Wednesday, 22 January 2014

Red Rants

21:13

Red Rants


United’s old boys not in mood for favours

Posted: 22 Jan 2014 01:40 AM PST

Fabio-Borini-Celeb-v-Manchester-United_3062911Manchester United host Sunderland in the second leg of the Capital One Cup semifinal, trailing 2-1 to the Wearsiders and requiring a win to clinch a spot in League Cup final for the fourth time in eight years.

Ahead of tonight’s game, we have caught up with Sunderland blogger Joseph (@SunderlandWorld) who was kind enough to share his views on tonight’s game, Wes Brown and United’s malaise.

1. After edging the 1st leg 2-1 at SoL 2 weeks ago and the resurgent form of your team and individuals such as Johnson and Colback under Poyet, surely you must fancy your chances of advancing through to the final?

Like any Sunderland fan, if I’d been offered a 2-1 lead going into the second leg at Old Trafford, I would have bitten your hand off. It puts us in a fantastic position for the second leg. However, I’d never bet against United, especially since there’s only one goal in it, but having Adam Johnson in the form of his Sunderland career and the consistency of the likes of Jack Colback, Ki, Wes Brown and John O’Shea under Gus Poyet can only help us.

2. Which United players should Sunderland most be aware of if they’re to get something out of the tie at Old Trafford?

I think if Wayne Rooney and Robin Van Persie are fit, we have to focus on stopping them, because regardless of form, on their day they are one of the best strike partnerships in Europe. Michael Carrick can be very effective in the middle of the park, and Adnan Januzaj has had two very good games against us this season.

3. Is Gus Poyet the right man for the job and have you been surprised at the sheer gulf in performances between Poyet’s Sunderland and Paolo Di Canio’s Sunderland?

I think Poyet the right man for the job definitely. If we go down, we have a manager who is proven at Championship level, and if we stay up, we have a manager with fantastic potential who can take the club forward.

I have been surprised, but as time went on, and stories started to trickle out about what it was like under the Di Canio regime, I was less surprised. He seemed a complete nutter and a nightmare to work for, and it’s quite easy to see why we started off as poorly as we did. Even under caretaker manager Kevin Ball performances improved drastically, so his departure lifted a massive weight from the players shoulders.

4. What happened to cause such a dip under Di Canio in your opinion? Results were promising and so too performances during your pre-season under him, was it something specific?

It was a combination of factors. I don’t ever think you can read too much into the pre-season results to be honest, and they cannot compare with a meaningful Premier League game. Several players who did well in pre-season, like Cabral, who has since been loaned out and David Moberg-Karlsson haven’t really made much of an impact on the first team. Plus, when we played the likes of Spurs and City they were yet to do the majority of their summer business, and neither were we really.

5. If you were to reach the Cup Final to obviously face high-scoring, in-form Manchester City, would you be daring to think of a win or would it automatically be damage limitation?

If you go there looking to limit the damage, then you’ve already lost. I’d much rather we got hammered and given it a go than sitting back and getting beaten 1-0. We’d have nothing to lose, so I’d much rather that we go for it than not. We’ve beaten City several times over the past few seasons, so we’d be definitely capable of getting a result. If we get to Wembley, it would mean we had beaten Manchester United and Chelsea, so anything is possible really.

6. The league is table has bunched up recently with improved results for yourselves and Palace coupled with dips in form by West Ham, Stoke and Cardiff. How confident are you Poyet and your boys can avoid the dreaded drop despite being bottom at Christmas?

I am quietly confident. It’s so tight at the bottom that if you can put a few wins together then you’ll be in mid table, but equally lose a couple and you could be cut off. However, there are still a lot of games to be played and like all of these teams, the business we do in January will have a massive say in whether we survive or not. If we bring in a decent striker, most of our home games look very winnable, so we have every chance of survival.

7. I think Wes Brown has had an excellent season thus far and in my opinion, with the current below par options at centre back, England manager Roy Hodgson should be calling him up and considering him for Brazil in the summer. Do you agree?

Wes has been fantastic for us this season. His return from injury has coincided with our improvement defensively and when he plays well, Sunderland play well. However, I very much doubt that he will, purely because of his age and the fact England would traditionally rather pick a player playing averagely for a top club than pick a player having a good season for a club at the wrong end of the table.

8. Any prediction for the game?

I’ll be optimistic and go for a 1-1 draw, which would see us through nicely

9. Finally, are you enjoying watching United and their fans suffer their current situation?

I’m not really enjoying it, because I don’t really believe you are suffering. For me it was inevitable once Ferguson left that there would be a wobble of sorts. United will always bounce back though, it’s just a matter of time. I do understand that if you are of the “Fergie generation” and all you know is success, you are obviously shocked by your current standing. But being a Sunderland fan and having sat through some thoroughly abysmal seasons, including the 15 point 2005/06 campaign, if we finished 7th, where you are now, it would equal our highest ever PL league finish, and it would be a total dream. I guess it’s all about perspective though.

 

 

 

The Real deal?

Posted: 22 Jan 2014 12:51 AM PST

Zemanta Related Posts ThumbnailAfter a day of bizarre speculation which saw Reds across the world debate over the wisdom of a possible offer for Juan Mata, United and a major force in Spanish football are linked yet again.

However, today United are the part set to receive an offer, rather than the one submitting it, as Real Madrid are reportedly set to present an offer for Wayne Rooney this summer, having decided that the United number 10 is an infinitely easier target to secure than Sergio Aguero.

Aguero has been on Madrid’s radar for a while now, but City have no intention to sell one of their main assets (losing Aguero might lead to them scoring less than four goals a game, you know) not to mention that the Argentine has recently extended his contract with City until 2017.

Likewise, neither Luis Suarez nor Radamel Falcao, two of Real’s other targets, look easily attainable, given that the first has signed a new four-year deal at Liverpool (expect Scouse imploding all over Merseyside, were he to demand a move if Liverpool fail to finish in the top 4), while Falcao is too expensive even for Florentino Perez’s pockets.

And so, to Rooney who, according to the Telegraph, has emerged as Real Madrid’s main target given that he’s a) available for around £25m – half the amount that would be required to sign Falcao, for example – b) out of contract in 18 months and, crucially, c) playing for a team seemingly in decline and, as things stand, unable to guarantee him a bright future.

Rooney is widely expected to assess his options this summer, particularly if United fail to qualify for the Champions League – which is an increasingly realistic possibility – and even though Chelsea are though to be ready to submit another offer for the striker at the end of the season, Real Madrid might want to have a say in the matter.

United, in typically misjudged fashion, have made clear that they are happy to let Rooney run down his contract, thus allowing him to leave for free in 2015, rather than accept an offer for the striker as he enters the last 18 months of his current deal.

While United’s stance of not wanting to sell to a direct rival is admirable, choosing to allow Rooney to let his deal expire before leaving for free would be suicidal and not only because United would deprive themselves of a decent transfer fee, but because it’d mean that next season United could be pinning their hopes on a player whose future is already been sealed.

 

 

Trip to Wembley could change United’s season

Posted: 21 Jan 2014 11:55 PM PST

Sunderland-v-Manchester-United-2999112Describing a game against Sunderland on a Wednesday night in January as a last chance saloon for Manchester United would have raised a few eyebrows in years go by.

David Moyes and his team might not be at that stage yet, but tonight’s second leg of the Capital One Cup semifinal is as big a test as any the former Everton manager has faced since replacing Sir Alex Ferguson in the Manchester United dugout last July.

Four defeats in the last five games are a damning statement of United’s current situation, last Sunday’s debacle against Chelsea doing nothing to dismiss the notion that United are merely a mid-table side attempting to punch above their weight – and failing miserably in the process.

Putting the Mata rumours aside for a second – the Spaniard might not fit the system, but have Tom Cleverley and Marouane Fellaini ever done so? – United have the chance to reach a cup final which, in theory at least, should be enough to have fans salivating with anticipation.

Except that it isn’t, for many Reds would rather avoid winning tonight than being beaten by City in the final.

“They’re too strong” these people lament, speaking of Manuel Pellegrini’s free scoring armada, gleefully ignoring that United didn’t turn down Champions League finals against Barcelona in 2009 and 2011 because the Catalans “looked too strong”.

With Wayne Rooney and Robin Van Persie still out, the onus to provide the goals required to book a ticket to Wembley is likely to fall upon Danny Welbeck and Javier Hernandez.

The Mexican netted yet again against Chelsea, while Welbeck must start scoring in these sort of games to prove that his development this season isn’t a mere flash in the pan and there’s no reason to doubt Danny, the only United player alongside Adnan Januzaj to look lively on Sunday.

The Belgian is again likely to be involved from the start and David Moyes will again place a lot of expectations on the youngster’s shoulders as United seek to reach a fourth League Cup final in eight years – incidentally, in the three previous occasions, United had always entered the second leg trailing.

The rest of the team virtually pick itself, with Chris Smalling lightly to replace the suspended Nemanja Vidic in the middle of the back four, while Rafael and Patrice Evra will take their usual spots at full-back and one between Tom Cleverley and Darren Flecther is expected to partner Michael Carrick in midfield.

More than anything else, though, United will need their fans. The away end that was so impressive at Stamford Bridge on Sunday will have to be just as loud, if the Reds are to overcome Sunderland.

Until 12 months ago it would have seemed an easy task, today is anything but.

However, United can still do it. After all, she wore a scarlet ribbon….

Dan

Written by TBMU Admin

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