is this Glazer cost cutting to pay the mortgage

Bit of a close shave last night boys But theyv'e let you have another hard fixture in the next round

[redrus]

29 Kuszczak

His name was spelt wrong on the back of his shirt wasn't it? And 3 (i think) of the players didn't have a number on their shirts. Is this Glazer cost cutting to pay the mortgage

Bit of a close shave last night boys But theyv'e let you have another hard fixture in the next round

Cheers for your thoughts mate....

They're are not first team plyers therfore do not have a first team number.

Who've City got....?

redrus

[nev]

29 Kuszczak

His name was spelt wrong on the back of his shirt wasn't it? And 3 (i think) of the players didn't have a number on their shirts. Is this Glazer cost cutting to pay the mortgage

Bit of a close shave last night boys But theyv'e let you have another hard fixture in the next round

we play our reserves mate and we still get through,unlike city who play there full team and get beat, pity that southend won,as a united and leeds game would have been great.

so you are saying the draw is fixed .

[redrus]

Leeds away, that would've been memory of the season so far (ahead of doin the dippers-who've been very quiet-Kurgen, Lil John, Fast Eddie, Phuket Siam.?), what with the mardy midget in charge now too.

What an occasion to unite the counties.....

redsrus

[redrus]

United close on Saddlers teen

By Tom Adams -Sky- Created on 24 Oct 2006

Manchester United are believed to have brokered a deal for 15-year-old Walsall prodigy Evandro Brandao.

According to reports in Portugal, the Under-17 international has agreed to leave The Bescot Stadium for Old Trafford on a two-year deal after the two clubs came to a financial agreement.

Brandao, who has lived in England for nine years, played in The Red Devils' colours in the Nike Cup held in Manchester in August and United's close links with The Saddlers appear to have borne fruit with the player now entrusting his future to Sir Alex Ferguson.

The deal for the striker is expected to be ratified when Brandao returns from international duty, with the teenager then set to join compatriots Carlos Queiroz and Cristiano Ronaldo at the English giants.

Ferguson has also been linked with another Portuguese starlet in the form of Sporting's Nani in recent weeks, whilst Arsenal recently swooped for Brandao's international team-mate Rui Fonte.

redrus