Monday, 20 January 2014

Debrief: Man United playing in their own shadow, Arsenal still have their big tests to come

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By: TBMU Admin On: 15:22   In:   No comments

Debrief: Man United playing in their own shadow, Arsenal still have their big tests to come

Debrief: Man United playing in their own shadow, Arsenal still have their big tests to come

Posted: 19 Jan 2014 12:38 PM PST

Top Gunners' biggest challenges are yet to come In Saturday's win over Fulham, Arsenal did what they've done so well so many times this season - remain patient and composed, before killing off their opponents in the second half. Consistently winning those games that look to be slipping away is certainly no bad thing, but having to battle so long and hard could take a mental and physical toll when the key stage of the Gunners' season hits. Over the course of 28 days in March and early April, Arsenal will face Bayern Munich (a), Tottenham (a), Chelsea (a), Manchester City (h) and Everton (a). That daunting run could also be topped and tailed by FA Cup quarter and semi-finals, should the Gunners progress that far - not to mention the possibility of a two-legged Champions League quarter-final, should they overcome Bayern. In previous seasons when the title has been at stake, Arsenal have stuttered as spring has sprung, and the Gunners can ill afford a similar slump this time round. Straining every last sinew to beat Fulham, and before that Cardiff, may appear gutsy, but may leave the Gunners with a little less in the tank during that unenviable month of doom. Arsenal are in great nick, but their key battles still lie ahead. Defensive uncertainty costing Liverpool It was only a couple of weeks ago that Liverpool were on top of the Premier League - now they're suddenly looking over their shoulder with their top-four spot at risk. The Reds have kept just six Premier League clean sheets this season - the same number as Hull and Crystal Palace, and fewer than West Ham or Norwich. Luis Suarez and his goalscoring chums have more often than not made that stat all but an irrelevance by rattling in 53 times in 22 league matches, but what happens if the attacking players have a bad day at the office? Brendan Rodgers' side may have scored twice in their 2-2 draw with Aston Villa, but the attacking verve that has been a key feature of so many of their matches this season largely seemed to have deserted them. The moments of brilliant flair and guile were few and far between - Jordan Henderson's sensational flick to Daniel Sturridge immediately before the striker's goal was one. It's on days like this that a title-challenging team needs a solid defence to fall back on. Liverpool's back-line - who struggled to cope with Stoke in last Sunday's 5-3 victory in the Potteries - were again pulled from pillar to post, this time by the pace and power of Gabriel Agbonlahor and Christian Benteke. A lack of communication between the defence and goalkeeper Simon Mignolet was exposed when Benteke was afforded the opportunity to head into an open net after a mix-up between the keeper and Glen Johnson. Matters aren't helped by the tug-happy Martin Skrtel looking like giving away a penalty from every set-piece. The Anfield side have made many friends this season, but unless they can iron out the creases in their defensive game, it could yet all go to waste. Sherwood showing something AVB didn't When Tim Sherwood first took the helm at Tottenham, the football world was agog with talk of the former England midfielder's exotic '4-4-2' formation, a world away from Andre Villas-Boas' 4-2-3-1 (but not that much, when you think about it). Although the system brought great success in the league, Sherwood's critics were quick to point out that it had left Tottenham exposed and overrun in central midfield during the FA Cup defeat at Arsenal. It therefore seemed noteworthy that Sherwood opted for a system which appeared startlingly similar to his predecessor's for Sunday's trip to Swansea - and more noteworthy still that it brought with it arguably Tottenham's most consistent and coherent attacking performance of the season to date. With the reinvigorated Emmanuel Adebayor acting as the focal point, Nacer Chadli and Aaron Lennon bringing width and pace, and the ever-improving Christian Eriksen constantly searching for pockets of space in which to cause mischief, Spurs gave their hosts plenty to worry about right across the pitch. One of the biggest criticisms of Villas-Boas was that the Portuguese was sticking too rigidly to one system, which was causing his team to be easier to figure out and contain. Could it be that Borehamwood-born Sherwood is actually more tactically flexible than his exotic predesceor? That would certainly be good news for Spurs. United lacking all their old qualities In the past, Manchester United will have played worse than they did in Sunday's defeat at Chelsea, and still picked up at least a point. The difference this season is that they appear to lack the same conviction and bloody-mindedness required to scrape results against the odds. United had plenty of possession against Chelsea, but had relatively little authority over the match and rarely had Chelsea concerned. There was little of the direct, aggressive play we've come to associate with the Red Devils - indeed, the only aggression came in the form of a couple of misguided lunges towards the end of the match (one of which earned Nemanja Vidic a red card). David Moyes suggested after the match that the only difference between the two teams was that Chelsea scored from two set-pieces. He's not too far wrong, but the reality is that Chelsea - and hat-trick hero Samuel Eto'o in particular - were far more clinical in a match of few good chances. Of course, they were without Wayne Rooney and Robin van Persie for the defeat at Stamford Bridge, but traditionally under Sir Alex Ferguson (yes, it's time for THAT comparison again), players like Ji-Sung Park and Darren Fletcher would shine in the big matches - it wasn't always left for the star men to drag the others over the line. Clearly, what we're now realising in hindsight is the extent to which the pair were doing exactly that last season. The fact is that United's squad is mentally and technically not as strong as it has been in recent years - that's certainly not entirely Moyes' fault - but he simply has to find a way of rebuilding this squad. It'll take more than one or two additions to get this lot challenging at the very top again. The fact there seemed to be so much satisfaction with the performance is perhaps a sign of how far they've fallen.

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Moyes defiant after Stamford Bridge defeat

Posted: 19 Jan 2014 11:43 AM PST

Moyes' difficult start to his Old Trafford tenure continued on Sunday as the Premier League champions were beaten 3-1 at Stamford Bridge. United have now suffered seven top-flight defeats and their chances of retaining the title appear to be over with leaders Arsenal 14 points ahead. Former Everton boss Moyes dismissed talk of a crisis after United's latest setback and the defiant Scotsman is relishing the task of getting the club back on track. When asked by a journalist at his post-match press conference if he is facing a crisis, Moyes said: "No, that's your word, not my word. "It's a difficult task but perseverance, we'll keep doing what's right. I thought we've done a lot of good things today, we've got players to come back and this is a project that I know I'm going to improve as it goes along. "There will be changes as we go along on the journey and I'm looking forward to it, but it's a massive challenge. "I hoped I'd be in a far better position than this, but I'm not so the challenge is there for me and I think, if you're a football person, it's a great one to have." Moyes refused to write off his side's chances of winning the title despite the significant gap that has opened up between United and the top three - Arsenal, Manchester City and Chelsea. He said: "What we won't do is throw the towel in until we can't get there. The job is to try and finish first and we'll keep trying to do that." The 50-year-old was left frustrated with United's defending as Samuel Eto'o scored a hat-trick to keep Chelsea, who are just two points adrift of Arsenal, firmly in the hunt for the title. He said: "I thought we played quite well throughout the game, but the game came down to two set-pieces. We didn't defend set-pieces well and that was probably the difference in the game. "We were terrible at defending the corner kick (for the second goal). We headed it out; we didn't defend it well enough at the second phase and found ourselves 2-0 down at half-time." To cap a miserable afternoon, United had captain Nemanja Vidic sent off for a foul on Eden Hazard after Javier Hernandez had pulled a goal back. Moyes felt the defender was unfortunate to be dismissed, but admitted Rafael could have been given his marching orders for a reckless lunge on Gary Cahill, which resulted in the full-back being shown a yellow card late on. "I thought Vidic was a yellow card, but I've seen Rafa's and I think that could have been a sending off," added Moyes.

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Torres ruled out for Chelsea with knee injury

Posted: 19 Jan 2014 11:16 AM PST

The striker suffered lateral ligament damage after coming off the bench in the 3-1 Premier League win at Stamford Bridge on Sunday. Samuel Eto'o was preferred to Torres in Mourinho's starting line-up, and he justified that selection by scoring a hat-trick against the champions. The Spain international's absence will leave Mourinho with just Eto'o and Demba Ba as his only fit strikers, but the performance of Cameroon international Eto'o was a major boost for the Portuguese. The Chelsea boss told Sky Sports: "At the moment we lose Fernando for a few weeks, he has a problem with his lateral ligament. For a few weeks now we will have Demba and Samuel and hope they can do the job for us." He added: "Of course I love when one of my players (Eto'o) becomes a special player in the match. "Torres is dangerous in space. United came here to be compact so I picked Eto'o for his movement in small spaces." It was another memorable afternoon for Mourinho, who achieved the landmark of winning 100 Premier League games quicker than any other manager. Eto'o scored twice in the first half and completed his hat-trick just after the break to heap more misery on United, who pulled a late goal back courtesy of Javier Hernandez before captain Nemanja Vidic was sent off for a challenge on Eden Hazard. The former Real Madrid coach expressed his pride at bringing up a century of top-flight wins in only 142 games, but securing three more precious points in the race for the title gave him greater satisfaction as Chelsea cut the gap to leaders Arsenal to only two points. He added: "More important than anything is the three points. Of course it's nice (100 Premier League wins), it's obviously one more fantastic thing for my career, but most important is to win a difficult match. "It was too hard for them to be losing 2-0 at half-time, because they started stronger and better than us. Second half we started stronger and were better for long periods. "Overall we deserve the three points and they are three important points, because it opens a gap between us and Manchester United and Liverpool. We also close the gap on Arsenal and (Manchester) City."

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Premier League: Chelsea 3 Man United 1

Posted: 19 Jan 2014 09:57 AM PST

The Cameroon international struck twice in the first half and was on target again just after the break at Stamford Bridge to take his tally to eight goals for the season as third-placed Chelsea stretched their winning run to six games in all competitions. Javier Hernandez pulled a goal back for United after coming off the bench, but It was another miserable afternoon for boss David Moyes, who will also now be without his captain Nemanja Vidic for a spell after he was sent off in injury time for a wild challenge on Eden Hazard. Defeat saw Moyes' side beaten for the first time away from home in the league for almost four months, as their chances of retaining their title were made even more remote. The champions are 14 points behind Arsenal and now face a battle to even qualify for the UEFA Champions League, sitting six points adrift of fourth-placed Liverpool. Jose Mourinho has no such problems, as he celebrated his 100th Premier League win in only 142 games - requiring less matches than any other manager to achieve the landmark. Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic returned from injury ahead of schedule at the expense of Ashley Cole, while Eto'o was preferred to Fernando Torres. New signing Nemanja Matic started on the bench alongside fit-again midfielder Frank Lampard. Ashley Young and Phil Jones were back in the United starting line-up as Shinji Kagawa and Chris Smalling dropped to the bench. United made an encouraging start, but they found themselves behind after 16 minutes when Eto'o conjured up a goal out of nothing. There appeared to be no danger when the striker picked up a loose ball, but he cut in from the right and jinked past Jones before unleashing a shot from the edge of the penalty area that deflected off Michael Carrick and looped into the far corner of the net. United responded well to going behind and the lively Adnan Januzaj created a great chance for Danny Welbeck when he picked out the striker in the area, but the England international's tame finish was saved by Petr Cech. That miss proved to be costly too, as Gary Cahill picked out Eto'o a minute before half-time and the Cameroon international finished from six yards out. Eto'o then made United pay for some poor defending just three minutes into the second half to complete his treble. He was first to react when Cahill's header was well saved by De Gea - the alert striker on hand to tuck home the rebound. Welbeck's frustrating afternoon continued when he headed wide from six yards out, but substitute Hernandez did pull a goal back when he turned in Jones' shot from inside the six yard box 12 minutes from time. It was too little, too late for Moyes' side though, and Matic came on to make his second debut for Chelsea five minutes from time after rejoining from Benfica as they saw out the victory with ease. United's misery was complete when Vidic was then shown a straight red card for a cynical challenge on Hazard, while Rafael was lucky to escape with just a yellow after lunging at Cahill.

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Moyes: Man United still attractive to top players

Posted: 19 Jan 2014 02:06 AM PST

Moyes' men sit seventh in the Premier League, 14 points off leaders Arsenal, while the Scot has also seen his side bow out of the FA Cup at the first hurdle. Despite suffering a difficult start to life at Old Trafford, Moyes, who was only able to sign Marouane Fellaini in the close-season, remains confident big name players would still consider moving to Old Trafford. Having been linked with the likes of Koke and Juan Mata in recent weeks, Moyes said: "The amount of big players wanting to join United is incredible. "Some players go for the money at other clubs but, if you ask them where they really want to be, they want to wear the badge of Manchester United, not only the biggest club in this country but in the world. "Some of the results have not been what you want, but I wouldn't say the aura is fading. In fact, I think the opposite. "It won't be an issue when trying to sign players, not from the trips I am making and the things I am hearing."

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Anderson raring to get started at Fiorentina

Posted: 18 Jan 2014 05:47 AM PST

The Brazil international will go straight into the squad for Fiorentina's match with Catania on Sunday after completing his temporary move to Serie A. Anderson only made two starts for United under David Moyes and admitted a willingness to play regular first-team football was behind his decision to leave the club. Speaking after his first training session with Fiorentina, the 25-year-old expressed a desire to help his new club extend their six-game unbeaten run in all competitions. "I'm very happy (to be here)," Anderson told the club's official website. "It is a new challenge. "I come here to help the team, the players and the manager to do the best. "I know Fiorentina failed to get in the UEFA Champions League last season, so I come to try and help (them get there this season). "I just want to play, just want to be on the pitch."

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Anderson completes Fiorentina loan switch

Posted: 18 Jan 2014 03:20 AM PST

The 25-year-old Brazilian, who arrived at Old Trafford from Porto in 2007, is understood to have joined the Serie A outfit until the end of the current campaign. United boss David Moyes had confirmed Andersons imminent exit from the English champions on Friday, outlining the Brazilians need for regular first-team action. A brief statement on Fiorentinas official website 24 hours later read: ACF Fiorentina announces that it has acquired, (on) a temporary basis, the rights to the player Anderson Luis de Abreu Oliveira by Manchester United FC.

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Moyes makes light of Mourinhos Rooney claim

Posted: 18 Jan 2014 01:10 AM PST

Chelsea were unsuccessful in their attempts to sign Rooney ahead of the current campaign and manager Mourinho is aware United have no desire to sell a prized asset to a domestic rival. However, the Portugueses suggestion that Rooney, whose contract ends in 18 months, could move abroad at the end of the season has been rejected by Moyes. The United boss said: I can only tell you that I disagree - although he will go to Brazil (with England for the 2014 FIFA World Cup). Moyes refused to criticise Mourinho, who he will come up against on Sunday at Stamford Bridge, but made it clear he would not comment on players at opposing teams. Everybody has their style. I wouldnt talk about other managers at other clubs and I wouldnt talk about other players at other clubs, added the Scot. I cant tell you what his motivation is but only time will give you an answer about Wayne. The club will deal with that - they will do all they need to do, no question. Mourinho had earlier said: Manchester United made it clear in the summer they dont swap or sell players to their direct rivals. They were clear in the way they approached the Rooney situation. I think maybe this summer they will try to sell to a non-direct rival. But they were very clear (about not selling to Chelsea).

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